As many as 100 children aged under five have been excluded from nursery in one year for violence
Figures revealed today show that in one year alone 100 children aged under five had expelled or excluded from their nursery setting for violence. Statistics released by the Department for Education show that 30 children aged four and under had been expelled in the 2013 academic year; whilst a further 70 were expelled for a period of time before being allowed to return. Reasons for this included biting and or violence towards peers and staff. Some children, as young as one, were excluded for attacking others.
Many people reading this will agree that this is tragic to think that children as young as four are being excluded from nurseries. It is important that these children are given the extra support to help change their behaviour to prevent them from being excluded
In the same academic year, a total of 4,950 pupils were excluded from primary and secondary schools. Almost half (44.3%) of these cases were the result of attacks on staff or pupils. Other cases included verbal and racial abuse, sexual misconduct or persistent disruptive behaviour. This has had an impact on staff recruitment, with violence serving one reason for individuals not wanting to enter the profession.
Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron, who requested the statistics, said: “Teaching is facing a recruitment crisis, and violence in the classroom is part of the reason why. No one should have to worry about violence when they set foot in a classroom.”
“But thousands of young people excluded is a national scandal. It affects their life chances and could ruin their future opportunities. We need to tackle the root causes of this crisis earlier on and prevent problem behaviour developing.”
The crackdown on violence in the early years sector can be seen as a positive move towards changing the behaviour prior to starting school, however should early years setting be approaching the situation in a different way? Young children find it difficult to control their feelings and behaviour, with many children pushing the boundaries to understand cause and effect of their actions.
Do you agree with expelling children aged under five, or do you feel that more should be done to understand and prevent the violent behaviour?