The school principal of Crawford International College Pretoria says the school will take legal action against an 82-year-old teacher who used racist words, including the K and N words, during a Grade 8 English lesson.
The incident is understood to have taken place this week, with Grade 8 pupils filming the incident on their cellphones as the pensioner-aged teacher apparently told them not to be offended as they were not affected by apartheid.
Cheryl Naidoo, the school principal of Crawford's Pretoria campus, said they would be reporting the substitute teacher to the SA Council of Educators.
They said the teacher was a substitute teacher who had come in after one of their teachers fell ill.
“Crawford International College Pretoria deeply regrets the unacceptable racist incident during a Grade 8 English lesson on July 24, when a substitute teacher wrote offensive, racist terms on the whiteboard. At Crawford International Pretoria College, we firmly denounce any form of prejudice or discrimination, and we are shocked and dismayed over this matter,” said Naidoo.
Naidoo said they had dismissed the substitute teacher with immediate effect and were preparing to take legal action against them.
“We deeply regret the incident, and the offence and hurt caused to our students, parents, our community, and the country as a whole. We have been engaging with our students who experienced this unfortunate incident and acknowledge the hurt this has caused. Counselling is being offered to all our students today, July 26,” said Naidoo.
Earlier, Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane visited the school and welcomed the teacher’s dismissal.
“It is distasteful to see individuals who we have entrusted the education of our children use that valuable time to push their own villainous agendas and poison the minds of our learners,” Chiloane said.
Steve Mabona, a spokesperson for the department, added that the school also undertook to review their recruitment measures to avoid enlisting candidates who may potentially threaten the delivery of quality education and learning.
“Her actions are vehemently unacceptable and have undeniable racist undertones, which will not be tolerated in any aspect of our education sector,” said Mabona.
IOL