NAPTOSA says report on assaults on teachers in WC 'may be the tip of the iceberg'

CAPE TOWN - Teacher safety is in the spotlight following a report that, since the start of this year, 50 teachers have been assaulted by learners in the Western Cape.

It has sparked outrage, fear, and urgent calls for intervention.

The National Professional Teachers Organisation of South Africa (NAPTOSA)'s Basil Manuel: "The magic word is reported, so there are many incidents that go unreported, so actually this may be the tip of the iceberg."

In a recent incident, a teacher was allegedly assaulted with a brick by a learner at Manenberg High School.

"And then when you look at the type of assaults - a brick, seriously? 'I'm not defending myself, I'm simply trying to injure' and that is also the tip of the iceberg. There have been stabbings and attempts at doing many other things. Yes, it sounds like the Wild West out there."