The mother therefore returns to school to get explanations. Meetings will follow with the director of the establishment who ensures that the main objective remains the well-being of the children. It was then decided to ask the student to write a letter to describe what he was experiencing: “I feel humiliated, he shouts at me in the middle of class for no reason, he makes fun of me. Now I wish he wasn’t at this school anymore. I don’t feel good there anymore. There was only one other student who came to my defense.”
“He destroyed my son, asks the mother. My child is very calm. He doesn’t hurt anyone. Now he’s afraid of school. He is followed by a psychologist, she assures us, showing us the certificate. He had come to the point of harming himself physically. I learned that other problematic cases targeted this teacher but without official complaints.”
Yes, but since May, little has changed. “They even had a coffee with the parents of students on the subject of harassment but it was harassment between students. It is obviously very important but my case was not moving forward.”
She therefore decided to go further and file an official complaint for harassment a month ago.
Molenbeek: shell casings found by the police at Bonnevie Park and two people injured by stab wounds
Today, his son changed schools. “Upon arrival at his new establishment in Anderlecht, we were received by the director who was very kind. Today, my son is rebuilding his life. I still had to go pick him up from school urgently a few times but it’s less and less frequent. But I am not filing a complaint directly for him, I am doing it above all for all the other students and also for my daughter who is still in this school in Molenbeek and who could well come across the same teacher.”
“Our services continue their investigation”
For its part, the organizing authority, the municipality of Molenbeek, still ensures monitoring: “I would like to remind you that the priority of our Department of Public Education has always been to ensure the best learning conditions for our students,” introduced the mayor of Molenbeek, Catherine Moureaux (PS), who also has teaching in her portfolio of skills. Several weeks ago, a mother came to my office to complain about a teacher’s attitude towards her child. She reported behavior that could amount to humiliating targeting of her son through hurtful words. She also mentioned harsh and totally inappropriate attitudes from the same teacher in the past with other children. When questioned, the teacher admitted to moments of excessive anger, shouting, and banging on his desk. Our services are continuing their investigation with hearings and reports. This takes time. Depending on the results of the in-depth investigation and the evolution of its attitude, the College will have to take additional measures, if necessary.”
The municipal council is located in Molenbeek
At the same time, the Public Education service “recommended to the teacher a series of training courses in which he is now enrolled and sought another school – with concerned and attentive management – for a teacher exchange, in order to guarantee the Dutch course and end a situation of significant tension.
Still, the mother expects real results and takes the opportunity to send out an alarm message: “Pay attention to the signs that your child may be hiding; talking about all this is important.”
