A TEACHER who slapped a Class 8 student several times in front of his peers has had his five-month prison sentence suspended for two years.
Magistrate Timoci Qalinauci recently convicted and sentenced the teacher for one count of assault.
The court was told the teacher slapped the student several times in the presence of his school mates on one occasion in 2019.
Magistrate Qalinauci said the teacher, who has more than 18 years of teaching experience, had authority over the child and had breached the trust placed in him as a teacher, noting the assault embarrassed the student in front of his peers.
“You must learn to control your anger,” the magistrate told the teacher while passing sentence.
“I am sure there are alternative ways that you can teach; mould a student to be productive inside and outside of the classroom.”
He warned the teacher that committing another offence during the suspension period could result in the activation of the suspended sentence.
