Education department steps in on Cedarwood issue
GLENFERNESS - Cedarwood School is now in trouble with the Gauteng Department of Education over allegations of child abuse at the remedial school after the department announced this week that the school was officially under investigation.
Phumla Sekhonyane, spokesperson for the department said her officials paid the school a visit recently. “Officials from the department visited the school only to find that the school was on a recess… The school follows a three-term calendar. The investigation will continue now that the school has opened,” she confirmed.
The investigations arose after this paper exposed the alleged abuse of a pupil. The mother of Sharynne Bayne is claiming that a teacher at the school insulted her son saying he had a pea-sized brain. The School Governing Board chairperson Duncan Turner maintains that the pea-sized brain comments were made by another pupil and not a teacher.
Bayne also believes that the teachers at Cedarwood School are not qualified to offer remedial services.
“As for the list of qualifications you have for your teachers and class assistants, I would like to set up a time and day to see these,” Bayne said in recent communications to Turner. Turner invited her to come and inspect his teachers’ qualifications. Bayne is taking up the invitation.
She also accused Turner of shifting the blame and scapegoating.
Turner declined to send his responses to Fourways Review this week when approached for his reaction to the latest round of allegations.
Turner said he will send his responses directly to Bayne. Bayne, however, told Fourways Review that Turner had not yet responded to the letter which she recently wrote.
