Australia

Alcohol biggest drug problem in schools: Principals

A survey of 218 school principals by the Australian National Council on Drugs has highlighted alcohol as the most problematic drug. “Principals reported that students who drank alcohol and used other drugs came to school late, tired and often with a poor attitude, leading to disruptive behaviour,’’ said the survey. A number of principals who took part in the survey called for more trained school-based staff to “address alcohol and drug use, assist affected students, and coordinate the involvement of community agencies in providing support to students and to their families”. The survey included 192 government school, eight Catholic and ten independent school principals.

Data mining at schools poses privacy threat to students

The head of a US-based “responsible cloud computing” advocacy group, has warned that the personal data of students could be scanned by technology companies while they were using computers at school, according to the Herald Sun. The president of SafeGov, Jeff Gould, told a forum in Sydney: “Even if you’re disclosing nothing they can still figure out all these things about you.” He told the inaugural Child Online Safety and Protection forum, that schools needed to insist that technology companies – such as Google – agreed not to use products designed for school use to gather personal data.

Crackdown in NSW on parents who take kids out of school for holidays

The NSW Department of Education and Communities has signalled its plans to crackdown on parents who remove their children from school in order to take advantage of cheaper accommodation and flights during non-school holiday periods, according to the Daily Telegraph. The paper reported that principals in NSW have been given instructions to investigate any student who misses 10 days or more of school without good reason. The Department said that in extreme cases parents could be taken to court and prosecuted.

‘Dumped’ asbestos found on grounds of Sydney school

The oval and areas near a playground at a Muslim school in Sydney’s southwest have been fenced off after asbestos was reportedly found in the area, according to The Australian. It comes after the former principal of Bellfield College resigned last year after claiming the material had been dumped at the school. It was the same principal who lodged a formal complaint to police alleging $2.1 million had gone missing from the school.

Expensive overseas school excursions slammed by welfare groups

Welfare groups have criticised as exclusionary, the trend for state schools to send students on overseas study trips, according to The Age. The Victorian Council of Social Service said it was an example of a growing “two-tier system’’ at public schools, where some students were left out. VCOSS Chief Executive, Emma King, said schools should hold fundraisers to ensure every student could go on overseas trips. Council of Single Mothers and Their Children Executive Officer, Tenar Dwyer, said the trips engendered an ''us and them, haves and have-nots'' culture. ''Maybe they need to lower their expectation of going overseas and do something within the state that maybe all children can participate in,'' she said.

700 arrest warrants issued in SA for parents failing to pay school fees

The South Australian Education Department has reported that 700 arrest warrants were issued for parents across the state in 2012/13 financial year, who failed to pay their children’s public school fees, the Guardian has reported. The paper reported that schools sought to recover $1.2 million in unpaid fees in the period, more than triple the amount four years earlier.

Teacher sues Vic Govt for $830,000 over ‘defective’ blackboard

A former science teacher is suing the Victorian Government for $850,000 in relation to injuries she suffered from using a “defective” blackboard over several years, according to the Herald Sun. The paper reported that the former head of science at Maribyrnong Secondary College has claimed the Victorian Government breached its duty of care to her, by failing to act on her complaints about a blackboard in her classroom.

International

Transgender student recants sexual abuse report to police

A 15-year-old transgender high school student in California has recanted his report to police that he was physically and sexually abused in a school bathroom by three fellow students. Despite the report being recanted, it still reignited a debate on a Californian law that allows transgender students to use bathrooms that match their gender identity.

Former student sues school over rugby brain injury

A former student is suing his former school in Dublin for €5 million ($7.6 million) in relation to a head injury he suffered in rugby training, which was exacerbated when he was allowed to play in a rugby match two weeks later. This was despite the school having a policy that bans students who are concussed to engage in contact sports for three weeks, according to the Independent.

Schoolboy charged with cyberbullying in US

A 17-year-old schoolboy in North Carolina has been charged with cyberbullying after he allegedly posted a nude photo of a 15-year-old girl on a social media website. It is alleged the girl sent the photo to her boyfriend who then shared it with the suspect, who then allegedly posted it on an Instagram site he created, according to CNN.