Right to Information report details horrific violence, abuse on Qld teachers

Calls have been made for armed security officers and drug testing in Queensland schools as a shocking report reveals thousands of examples of violence and abuse in the classroom.

Escalating classroom violence and sickening threats by students has sparked calls for Queensland teachers to undergo self-defence training and for schools to consider hiring armed security guards and install more cameras to deter attacks.

Distressing new Right to Information documents reveal shocking details of teachers being threatened with a replica gun, facing digital death threats and even being stabbed in the eye with a pencil between February 1, 2020 and February 28, 2021.

More than 110 partially redacted documents obtained by The Courier-Mail under RTI laws detail the WorkCover claims lodged by teachers, principals, deputy principals and teacher aides.

Among the more than 2000 incidents detailed are dozens of serious assaults resulting in injuries – including workers being punched, stabbed, kicked, spat on and bitten – plus hundreds of claims for psychological injuries after witnessing attacks or being the subject of abuse, bullying or false allegations.

One told of being sexually assaulted by a “large male student” with a history of violent and sexual behaviour while in the classroom.

Another said they were abused by both a student and their parent, with the student “subsequently posted (on social media) threatening to kill me”.

One submitted a claim after they were “stabbed in the eye with the blunt end of a pencil by a student”.

Another wrote “(I was) punched in face, hair pulled, chair thrown at me by a student”.

One also described an incident “where student tried to stab worker with a knife”.

But the full details of the incidents, including the names, school, region, students’ age and injury specifics have been redacted by the Department of Education.

One teacher, who has been working for more than a decade and asked to remain anonymous, said he had been stabbed, punched and spat on, and that violence was a daily occurrence.

He likened the constant abuse to a “domestic violence situation” where attacks begin to feel “normalised”.

“You are actively discouraged from reporting even the most serious of incidents to police,” he said.

“It’s absolutely soul destroying – then you have to ring home to tell the parents of the behaviour and more often than not they tell you to eff off.

“Attacks on teachers need to be treated with the same seriousness as attacks on police.

“We are often dealing with the same teenagers, except they have the means to restrain or arrest them – we cannot do a thing.”

The teacher also took aim at the Education Minister Grace Grace and the department.

“There is a huge disconnect between (them), and what’s going on in certain schools, particularly in schools in Logan and the northern Gold Coast, is huge,” he said.

“The whole system is designed around teachers in leafy green schools, teaching kids who behave and want to learn, when that’s far from the reality.

“All the power to discipline these kids has been taken away.”

Queensland Teachers’ Union president Cresta Richardson

Queensland Teachers’ Union president Cresta Richardson said any form of violence was extremely concerning, and it was important to remember “innocent students are also affected in these situations”.

“In our schools, zero-tolerance means the union will take steps to immediately protect our members from harm,” she said.

“The QTUs’ 48,000 members, their families, and loved ones make up a large portion of our community. No longer will they go quietly after being assaulted, harassed online, or intimidated without proper recourse.”

Ms Richardson also hit out at the policy makers, saying the union would not allow “responsibility to be deflected onto teachers and school leaders to solve resourcing and safety issues that lie squarely at the feet of the government, police, or judicial system”.

“Teachers go to work to educate,” she said.

The spotlight on the rising number of physical threats was also highlighted in the most recent Australian Principal Occupational Health and Wellbeing Survey revealing almost 40 per cent had been physically assaulted – more than 10 times the rate of the general population.

And education department WorkCover claims were also on the rise, with an additional $30 million payouts in the most recent financial year compared with 2015-2016.

The most recent statistics released in early May showed claims had skyrocketed by more than 86 per cent in the past five years, while the workforce increased by 16 per cent in the same period.

Teachers’ Professional Association of Queensland secretary Tracy Tully called for security guards and drug testing to be mandatory at some high risk schools. Picture: Zak Simmonds

Teachers’ Professional Association of Queensland secretary Tracy Tully said the level of violence at schools was clearly escalating, and called for urgent action on stronger safety measures.

“Every Queensland school that has an ongoing issue with violence needs to have the option of armed security guards on school grounds, mandatory ID checks and security cameras,” she said.

“Teachers need to be given the option to undergo self-defence training ­– at the moment they get nothing.”

Ms Tully, a former Queensland principal with decades of experience in schools across the state, said she had personally witnessed drug-fuelled violence.

“Violence is escalating and the department is sitting on their hands and doing nothing about it,” she said.

“There needs to be more protection for these teachers and it needs to happen now – why should they be being subjected to these horrific instances of physical and psychological violence when they are simply doing their job?”

LNP education spokesman Christian Rowan said the revelations made it clear it was “increasingly harder to trust” the current state government to “keep our schools safe.”

“I am deeply concerned and appalled by the number of injuries and assaults we are now seeing inside Queensland schools,” he said.

“Teachers and students deserve to go to school knowing they are going to be safe”

Dr Rowan also called on the government to “take action” on the growing issue, adding he was “also concerned the Palaszczuk Labor Government is seeking to keep the reality of what is happening inside our schools from the community”.

“Teachers should be safe in their workplace, like any other workplace and the government need to take action to ensure the safety of all teachers, students, and staff working in our schools,” he said.

Queensland Secondary Principals Association president Mark Breckenridge stressed that the majority of the 575,000 Queensland students and more than 90,000 school staff had a positive relationship and daily interactions.

“It’s really only a small amount that does go wrong,” Mr Breckenridge said of the incidents.

One current Queensland teacher said her colleagues were vomiting in carparks before facing the classroom.

Mr Breckenridge said schools were a reflection of the society around them and said that it was unfortunate that overall respect levels for authority figures like police, fireys, hospitals, had reduced.

“Schools are a microcosm of society, and what’s happening out there, is happening in schools,” he said.

“There needs to be a level of respect between students, parents, community and staff.”

It comes after a North Queensland mother was charged after she allegedly assaulted a staff member at a rural school in Townsville last week.

Police say the 35-year-old allegedly verbally abused several staff and physically assaulted a teach aide at Giru State School.

She was charged with assault occasioning bodily harm, public nuisance, wilful damage and trespass.

Education Minister Grace Grace encouraged teachers to make claims through WorkCover to report any accident or incident.

“Any violence against staff in Queensland state schools is unacceptable,” Ms Grace said.

“Queensland state schools should be safe and supportive environments for all students, staff, and the local community.”

“Last year I launched the Department’s Occupational Violence and Aggression Prevention Strategy, which strengthens supports for affected staff and has preventative measures such as a communication and engagement campaign to encourage respectful behaviours in schools.”

Ms Grace said there were several tools and resources available for school staff including free individualised counselling and support to all staff, and their immediate family members.