A learner from Stratford Primary School in Eerste River was rushed to the hospital after being stabbed in the head by a fellow learner last week.
According to the provincial education department’s spokesperson, Millicent Merton the two learners were fighting on the school ground when the one stabbed the other with scissors.
“The school reported the incident to Safe Schools on Thursday 14 September. Two Grade 4 learners were involved in a fight. One of the learners stabbed the other in the head with a blunt-nose scissors. First aid was immediately applied. The mother of the injured learner accompanied him in an ambulance for further medical care. While the school experienced incidents of learner misbehaviour and sporadic violence, it is not gang related. These incidents are dealt with in terms of the school’s code of conduct,” says Merton.
A group of concerned Stratford Primary parents wrote a letter to TygerBurger, complaining about the discipline at the school.
Concerns
“After many complaints to the WCED about the incompetence of the principal, nothing has been done. This latest incident follows after many complaints have been sent to the department of a gangster-like environment at the school. Chaos has really hit this school since the appointment of the current principal,” reads the letter from the parents.
Merton says the allegations against the principal have been investigated and could not be corroborated.
Incidents at other schools
The incident at Stratford is the second stabbing in many weeks on school grounds.
Last week the janitor at Blackheath High School was stabbed to death by a matric learner. The learner fled to the Eastern Cape where he was arrested. He appeared in court and was released on R500 bail.
