Pupil hits teacher

Principal spills the beans: “It’s getting worse and worse”

Violence at schools: The official figures are falling. The problems in the classrooms remain.

(Bild: Antal Imre/Imre Antal)

School has only just started again, but conditions remain alarming. The head of a Viennese school is now breaking her silence and talking about violence, suspensions and "Arab communities".

The new school year started six weeks ago. But the problems and challenges have remained the same. The situation at compulsory schools in particular remains tense. This is also shown by a recent survey conducted by the teachers' union among some of Vienna's 100 compulsory schools - we reported.

In an interview with "Krone", the principal of a secondary school talks about the tough everyday life in her job. She wishes to remain anonymous. The fear of consequences and reprisals is too great. Over 800 children and young people are taught at her location, in a district with a particularly high proportion of immigrants. Between 80 and 85 percent of all pupils here do not speak German as their mother tongue.

756 suspensions

In the 2023/24 school year, a total of 756 suspensions took place in Vienna, most of them in secondary schools. The number has fallen by seven percent.

 "Arab communities are a challenge"
There are always difficulties with Syrian families in particular, reports the principal. Most of them do not speak any German at all. "The Arab communities are a real challenge for us at the moment," says the principal. There has always been immigration, but this is something completely different. Video interpreting is also needed for every conversation with the parents. But who bears the costs for this? The Education Directorate refers to the Ministry of Education. Exact figures cannot be provided when asked by "Krone".

Then the woman, who previously worked as a teacher for 27 years, describes a particularly blatant case. There is a 13-year-old boy at her school who is only in Year 1. Everyone suffers because of him - classmates, parents, teachers and therefore also the climate in the class. He has already shown his ten-year-old classmates cell phone videos with pornographic content.

First-year pupil (13) suspended for the third time
This very boy has now been suspended for the third time - for four weeks. A few days ago, he insulted a teacher, followed by a physical attack. "If it had just been verbal abuse, it wouldn't have been enough for a suspension. The school is getting worse and worse," says the principal.

Read more tomorrow about staff shortages, the role of parents and suggestions for improvement.

These are just some of the headlines from the past few months in the "Krone" - and the list could go on and on. Unfortunately, there seems to be no real improvement in sight at the moment.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Imre Antal)

Reality has caught up with Vienna's schools
Children re-enact executions in the classroom. A teacher forbids reading from the Bible out of consideration for people of other faiths. And then there is a mother who hands her child's primary school teacher a burka. In yet other classes, orderly lessons are out of the question when a story features domestic pigs - or a rainbow. Entire pages could be filled.

These are reports from classes in Vienna - from teachers who are actually dedicated to educating and imparting knowledge to our children. More and more often, however, they have to deal with such abuses. It is not uncommon for them to be heavily criticized when they report on them. Teachers are called "liars". Many remain silent. The fear of reprisals from parents and from within their own ranks is too great. It is the job of the "Krone" to listen and protect these courageous teachers.

Principal Christian Klar has written a book about the abuses.

(Bild: Tomschi Peter)

Some teachers still dare to come forward, such as the Floridsdorf principal Christian Klar or "Krone" columnist Susanne Wiesinger. Both no longer want to remain silent about the abuses in schools. Klar in an interview regarding the publication of his book: "We need rules and must have the courage to separate those who disrupt the system from mainstream schools. And it's not just a question of violence. A large proportion of children do not meet the criteria for school readiness. Many can't tie shoes or hold a pencil."