School suspensions booming on the Gold Coast

New figures show Gold Coast students are missing an incredible amount of school days through suspension. See how bad the problem is at your local school.

GOLD Coast students are missing nearly 15,500 days of school every six months as principals try to curb the increasing violence against teachers.

The latest figures from the Department of Education show children spent an extra 2753 days at home in the first semester last year, up 21 per cent on 2017 figures.

Schools say more children are being suspended for attacking teachers. The State Government said 29 per cent of all disciplinary action was for physical misconduct not involving an object.

In 2018, Gold Coast students copped 6804 suspensions, an increase of 14.9 per cent.

Local schools also handed out 327 exclusions or enrolment cancellations, a drop of 2 per cent.

On average, each suspension on the Gold Coast lasts 4.4 days. The city's student population increased only 1.9 per cent last year.

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Upper Coomera State College, Keebra Park State High School and Coombabah State High School had the highest suspension rates per student population last year, between 28 and 35 per cent.

NUMBER OF SUSPENSIONS ON COAST IN 2018

Upper Coomera State College, Keebra Park State High School and Coombabah State High School had the highest suspension rates per student population last year, between 28 and 35 per cent.

Keebra Park State High School, Merrimac State High School and Southport State High School had the highest rate of expulsions or cancellations, all over 2 per cent.

In a total year exclusions on the Gold Coast dropped by six incidents.

Upper Coomera State College had the highest total number of suspensions with 721. It was joined by Southport State High School for the highest number of exclusions/cancellations (41).

Pimpama State School had the lowest number of suspensions (one).

“The suspensions are very valid,” said a teacher at one of the city’s largest schools. “Of the disciplinary action that has taken place just in the last year all have been related to violence against a teacher or student.

“Throwing things, attacking teachers with desks or chairs is not uncommon.”

The teacher, who declined to be named, said suspension was a “last resort”. Earlier steps included conversations with parents.

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“It is absolutely a last resort — suspensions not related to violence are rare.

“If a problem child is in our catchment area it is too bad, there are not a lot of resources — they get excluded from elsewhere but they still need to be taken into the catchment.”

Last August, the Bulletin reported thug parents were pulling knives on Gold Coast principals and in one instance threatening to ram their “head into concrete”.

Principals and teachers said the abuse was occurring nearly every day and taking place in front of students as raging parents tried to defend their child’s bad behaviour.

“I was told that I’d have my head driven into the concrete,” a Gold Coast secondary school principal said. “That was said to me in my office, in front of the person’s child.

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Principals and teachers said social media was magnifying the problem as the abuse did not stop when the school bell went at 3pm.

“There was also a principal in the (city’s) north who had a knife pulled on him while in a meeting with a family about bullying.”

Principals and teachers said social media was magnifying the problem as the abuse did not stop when the school bell went at 3pm.

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Another principal said: “I’ve had some tell me that they used to be in a bikie gang and can make life difficult. And it’s definitely increasing. I know of five fellow principals that have been abused in the past 12 months.”

An Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing Survey by the Australian Catholic University (ACU) released last year showed four in 10 principals were threatened with violence while one in three had been physically attacked. Numbers in Queensland skyrocketed more than 20 per cent since 2011.

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Director-General of the Department of Education Tony Cook (left), and Queensland Minister for Education and Industrial Relations Grace Grace. (AAP Image/Darren England)

Kevan Goodworth, CEO of P&C Queensland, said the increased numbers of students being suspended should not be seen as a negative.

“Increases in suspensions indicate principals are taking firm action hopefully in co-operation with parents and behaviour management plans, and those remaining in the classroom are likely to get a better learning experience,” he said.

Similarly, Mr Goodworth said those students who had been excluded needed appropriate follow up and counselling.

“I think there are enough options for children with behavioural needs. Exclusions are taken pretty seriously and Queensland has the best record for ensuring children see through their education to graduation.”

A spokesman from the Department of Education said a majority of students in state schools were well behaved.

“The majority of Queensland state school students never receive an SDA (student disciplinary absence) during their 13 years of education.”

Queensland public schools issued 175,184 SDAs in 2018, up 13 per cent on 2017. There are 540,000 school students statewide.

“A small number of students may require flexible or alternative learning options, and in these

cases regional staff provide guidance and assistance to ensure students can continue to access a program of learning,” Mr Goodworth said.

“This may be delivered through an alternative education program, such as a Positive Learning Centre or a similar local service.”