Teachers face daily lessons in violence
By BRUCE McDOUGALL Education Reporter
February 21, 2005


ALMOST 1000 traumatised teachers have suffered mental disorders while working in the state's classrooms during the past two years.

Thousands more have made claims for compensation or medical assistance for injuries sustained at school, WorkCover figures show.
Further data obtained by The Daily Telegraph under Freedom of Information reveals teachers frequently risk their own safety while protecting students in their care.
Serious incident reports show teachers are forced to deal with intruders, assaults, death threats, weapons brought into school, vandalism and serious accidents involving students.
In one primary school at Bankstown in Sydney's southwest a student told to stop talking took offence and dived through an open second-storey window.
He was only saved by the teacher grabbing him by the legs and dragging him inside.
At a Hunter Valley school a dispute between parents and a teacher became so vitriolic that 20 of them ordered their children to boycott classes until the teacher was removed.
A deputy principal received death threats on the phone, futher threats that his wife would be raped and graffiti tagged "Pimp" on his fence.
In other incidents reported by schools:
A NEW teacher was mugged on his way to school at Campbelltown;
A PRINCIPAL was hit on the head with a large piece of concrete:
A TEACHER was off work for 10 days with whiplash after a child pulled a chair out from under her; and
THREATS to a teacher's life were posted on a school website and photos of a known terrorist pasted next to the class page.
Teacher Rob Deacon accused the Government of failing to make a "long-term commitment to staffing improvements" in the volatile behaviour schools.
"My fear is that a student or a staff member in one of these schools will have to be killed before our pleas are listened to," Mr Deacon said.
Opposition education spokeswoman Jillian Skinner said the Government paid out more than $135 million in WorkCover claims for public school and TAFE employees during the past two years.
"Teachers often report that complaints about disruptive or bullying students are not addressed - leaving them disillusioned, disenchanted and stressed," Ms Skinner said.
"What is need is a proper investment in upgrading our schools, supporting our teachers and taking their concerns seriously."
The Department of Education and Training said there were 5429 claims for workplace injuries in 2003-2004 - up by 111 on the previous year.
In a bid to reduce the number of claims, 59 occupational health and safety experts have been placed in schools throughout NSW.
Teachers Federation senior vice-president Angelo Gavrielatos said the figures were proof positive that teaching was a very stressful career and that the increasing expectations placed on teachers was taking its toll.
"As a society we've got to ask ourselves whether we can continue to place unreasonable expectations on the role of the teacher and school," Mr Gavrielatos said.
"Teachers find themselves on any one day assuming the role of nurse, psychologist, mum, dad and heaven knows what else. In between all that they're a teacher as well."
Mr Gavrielatos said that occupational health and safety inspectors in schools were having no effect on the daily lives of teachers.
"There has been a 25 per cent decline in frontline services to teachers and schools," he said.
"If the department is serious about addressing the pressures and stresses that contribute to these figures then they should provide more support."
Violent and badly behaved students face tough new disciplinary action this year.
Long-term suspensions for having drugs or weapons are now mandatory and principals have been given power to suspend students for using technologies such as SMS and e-mail inappropriately.
Principals also are receiving police training to strengthen the way serious incidents are handled.
A 24-hour, seven-day-a-week hotline now links schools directly with police or the Education Department's school safety unit.