Australia

Ex-principal denies sexual intent in kiss with 11-year-old student

A former school principal from Bundaberg, NSW told a District Court this week that while he did kiss an 11-year-old female student on the cheek, there was no sexual intent. The ABC reports that the man was in court on four counts of unlawful and indecent treatment of a child and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

School principal warned about dangerous tree

The SMH reported that the school where 8-year-old Bridget Wright was fatally hit by a falling branch had been warned about the tree and the specific branch four months earlier. The NSW Coroner’s Court heard evidence from an arborist that he had seen the dangerous branch and alerted the principal. Coroner Helen Berry will hand down her findings from the inquest in the coming weeks.

Two Sydney high schools in lock down following terror threats

Two high schools in Sydney’s south west will remain locked down following alleged terror threats believed to have been made over social media. Channel Nine News reports that one of the schools was last year defaced with graffiti proclaiming “ISIS r coming” and “ISIS beheads” and in light of these latest threats the schools have chosen to remain in lock down while the threats are investigated.

Half of calls to South Australia’s abuse hotline are unnecessary

The Advertiser reports that half of the calls made to the Families South Australia abuse hotline are clogging the system with unnecessary or minor concerns, such as children not wearing hats to school or fighting with siblings in the supermarket. Figures show 22,048 of the 44,203 notifications made the Child Abuse Report Line in 2013-14 were deemed to not meet the threshold for abuse or neglect.

Queensland is losing male teachers at a rapid rate

The Courier Mail reported that Queensland is losing its male teachers at a rapid rate as men fear they will be labelled ‘inappropriate’ for working with children. Queensland Teachers’ Union president Kevin Bates said there was still an unfair view that teaching was women’s work. The Queensland College of Teachers has commissioned a review to examine what has caused the number of male teachers in Queensland primary schools to fall to just 16%.

Victorian schools clamp down on Year 12 muck-up day

A number of Victorian schools are rebranding the traditional ‘muck-up’ day for graduating students as ‘celebration day’ to change the tone of the event. The Herald Sun reported that principals are shifting the focus to a ‘festival of celebration’ including organised events and entertainment rather than a day of wreaking havoc.

International

Teacher who slept with pupil claims she didn’t receive training

A female teacher in New Zealand has been stripped of her registration following a hearing before the New Zealand Teachers’ Disciplinary Tribunal concerning a sexual relationship with a student. The New Zealand Herald reports that the 22-year-old claimed she had received very little training about ‘boundary issues’. The Tribunal found that the school had provided an appropriate level of mentoring and guidance.

Teacher arrested over Facebook friendship with student

A teacher in the US has been fired and charged with disseminating obscene material to a minor. WCVB reports that the 22-year-old sent photos of himself to a 17-year-old student at the school via Facebook after being warned that the friendship was inappropriate. The school alerted parents to the matter and requested a ‘no trespass order’ to keep him away from school grounds.

Canadian parents fed up with school’s response to bomb threats

A group of parents in Nova Scotia are due to meet with their children’s school’s board following two separate bomb threats at the elementary school that exposed flaws in the school’s emergency policies. Global News reports that the parents were refused a meeting after the first incident and are saying they need more cooperation from officials.