While school safety and the dangers faced by learners is a familiar theme in South Africa, a video showing a student teacher at Lekhulong Secondary School in Bloemfontein being attacked by a learner has focused attention on the risks to educators.

A 22-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the assault, and he was expected to appear in court today.

The students’ council at the University of the Free State welcomed the arrest, and said that it showed that enhanced safety measures were necessary when placements were made for students in schools.

The South African Council for Educators (SACE) issued a statement of condemnation. It said that student teachers were an important part of the education system, and threats to them were not only harmful to it, but could not be tolerated in a society founded on the rule of law.

It added: “SACE stands in solidarity with all educators and student teachers who experience abuse, violence, or intimidation, and reiterates its commitment to promoting the protection, dignity, and professional respect of all members of the teaching profession.”

South Africa has experienced around 50 instances of attacks by learners on teachers, according to University of KwaZulu-Natal education academic Suriamurthee Maistry. He said that it was not a phenomenon confined to schools in poor communities.

The issue has received considerable interest from researchers. Violence towards teachers is not always directly physical, but can involve the threat of violence or be verbal, directed at the teachers’ emotions or sense of wellbeing. Researchers have pointed to a variety of drivers and incubating factors. These include perceptions that a teacher is mistreating a particular learner, poor socio-economic conditions, dysfunctional school environments, and disrupted home and community lives. Teachers can feel vulnerable since they are well known to the assailants and some are known to have been threatened with violence at their homes.

In addition, the age profile of the South African school population means that teachers may have to contend with learners who are of comparable age. The student teacher in the video was 21, younger than her attacker.

The result is an added stress burden, which detracts from teachers’ educational and developmental responsibilities. This contributes to the overall crisis in South African education.

The African National Congress-aligned teachers’ trade union, the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union, has suggested paying teachers danger allowances.

The police have appealed for calm and to let the legal processes unfold.