Shocking reports of extreme violence involving students and teachers, including sexual abuse, drug use and trafficking, and assaults, were presented to the House Education Committee today.
The discussion took place behind closed doors due to the sensitive information regarding minors.
“We have a case of sexual harassment/abuse of a student by their peers in a gymnasium (middle school), where one and a half months after the sad event and any interventions, the victim is still attending the same school as the perpetrators. They cannot enter classrooms, they cannot attend school, they cannot lead a normal life because our procedures are delayed,'” stated DEPA MP Alekos Tryfonides after the session. He added, “There are also allegations of sexual harassment by students against teachers.”
The conversation reportedly focused on the need to create a unit to which children with extreme behaviour would be transferred, where they would receive the necessary support and then be reintegrated into their school unit.
A deadline was set for the Ministry of Education to present its plan for creating this structure by June; otherwise, the House Education Committee will proceed with a public denunciation through a press conference.
During the discussion on “delinquency and criminal acts in schools,” there was an admission of a lack of support for both perpetrators and victims and while legislation exists, such as the creation of day centres, it remains on paper and is not implemented.
At the end of the session, the Minister of Education, Athena Michaelidou, spoke about extreme cases of violence and delinquency occurring in schools and announced that they are preparing a proposal for the creation of a structure.
“Soon we will have a proposal for an alternative attendance program for children in very extreme cases, which will allow the student to leave the school, attend classes, and receive support from specialists, and then return,” she said.
The Minister emphasised the crucial role of parents. “In some cases, unfortunately, there is no family support for the child. That is why services must be there from the beginning to assist these children,” she added.
Furthermore, the Minister mentioned that they would soon introduce a new system—an electronic student file—which would follow the student from the age of four until graduation. This file would allow services such as Social Welfare, psychiatric, and others to have immediate access to information about each child.
Michaelidou underlined that their primary concern is prevention and timely intervention in violence and delinquency issues. “Our priority is a safe school for all. We cannot tolerate violence and delinquency, especially in extreme cases in the school environment. It is unthinkable for us to strive to improve learning outcomes and the school climate and, at the same time, tolerate violent incidents that victimise our children or put even teachers in difficult positions,” she concluded.
The discussion also included representatives from the Police, the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare, the Commissioner for the Protection of Children’s Rights, educational organisations, and parents.
