Learner burns another with boiling water in class
Another learner burned a Grade R learner on his feet with boiling water from a teacher’s kettle at Pele Primary School in Soshanguve.
The teacher allegedly threatened the young victim not to tell how he got injured.
The child developed blisters and bruises on his feet and struggled to walk.
When his mother asked about it, out of fear, he told her his shoes had injured him.
In an interview with Scrolla.Africa, the mother, Sara Motsampe, said that due to the severity of the injuries, she decided to take her son to the local clinic for medical treatment.
“The doctor told me that he was burned by hot water and demanded a report on how this came about,” Motsampe said.
“I was shocked by this. A social worker was called in to interview him, and he said that he was burned by another learner with hot water from the teacher’s kettle,” she said.
The teacher had allegedly stepped out to the principal’s office when the learner accessed the kettle full of boiling water.
Motsampe added that after informing the school principal about the incident, a social worker from the education department was dispatched to interview her son.
“Immediately after the interview, she told me that my son told her that his older brother burned him.
“This came as a shock. While in front of the social worker and principal, I asked my son if this was true; he denied saying this and said the social worker told him to say his brother burned him.
“She [the social worker] immediately changed her story, that she didn’t mean that but that it had happened in the past,” Motsampe said.
She added that this left her concerned about the actions of the social worker and principal.
“Now my children are threatened at school. The teacher accused us of wanting to milk the school for money out of the incident.
“The school principal called him to the office to interrogate him further, and I now fear for my children’s safety.
“All I want is for my children to be able to learn in a safe environment,” Motsampe said.
Numerous attempts to get comment from the Gauteng Department of Education spokesperson, Steve Mabona, failed.
Pictured above: Burn wounds on the Grade R child’s feet.
Source: Supplied