The father of a New Taipei City junior-high school student who died after he was stabbed by a fellow student in December last year yesterday called for improving school safety to prevent similar incidents.
On Dec. 25, a ninth-grade male student stabbed a classmate with a switchblade several times, allegedly because a female student had complained about the way the victim had spoken to her. He died the next day.
The victim’s father, surnamed Yang (楊), yesterday expressed gratitude to the New Taipei City Department of Education for accepting his family’s suggestion to add an emergency bell in classrooms, for students to promptly alert teachers and staff and to serve as a deterrent to a potential attacker.
Photo: Rachel Lin, Taipei Times
Yang urged the government to allocate funding to expand the emergency bell policy to all classrooms across the nation.
He also said that high-risk students should be placed in schools with specialized teachers who can instruct them, instead of burdening teachers and staff in schools without a support system for them.
The criminal records of high-risk students should not be removed, so that if they enroll in new schools, staff can understand their history, he said.
School principals and teachers should have the authority to search students’ bags without a parent’s consent, Yang said, adding that people’s right to life and safety must be guaranteed.
He also said he hoped legislators can address a proposed amendment of the Juvenile Justice Act (少年事件處理法) in the new legislative session.
Violence in schools has increased fourfold in the past 11 years, and it might continue if penalties remain too light, he said.
Parents of youth offenders should also share joint liability and punishment for their child’s actions, rather than receiving only a fine or a verbal warning, Yang said, adding that an old adage says “it is wrong for a father to only feed, but not teach his child.”
Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung (潘文忠) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) attended a public memorial for Yang’s son, held by the school at the end of last month.
At the time, Pan said that high-risk teens should undergo a transition period when returning to a school, during which they receive counseling and the school can improve campus safety.
The ministry has been discussing the issue with education groups and developing comprehensive assessments, hoping to inform schools on new rules before the next semester starts, he said.
After the Ministry of Education’s second campus safety consultation meeting on Friday, Pan said that an amendment on the Observations on the Act Governing Educators’ Teaching and Punishing of Students as Defined and Implemented by Schools (學校訂定與實施教師輔導與管教學生辦法注意事項) would be completed soon and implemented after the Lunar New Year.
The updated rules would ease restrictions on performing campus security inspections under two conditions.
First, the school administration can, without going through negotiation procedures, conduct searches on students with “specific status” who are considered at risk of harming others.
Students with “specific status” refers to those who are on probation or meet criteria set under the Regulations Regarding the Prevention and Guidance Counseling on Youth Deviant Behaviors (少年偏差行為預防及輔導辦法). A school must designate them through a formal meeting and keep the student’s personal information confidential with only relevant personnel knowing who are the students with “specific status.”
Second, to search the belongings of a student without “specific status,” the school administration must have received a report of illegal behavior or that they are carrying contraband, and the school principal, student affairs office, teachers and parent representatives should hold an emergency meeting to confirm the risk of harm to others.
The education ministry also stipulated that there must be two or more inspectors present during personal item searches, and a student can request that one or two school staff or students also accompany them. If the situation is considered an emergency, the searches can be conducted without accompanying personnel.
Additional reporting by CNA
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