‘Classroom violence rise direct result of cutbacks’

TEACHERS are witnessing a sharp rise in violence, threats and serious assaults on school grounds against both them and their pupils as a direct result of vital support services being slashed.

And the Teachers Union of Ireland has warned the cuts imposed by a succession of education ministers has meant they are unable to guarantee discipline in their class rooms.

A 2006 survey of 1,200 TUI members found one-in-five teachers had been “threatened or intimidated” by students in a single week, that three-in-four had seen their classes “seriously disrupted”, that one-in-five were unable to prevent physical violence between students, and that one-in-two teachers in disadvantaged areas were regularly subjected to verbal abuse.