BAC Expert: Teachers Are Often Left Alone to Deal With Violence in Schools
BAC expert Cekulis says reports from teachers about violence in educational institutions are increasing. He says many places lack a clear system and support, and parents often fail to distinguish conflict from violence.
The number of reports submitted by teachers about violence against children in Latvian educational institutions is rising, according to Cekulis, an expert at BAC. He said many schools lack a clear procedure for such cases, and teachers often end up dealing with the problem alone. This matters to parents, because a child's safety can depend on timely action.
Conflict is not violence
Cekulis has observed that parents often do not understand the difference between violence and conflict. In his words, conflict between children is a normal and healthy process in which they learn to build relationships. However, BAC also regularly receives complaints about severe violence, sexual exploitation and physical violence within a group.
A system that exists only on paper
The expert stressed that a child is best helped by the specialists around them, so a strong team and a well-organised system for handling such cases are needed. Educational institutions often claim to have such a system, but conversations with teachers reveal that they do not know about it. Whether a structure exists for building the relationship between teacher and parent is also an open question.
A BAC representative acknowledged that some institutions have none of the necessary support specialists. In those cases the administration and outside specialists must be brought in. He argued that institutions often "sin" by leaving teachers to handle cases alone. Teachers either do not cooperate or believe they must manage on their own. Sometimes they do not trust the administration, or support specialists are absent or too few. They then involve other specialists far too late.
Signals and cooperation with parents
Cekulis noted that BAC specialists are often told there was no signal of a potential problem. Yet the teacher had regularly written to parents about it in e-klase. In his view, many such cases could be resolved if specialists and parents met and worked out what is needed.
