School violence
3.6. The two schools selected for the research
The two schools selected were Alpha Primary and Omega Primary and both schools are located in poor areas serving indigent learners. A short description of the two school case studies indicates why they are fertile contexts for violence. More detailed descriptions of incidents in each school will be conveyed through analyses of interviews, observations and school documents in the next chapter.
3.6.1. Case Study 1: Alpha Primary School 3.6.1.1. Situation
This is a co-educational township school attended by learners of all races with the large majority (almost 90%) being Indian. It has 543 learners from grades R to 7. It appears to be a relatively advantaged school with very neat buildings. It has 20 educators. The school is walled and has a security guard.
This school is situated in a former Indian (now very mixed with all races) residential township of Phoenix about 10 kilometers away from central seaside city of Durban which is the bustling hub of tourists to KwaZulu Natal. Phoenix
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has 21 sections of low cost dwellings and each section or unit has a name. This school is in unit 11 which is called Whetstone which is in the heart or centre of the township. The area in which this school is located has been dubbed by the local media as the “drug capital” of Phoenix. There are many drug lords or peddlers around the school and learners easily relate stories of how they are used as “runners” by their parents to sell, deliver or buy drugs. About 5% are self employed and they are engaged in small businesses from homes eg. car wash and motor mechanics.
3.6.1.2. Funding
Almost half the learners receive child support grants or are in foster care with relatives like grandmothers. Learners who receive social grants are exempt by law The South African Schools Act, (DoE, 1996a) from paying school fees. As a result the income from fees is low and with just a meager subsidy of about R35 000 per annum from the state, the school engages in fundraising drives and depend on generous donors to keep the school open. The school has a good income from fundraising that provides resources. It is ranked as a quintile 5 school. According to Lauren Anthony of the Northglen News (2011, p.3) schools are presently divided into five quintiles with quintile five being the most affluent schools and quintile one having almost nothing. The quintile is essentially the poverty score of a school and is based on the poverty level of the community the school is situated in. This is determined using data relating to income per household, unemployment rates and education levels in surrounding communities. The quintile system aims to ensure that poor families and communities are able to access quality education. The system divides all schools in the country into five categories (quintiles) that are funded differentially per learner per year. Quintile five schools receive R165 per learner per year and quintile one learners around R944 per year. The anomalies are primarily associated with schools in the same socio-economic areas having different quintile classifications. This often means that learners who are equally poor receive different levels of support from the state.
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3.6.1.3. Infrastructure (buildings, fences, walls, toilets)
The school buildings are 35 years old but have been renovated to give it an overall good appearance. The roofs have been painted and an assembly cover was erected. The school has 20 classrooms, all being used. It has 15 girls’ and 15 boys’ toilets. There are 3 female staff toilets and 2 male staff toilets. The toilets for boys and girls are adjacent and there are reports that boys sneak into girls toilets especially during lesson time when there are no teachers and prefects on duty. Because the toilets are isolated, learners also “bunk” lessons and hide in the toilets. Toilets are frequently dysfunctional and the overwhelming stench is discomforting. The school also has an office block, library, computer room and sports grounds. The premises are protected by a wall that is 1.5 meters high and the two access gates are locked.
3.6.1.4. Security Measures
The school has employed a guard through a security company from 7h00 to 15h00 which is the time by which the staff leaves the premises. The guard is intended to protect the lives of those present at school. He is exposed to all weather conditions as he is stationed at the main gate on a chair. He is unarmed but has a radio to make contact with his offices in an emergency.
They cannot afford a guard to protect buildings after school hours. As a result the school is plagued with break-ins and huge asset losses like computers. The locks to gates and doors are easily broken during the night. A cleaner lives on the premises and doubles up as a night-watchman. The frequent thieving is blatantly the work of neighboring residents to steal a few items who feed their bad habits like drugs.
3.6.1.5. Socio-economic status of learners
The school is situated in a low income residential area where most family income is in the low income range. The houses are mainly two-bedroom flats that accommodate families of about 10. All houses are designed the same by the municipality and are referred to “scheme” homes. Some learners come to
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school without a meal and this school does not receive a nutrition subsidy from the state. A local church provides lunches for hungry learners. The group that takes these daily lunches is usually the ones that are in trouble. They are prone to fighting, swearing and stealing. Their parents never report to school when requested because either they are not around or they just cannot be bothered to hear about their kids. They have abdicated their parental responsibilities for many reasons.
3.6.2. Case Study 2: Omega Primary School 3.6.2.1. Situation
This is a co-educational township school in Phoenix. It is attended by learners of all races with the large majority being African. It has 520 learners from grades R to 7. It is a disadvantaged school with dilapidated buildings. It has 16 educators. The school was opened in 1981 which makes it 31 years old. The school is about 10 kilometers from the city of Durban which is a big town of KwaZulu Natal. The school is situated in Phoenix Township, unit 10 or also called Redfern. The school is on the border of the Phoenix Township and the informal settlement of Amouti. On the one side of the road is low-cost housing and on the opposite side of the main road are self-help houses with communal sanitation and complete dirt roads. Most learners (almost 95%) come from the side of the road with the informal houses and huts. Close to the school are informal vendors, salons and liquor outlets. The taxi rank opposite the school causes a great disturbance to the learners because of the loud music, constant revving of engines and loud chatting from commuters and drivers waiting for taxi loads.
3.6.2.2. Funding
The school does not have funds to provide security measures like walls and a guard. It is also ranked as a quintile 5school. For this school with its extremely low poverty levels it is an injustice that it is classified quintile 5 which has a
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meager income of about R30 000 from the state per annum, no nutrition scheme, no security guards and no cleaners.
3.6.2.3. Infrastructure (buildings, fences, walls, toilets)
The school looks very dilapidated with worn out paint and broken windows.
Graffiti has insults at teachers with their names written on the walls. The vulgar language has not been removed. The structural layout of the building is not conducive for tight control. The classrooms are near the gate allowing for quick exits for learners who are playing truant and the office block is enmeshed among trees further up the school away from all the crowds. As a result the management is away from where misdemeanors occur. The school grounds are also very large and away from the school buildings. During breaks the grounds are a hotspot for violence. Incidents of dissent are carried onto the grounds and violence occurs. Also the breaks are too long giving learners more time for trouble. The two teachers on duty can barely see what goes on in distant ends of the grounds. The school does not have boundary walls but fences that have holes. Outsiders creep through the fences. Nothing is safe at school, not even computers or exercise books as vagrants, trespassers and thieves make their way into the premises at night.
3.6.2.4. Security measures
The school cannot afford a guard but it uses a cleaner to double up for gate control during school hours. When someone approaches the gate and hoots or yells then the old man runs to the gate to open it. He is unarmed (not even a whistle or baton). One gate is used for vehicles and pedestrians.
3.6.2.5. Socio-economic status of learners
Most learners do not eat before coming to school so they cannot pay attention with empty stomachs. Churches again have been requested to provide peanut butter or jam sandwiches (2 slices) per child. Most parents are unemployed and almost every learner receives grants. The school fees of R500 are not paid
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by 80% of the learners because their parents just cannot afford to do so. At least 50% of the parents work as casual domestics because they are not educated to have better jobs. This labor brings in about R1000 per month for food and essentials. Poor learners are prone to stealing especially stationery because they cannot afford to buy these themselves. At least half the learners live with grandmothers or by themselves. The AIDS statistics for this area (as acquired from the Whetstone Community Health clinic nurses)is that at least 40% of the patients attending that clinic are HIV positive. This is an indicator of the high HIV statistics in this area. AIDS has resulted in many parents dying and little siblings are left to take care of each other. These child-headed households are perfect breeding grounds for violence because without adult supervision the children join gangs, engage in bad habits and spend most time after school in groups at taverns.