DURBAN - Safety at public schools is in the spotlight again after a teacher was shot dead in front of her pupils at Phikiswayo Primary School in Ntuzuma in KwaZulu-Natal.

Duduzile Khumalo, 46, was shot by two unknown men when they entered the school on Monday.

According to National Teachers’ Union (Natu) secretary-general Doctor Ngema, the two men entered the school premises under the pretence of searching for a lost school jersey, but instead opened fire on Khumalo in her Grade R classroom.

While she tried to run away, they continued shooting at her, killing Khumalo in front of her pupils.

While the incident has left parents fearful and hesitant to send their children back to school, principal Mthokozisi Mchunu says psychological support will be provided for all pupils..

Related to the issue of the rise in violence at schools, KwaZulu-Natal Education MEC Sipho Hlomuka has announced that a School Safety Conference will take place, highlighting the importance of creating a safe and conducive school environment for teaching and learning to take place.

"Schools are considered sacred places of teaching and learning, and as such, we are very concerned about the recent rise in the levels of school violence that has rocked and sent shock waves across the province. We have to work with all stakeholders including law enforcement agencies to curb the rise in school violence and crime," said Hlomuka.

Muzi Mahlambi, spokesperson for the KZN Department of Education, called for law enforcement to expedite their investigation to ensure that justice is served, urging anyone with information to assist the police.

KwaZulu-Natal Parents Association chairperson Vee Gani said schools were not being properly secured.

“Schools are becoming very soft targets for criminals, and the reason for that is that there is less resistance in those schools because you have mostly female educators, they are not armed and there are children there. Also, because they are soft targets, you find that these criminals are brazen.

“Our schools lack security, and that is because there are no funds. Many of our schools are struggling with resources to employ armed security guards, which could be a deterrent to these criminals. The schools are not even fenced adequately,” said Gani.

He said they were also concerned about the safety of teachers, who were also falling victim to violence at schools.

Speaking on behalf of the Natonal Professional Teachers’ Organisation of SA (Naptosa) in KwaZulu-Natal, Thirona Moodley said teachers had become soft targets in their places of work, and this had resulted in pupils becoming witnesses to heinous crimes at their places of learning.

“We have to protect our schools. We have to look at communities to protect our schools and for communities to report perpetrators anonymously to the police so that they are held accountable and others in the community know that we are taking safety in schools very seriously,” she said.

Moodley said the Department of Education had the task of looking into the issue of security at schools in a more serious way, adding that just having one security guard at a school was not sufficient.

“We cannot lose our teachers in this very sad way where they fall victim to criminals entering their classrooms, where they are supposed to feel safe, supported and confident to deliver the job that they are expected to do,” said Moodley.

The SA Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) in KwaZulu-Natal condemned the shooting.

“It must be remembered that for the longest time, Sadtu has been raising the issue of safety (or rather lack of it) of learners and education workers in schools, which the Department of Education in the province has never raised even a finger indicating that such is being attended to.

“In our memorandum of demands that was presented to the MEC and premier during our march in October 2023 and was duly received, the matter was on top of the agenda and the Department of Education, working together with the Department of Community Safety and Liaison in the province, was supposed to act on it with the speed it required,” the union said in a statement.

It said in spite of Sadtu’s numerous calls for a Schools’ Safety and Security Indaba to discuss and establish potential programmes to deal with this issue, the department appeared to have little appetite to attend to this, while their members continued to be the subjects of crime and the sacrificial lambs of killers.

They further called on communities to support the union’s “I am a school fan” campaign to create awareness in their quest to make schools safe havens for both pupils and teachers.

Adeshini Naicker, director of Childline SA said their social workers would be counselling the pupils to help them overcome their trauma.

“Witnessing a teacher being shot in the classroom can have severe emotional repercussions for children, including immediate shock, deep fear and long-term effects such as PTSD, anxiety, and behavioural changes.

“Children often form strong attachments to their teachers, making the trauma of witnessing such violence particularly distressing. This can lead to nightmares, trouble sleeping, and a heightened sense of vulnerability. Their ability to trust adults and engage in normal school activities might be impaired.

“Childline KZN, a key stakeholder, provided trauma briefings to the affected class. The second session, initially set for Friday, was postponed to Monday due to a memorial being held for the slain educator. The social worker reported that the 40 children were profoundly shocked and emotionally shaken by the traumatic event,” said Naicker.

KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said police in Ntuzuma were investigating a case of murder.

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