Anger at failure to protect teachers

SCHOOL leaders expressed anger at the lack of changes to procedures to protect teachers and students from misbehaving classmates, 18 months after the necessary law was passed.

Changes to the Education Act introduced by previous Education Minister Mary Hanafin were signed into law in March 2007. The aim was to ensure committees hearing appeals against expulsion of a student should consider the rights of classmates as well as those of the person bringing the case.

This was done to reflect demands from schools and teachers to act on growing misbehaviour problems among a minority of second-level students, because of the detrimental effect it was having on teaching and learning.