On Peter Harvey
Very interesting post here from Vengeance and Fashion regarding Peter Harvey – the teacher recently charged with allegedly attacking one of his pupils.
Across the blogosphere and the internet reaction has been mixed, with ex pupils setting up groups to show their support for a man they regarded as a brilliant teacher. It has not simply been the Daily Mail ‘bring back corporal punishment’ crowd who have been appealing for “humane and merciful treatment” for the teacher concerned.
I suspect this is because many of us can remember what schools are like, and what excellent teachers and decent human beings sometimes have to put up with. I do not want to pass judgement upon this particular case – for which facts are scarce. Yet I must admit that one of my immediate thoughts upon hearing the news was that the education system has long been a ticking time bomb. John Bald is not a blogger with whom I am particularly sympathetic, yet his claim that teachers “are expected to behave like martyred saints in the face of anti-social behaviour from those held not responsible for their actions” chimes with my not so distant experience of an inner London comprehensive. I have seen excellent , committed and hard working teachers ground down by behaviour not worthy of sentient and empathetic human beings.
An ex teacher commenting on the story wrote “It is impossible today for an excellent teacher with less than forceful personality to survive in todays comprehensive schools”. And he is correct. The popular perception that bad behaviour is, ultimately, some kind of reflection on the quality of the teaching is mistaken. Sure there are a small number of teachers who are exceptionally good at scaring the shit out of pupils. Similarly there are those teachers – often men in their 30s – who are sufficiently charismatic, or laddish, to get the bad kids on side. Yet there also a great many teachers who – while perhaps unable to pitch themselves perfectly to the 14 year old boy’s sense of humour – are caring, competent and extremely hardworking, but who are nonetheless continually subjected to the kind of behaviour that few would contemplate having to encounter in their place of work. Such teachers end spending less time practicing their vocation than plugging the holes left by inadequate socialisation.
Usually my posts come out in a brazen confident tone, yet upon this matter I honestly do feel that I have the answer. It goes without saying that I am committed to egalitarian and inclusive education – and I beleive such a system benefits society. But equally, as a society, we cannot simply expect frontline teachers to system’s hold the fort, and to bear alone the systems burdens.
Reader Comments
Great post, and sensitively written Reuben. My mother is a teacher in a school for excluded kids and, I sympathise deeply with teachers in those environments. I myself went to a school with some pretty abusive pupils (and this was one of the better ones), so, perverse as it might sound, I find myself reserving judgment here.
Regardless of how much we sympathise with the criminal in question, the position of the law must not sympathise. Personal experience, our own feelings etc are what causes bias and prejudice to creep in, and it is the duty of the law to treat each incident as isolated.
The problem is that if we see cases like this cropping up, they are as Reuben rightly points out, indicative of underlying flaws in the education system. Ignoring these problems, or expecting them not to happen again would be madness.
I agree that there are gaps in socialisation that are being filled by teachers. I also suggest that teachers need the right training, the right guidance, and the right support. I suspect that at present, teacher training leaves the staff badly prepared for the situations they will commonly face in the classroom, and this is an issue which can only be addressed by better training. At times when teachers are building up stress that may hamper their ability to do their job professionally, they should not be expected to soldier on without adequate support, or we can expect more and more cases like that of Peter Harvey.
Clearly this case should be treated as an isolated incident, but rather than making an example of Peter Harvey, we need to take this as a call for reform.
Cheers Tendai, nice of you to say.
Paddy, I could not agree more entirely.
The “criminal in question”? No opening bias here then. Any amount of support and training is unlikely to help in the face of undisciplined brats making a deliberate attempt to prey on the weak.
British teachers are responsible for a wide catalogue of crime around the world.
More American child have been sexually victimized by British teachers than British teachers assaulted by UK pupils in HSE recorded events.
That sounds wild, but it is true. The brits allow mental health cases, drug addicts, alcoholics, fraudsters, sexual harassers, domestic violence, and sex offendeers to work in schools.
You need an office of civil rights for children,
your teachers are notorious as is your country for abuse scandals.
Sepian
Sepian thats a wild accusation. Where are your recorded facts to back it up? On second thoughts just give me three documented examples in the last ten years.
We’re so glad common sense prevailed. It is just a tragedy that people like Peter Harvey are so let down by a failed system. Good luck to him.
Excellent verdict by a smart Jury who clearly got facts we have not been party to until now. That teacher was set up by a baying mob. Yes he did something bad, but he was pushed and not supported. Parents need to contract with schools to ensure their children behave and understand that abusing your teacher is unacceptable. I hope Mr H can get his life back together. Thanks for the opportunity to contribute. Sadly, as ever, the very parents who need to be reading this, wont be!