'Discipline crisis' in secondary schools

SECONDARY school teachers yesterday insisted there was a discipline crisis in Irish classrooms with students shouting at them, using bad language in class, being physically violent and even selling drugs in the school grounds.

At the annual conference of the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) in Ennis, members called on the Government to take urgent action to address the problem of unruly students.

Teachers warned lives were being wrecked and many "driven to despair" by bad student behaviour.