Classes at St Barnabas Special School were disrupted yesterday after four teachers protested the presence of another who they say is too abusive and intolerable to work with.
After what they described as a lengthy period of filing complaints at the Ministry of Education and non-action from education officials, the teachers downed tools and vowed not to work at the Regent Street school until their colleague is removed. The teachers said they had been threatened, verbally abused and in one case endured racial taunts from the male teacher in question for over a year now.
But the teacher at the centre of the allegations appeared oblivious to the concerns raised by four of his colleagues. He told Stabroek News yesterday that he was not aware of any accusations and found it strange that his name was being called. He declined to comment further.
Efforts to contact Principal Education Officer for George-town Schools Mrs C Ram-sammy on the issue proved futile yesterday. The four teachers at the school yesterday accused Ramsammy of ignoring their reports.
Guyana Teachers Union President Colwyn King who was called in yesterday, convened an urgent meeting with teachers at the school to have the matter resolved amicably. King said the union was aware of an investigation being conducted by the ministry into the alleged assault of the previous Head Teacher of St. Barnabus by the teacher in question but has no knowledge of the current allegations being raised.
He said the teacher was sent on leave pending the investigation but resumed duties on Monday after the Head Teacher was transferred from the school.
“In my mind, the conflict at the school had been resolved because the Head Teacher was appointed out of the school on January 1 and there was no room for further conflict between the two. But this morning I received a call saying there was a problem at the school; a problem we had no prior knowledge of,” King said.
According to the GTU President, the union had put forward a suggestion to the ministry last year for the teacher in question to be transferred in the wake of the alleged assault on the Head Teacher but the decision was subsequently taken for the Head Teacher to be appointed out of the school.
Of the ten members on staff at St Barnabus, only the four teachers reported having trouble with the teacher. The rest of the teaching body had no comment to make.
Head Teacher Haslyn Richards told Stabroek News yesterday that some staff members had complained about the male teacher’s attitude.
Richards said he had forwarded the complaints to the Teaching Service Commis-sion and education officials. The last word he received from the officials was that a meeting would be held on the situation at the school. That meeting was scheduled for yesterday.
“I cannot work under the same roof with him. It is either he goes or I go, nothing else will suffice,” teacher, Tessa Fernandes declared yesterday. Fernandes who has been at the school for some two years now, said she has been the target of a campaign by the teacher. According to her, the disrespect shown to her is open and often in the presence of students who later turn around and show the same kind of disrespect.
She said the teacher has no civil way of communicating. Fernandes said she has been incensed a few times to the point where she once threw a bench at the teacher, which missed him. The teacher said she could no longer work in such an environment and though it hurts her to leave the children, she is prepared to go unless the ministry steps in.
Calvin Haley, another teacher, said he was threatened by the male teacher in question after intervening in a spat between the man and the previous Head Teacher. Haley said the teacher told him to back off or get whatever was coming to him if he got involved in the dispute. He said education officials were turning a blind eye to the complaints they made at 68 Brickdam, but the ministry could not ignore the situation forever.
The students are the ones being affected, according to him, given that four of the teachers have downed tools. He said they want to work and contribute towards the children’s development but simply cannot do it with the teacher present.
Melanie Hilliman and Belinda Bisshundyal were the other two teachers who were sitting in yesterday. They have not had any personal encounters with the teacher but said they were frustrated with the manner in which he behaved. Both teachers said they were tired of his arrogance and the ill-mannered way in which he interacts with them. The teachers said they were prepared to leave because working under such conditions was not healthy.
Stabroek News was informed by a source close to the teacher in question that he has simply been responding to insults thrown at him. The source said the teacher turned up at the school a few years ago in a qualified position and was immediately elevated above many who had been there longer. This reportedly caused a rift and things have been tense ever since.
Recently the male teacher made accusations against the previous Head. This resulted in very public disagreements between the two and culminated with the Head alleging that she had been hit in the head by the male teacher in October 2006. The teacher was sent on leave but returned to the job after the Head Teacher was transferred to another school.
According to the source, the male teacher has been called various names by other members of the teaching staff and he has retaliated with taunts of his own. The source said the teacher has been abusive verbally and in a few instances disrespectful towards Fernandes, but pointed out that his attacks were often provoked.
