Shoved by student

Bally8

Im just wondering what you would expect your school to do if you were in my situation. I was at a carnival with my family at the weekend and there were a few of my students there. At one point I was watching my daughter on a ride when I was shoved quite forcefully in from behind, as I turned around I saw it was one of my students whom I've been having a lot of trouble with recently. He has not been allowed in any of my classes due to his terrible attitude towards me. I was a bit shaken by the incident as I could have fallen with the force of his body weight but luckily there was a barrier in front of me which stopped me.

I didnt confront him, just carried on around the attractions for a while and went home. Im very annoyed now though as I know it was a very intentional attempt to intimidate me. He went out of his way to get me and he had to jump up onto a ramp to do it.

What would you expect to happen in school tomorrow? Im wondering is it not even related to school as it happened at the weekend or do I have to right to tell the principal that I do not want him returning to my classes this week? I work in second chance education and have had kids threaten me and my house, car etc before. I've also been pushed across a room by a student a few years back too but all this has happened during school hours.

rockmongrel

Outside of school you say?
Press charges.

spurious

Outside or inside of school, my principal would have the guards in.

bigeasyeah

rockmongrel wrote: »

Outside of school you say?
Press charges.

I tend to agree.
I mean you were at a carnival with your family!

ahaaha

could pressin charges make it worse tho?? is he just a little **** or could he get dangerous? i was followed home from night out by some s##ts they proceeded to cause a pretty big hassle. me and my boyf were got the reg and was advised from school not to press charges - comes from a family of s##ts too (how suprising) and i wouldnt want to drag them on me. just rang parents and it ended.

you and your Principal know this kid well enough to decide what to do. let the anger subside and discuss it with your Principal in the morn

claire h

Bally8 wrote: »

do I have to right to tell the principal that I do not want him returning to my classes this week?

Yes, absolutely. Your own physical safety is at risk here. I know working in those kinds of environments comes with a lot of difficulties, but you have to draw the line somewhere.

drusk

Sure have a chat with the principal and see what he/she thinks. Make it clear, however, that you will never accept this student into your class after this, regardless of his/her advice.

By right, the student will be expelled. But unfortunately, that's probably not going to happen. If I were in your shoes, though, I'd be pressing charges.

Best of luck.

Bally8

Thanks for the responses guys. I spoke to my principal this morning. Talk about a day of total drama!! She agreed that it was totally out of line but was unsure of how to deal with it until the other teachers here said they would refuse to teach him to show solidarity with me. I found this support very touching.

In the end she decided to call him in and ask him about it, he denied it all- said he wasnt even there and I had to prove it. He got very aggressive, slamming doors and shouting. He has been suspended for the week but is allowed sit his JC next week as long as he behaves himself. The VEC is very wary of expelling him as they are afraid that his family could come back and say we are discriminating against him (they are travellers) and it is only my word against his.

I decided to talk to the guards to say I am concerned about my safety and that of my home etc as this kid has made it very clear in the past that he knows where I live and what he thinks of my 'fancy' car. They were very nice and said he is well known to them and I am to contact the station if I ever feel threatened or intimadated by him. I decided against taking the matter further even though the guard said I was well within my rights. I said I was too afraid of having a whole family against me over this.

So I'm happy to a certain extent with how the school has dealt with it.

claire h

Well done - delighted to hear your colleagues are supporting you and that the guards were helpful. It seems like if it goes any further there's a decent-ish support system in place for you.

freire

This might sound a little left field but have you considered having a one to one chat with this guy? I understand you're feeling intimidated and I've been there myself, maybe not to the same extent but I do know where you're coming from.

Sometimes this works wonders. Maybe not in your case of course. It's just a thought.

J.R.

freire wrote: »

This might sound a little left field but have you considered having a one to one chat with this guy? I understand you're feeling intimidated and I've been there myself, maybe not to the same extent but I do know where you're coming from.

Sometimes this works wonders. Maybe not in your case of course. It's just a thought.

I wouldn't talk to this guy in a one-to-one situation now.....God knows what allegations he could make..........you could end up suspended with pay until the matter was investigated, depending on the seriousness of the allegatons.

I would always ensure there were witnesses present when discussing anything with him.

ytareh

I think Im with JR on that one ...

Bally8

Yeah it really has gone beyond talking to him at this stage. I wouldnt feel safe alone with him as he could say or do anything when he is mad. I have tried to talk to him in the past but he will just argue and argue and it goes nowhere. We deliver a summer programme here and I will be faced with it all again in 2 weeks time when it kicks in after the JC. Until then I wont have to see him during school hours so hopefully things will have calmed down by then. I will never have him in my classroom again. I will probably have a battle on my hands come September but Im determined to stick to my guns.