More than one million South African learners experienced violence at school in 2024, exposing a disturbing reality behind classroom doors and highlighting the urgent need to better protect children.

As the curtain comes down on Child Protection Week on 5 June, newly released General Household Survey (GHS) data from Statistics SA paints a stark picture of the abuse, neglect and violence many children continue to face.

The survey, which tracks trends between 2009 and 2024, shows that while corporal punishment has declined significantly, violence against children remains widespread in schools.

According to the data, the proportion of learners aged five years and older who experienced corporal punishment declined by 10 percentage points over the 14-year period.

While the decrease was gradual in the earlier years, the sharpest decline occurred between 2015 and 2024.

This downward trend is consistent with South Africa’s legislative stance against corporal punishment.

The practice was outlawed in schools under Section 10 of the South African Schools Act, which criminalises its use by educators.

Data for 2024 shows notable differences in the sources of physical violence experienced by learners aged five years and older.

Incidents involving teachers (156 229) are far higher than those involving fellow learners (87 059).

In total, 1 156 009 learners said they experienced some form of violence at school.

About 14% reported physical violence from teachers, compared with roughly 8% from other learners.

Younger children most at risk

Learners aged 5 to 8 report higher levels of violence, with peaks at age 7 (20,6%) and again at age 13 (19,5%), highlighting particularly vulnerable stages in early schooling and early adolescence.

In contrast, peer-perpetrated violence is most prominent among 7-year-olds (16,3%), suggesting that aggressive peer interactions tend to emerge early and are concentrated in the first years of formal education.

This divergence in age-specific peaks indicates that different dynamics may be at play depending on the source of the violence: while peer-related aggression surfaces earlier, teacher-related or other forms of violence appear to persist into later developmental stages.

A clear distinction emerges between teacher- and peer-perpetrated incidents. Verbal abuse is more frequently reported from fellow learners, with 21% identifying peers as the source, compared to 12% who report similar experiences involving teachers.

Age patterns reinforce trend

The highest incidence of verbal abuse occurs among 7-year-olds, with nearly one-third (30,1%) report exposure.

Elevated levels are also evident among pre-teens, suggesting that verbal abuse not only begins early but can persist and potentially intensify into later developmental stages.

Among learners aged five and older who experienced violence in schools in 2024, reports of verbal violence were almost evenly split by gender, with a slight majority of females affected (51,2%).

A closer look, however, reveals clear gender differences across types of violence. Females make up a significant share of those subjected to teacher-perpetrated abuse, accounting for roughly 63% of reported verbal incidents and about 58% of physical violence cases involving teachers.

The pattern extends, though less sharply, to peer interactions. In cases of peer-related verbal violence, females represent 56,2% of affected learners, indicating that girls are consistently more likely to report experiences of abuse across both teacher- and peer-driven contexts.

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