As the teachers’ union in Queensland lifts the veil on student misconduct in the classroom, disturbing tales have surfaced from the state’s educational institutions.
Teachers in Queensland are subjected to verbal and physical abuse from students, who are then subjected to daily classroom instruction, according to the Queensland Teachers’ Union.
Union president Cresta Richardson expressed her constant surprise and disbelief whenever she heard about the situation.
A teacher recounted an incident in which a parent cursed and threatened her.
“It’s definitely something that we’ve heard more of and it’s quite a concern for our members,” said Richardson.
From 2022 to 2023, there was a 21.3% increase in the amount of money spent on WorkCover claims for both physical and psychological injuries.
With over $70,000 spent in 2024 and $81,000 spent last year on claims, that’s a 135 percent increase since 2015.
“Our teachers and principals shouldn’t be the subject of verbal abuse or physical assaults,” stated Christian Rowan, a spokesperson for the shadow education team.
Quite a bit was said by the Queensland Teachers’ Union.
There may have been considerably more cases of abuse than was initially thought, as some of it went unreported.
“We’ll be working with the department and government as to what that looks like because this is not good for our schools,” he added.
A new initiative called “No Excuse for Abuse” was introduced today by the government of Queensland.
“If the average person knew what teachers put up with every single day in terms of occupational violence, they would fall off their chair, some of the stories that you hear are shocking,” Di Farmer said in a statement.
