Social media blamed for starting 20 attacks a week among students in South Australian public schools

CONFLICTS that start on social media are sparking violence in the state’s schoolgrounds, with public schools recording an average of 20 attacks by students against their peers each week.

Conflicts that start on social media are sparking violence in the state’s schoolgrounds, with public schools recording an average of 20 attacks by students against their peers each week. Picture: Thinkstock.

• School students armed with weapons
• Teachers attacked amid rise in student violence

CONFLICTS that start on social media are sparking violence in the state’s schoolgrounds, with public schools recording an average of 20 attacks by students against their peers each week.

Latest Education Department figures show there were 515 student-on-student incidents of violence to August 26 this year.

If the rate of incidents stays the same to the end of the school year, they will reach 792 — an 18 per cent rise on the 669 last year and more than the 771 in 2014.

The department said schools often dealt with student conflicts that began outside of school hours.

“While students are taught respectful and responsible behaviour, conflict between students across all ages is inevitable,” executive director for school and preschool improvement Anne Millard said.

“The prevalence of social media has contributed to increased interaction outside of school for upper primary and secondary school students.”

Opposition education spokesman John Gardner said the number of incidents was a “blight” on the public system, regardless of the source of conflicts.

He said schools needed to take a “hard line” approach to violence “and need to know that the government will back them up”, because of the “extraordinarily traumatic impact that bullying and especially violent bullying can have on young minds as they are forming”.

Students are also the victims of more than 100 violent attacks a year from parents — usually their own — volunteers and other members of the public on school grounds, as the Sunday Mail revealed last week.

Students had attacked teachers and other staff 465 times by August 26 this year, almost as many as the 473 recorded for the whole school year in 2014. At the same rate the total would be 715 by the end of the year, up from 563 last year.

In May the Australian Education Union called for the hiring of more school services officers, saying student violence against staff was increasing in part as a result of more students with “extreme behaviour and learning disabilities” in mainstream schools.

The union also wanted more places for students in special classes and special schools.

However the department at the time said more schools were using an online reporting system and that “certainly contributed” to rising numbers of reports.

Ms Millard this week said there were “clear consequences for students who breach the rules” in line with behaviour management policies.

“Schools actively work with children, students and families to teach and reinforce appropriate behaviours to prevent further incidents,” she said.