Two teachers involved in fight at primary school
(CNS): Two primary school teachers in the government system are ‘working remotely’ according to the department of education services after the men were involved in a brawl in front of the some children at the Joanna Clarke Primary School yesterday. Officials have said they are “working closely with the school’s administration and other relevant authorities to conduct a thorough investigation” into the fight.
School principal, Delton Pedley, also wrote to parents as a result of students witnessing the punch-up.
In a press statement Thursday officials from the department of education services said they understood the concerns that have been raised and were committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of all students and staff at the school in Savannah which according to the most recent inspection is rated only satisfactory.
The DES said it was committed to upholding the highest standards of conduct for all educators.
“We have taken the precautionary measure of placing the involved parties on remote work to ensure that the school environment remains safe and supportive for all students and staff. The school’s leadership has likewise taken measures to minimise any impact on student learning and support students who may
have been privy to the alleged incident,” the officials stated. “We are exploring a range of possible interventions to address the alleged incident and prevent similar occurrences from happening in the future. These interventions may include re-training all staff on conflict resolution and providing
additional support for students and staff affected by such incidents.”
No further details about the altercation have been confirmed by the DES nor has the department denied reports posted on Cayman Marl Road, yesterday evening, that the two teachers involved were fighting over a woman who also teaches at the school and has a child with one of the two men involved in the brawl. The teachers were identified as PE Teacher David Hamil and Year 4 teacher Nicardo Bennett.
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Category: Education, Local News
Once again CMR published a bunch of lies and nobody sues!!
Suppose a Civil Servant and a Chief Officer got into a brawl, would both be fired on the spot?
Code of Conduct = gross misconduct so yes, they should be. Er, should.
Be extremely careful about relying on hearsay and making remarks about individuals lives and well being without knowing the facts about the circumstances. There was no fight, physical altercation. Mr. Hamil asked to speak to his colleague Mr. Bennett as gentlemen to gentlemen. Mr. Bennett then proceeded to put his hand in Mr. Hamil’s face. Before anything could escalate other colleagues separated both individuals. So, there was no fight. What Marl Road is saying is not factually correct that there was a physical altercation. No children was present at the time of the incident. The children were in the swimming pool. Mr. Hamil worked as a teacher in Cayman for over 17 years and never yet had a problem with any colleague. Then saying they should get fired, loose their income not knowing the facts based off allegations is sad and disappointing. There was no fight. This is irrelevant to the matter. But saying that they should get deported is ridiculous. Mr. Bennet can get deported because he is from Jamaica. But, in terms of Mr. Hamil it is legally impossible for him to get deported from Cayman because he is a born Caymanian, his mother is a born Caymanian, his grandmother is a born Caymanian. Refrain from treating hearsay as facts before you know the actual facts. Cayman as an Island like to add there remarks without checking facts encouraging and demanding other members of their community loose their livelihood based off hearsay. Encouraging and wishing that a Caymanian that dedicate his whole life to being a teacher in his country from he finished college demonstrates that people in this Island heart is not good. In my opinion I think re-training is important. David always represented Cayman as an athlete and is a quiet individual. So, you must know something happened for his name to be involved in this situation. The children at the school will tell you that he is a good and professional teacher that genuinely cares about the children future. Sad affairs.
Agree completely. Sometimes the story gets ahead of the facts. Best not to get too judgmental, before you end up in a similar situation. It’s not a pleasant place to be, especially if you are innocent.
I agree. Cayman readers prejudging individuals, Cayman readership casting judgement, Cayman conclusions with little facts… Not very well thought out Cayman, but so so typical.
Wow, thank you for this post. This brings to mind that Cayman is in desperate need for more professional and independent journalism. Net News does well but it’s not nearly enough. Any healthy, well-informed society has to have multiple reliable news sources. We only have one with limited resources. Sad state. Imagine how much government and businesses are getting away with because there is so little oversight.
“No children was present”…subject verb disagreement, bobo. “Loose their income”….lose, not loose bobo.
Kids go to school to get an edjumacation but that doesn’t mean they’re gone get it. You’d think Grammar is a not subject that is offered in the Cayman Islands. It is an elective that is not required in order to graduate.
Makes me cringe especially in a professional situation.
If our MLA’s don’t need an education then why should our children? /s
Why in the name of God was this “speaking gentleman to gentleman” ( sic) happening on government SCHOOL property. Your excusing of one of these protagonists is just making it worse, 7:47. I recommend you stay home and continue “ working remotely”.
1. The school sent out a letter confirming a small group of kids witnessed the altercation.
2. “Mr. Hamil asked to speak to his colleague Mr. Bennett as gentlemen to gentlemen.”… There’s a time and a place for everything. School is NOT the place to confront someone over a woman.
Your whole comment is a mess and what’s wrong with this country. No accountability & quick to defend disturbing behavior!!! All three are WRONG.
Maybe a nice coffee shop or something, idk?
There are way too many instances of adults in the public school system behaving badly. Makes me think the hiring standards set by the education ministry are awfully low. Yet they are making a minimum of $5K a year just to fight like WWE wrestlers. Shameful for everyone involved including the new Premier Julianna who’s been in charge of Education for years now.
Wow, at $5k a year, who would want to be a teacher? Not surprised they’re opting to try out for the WWE. Shameful for commentators to put in their 2 cents when they’re not fully aware of all the facts.
…5k per month …
5K a month I assume – not even NAU pays 5K a year
Correction- …minimum 5k per month…
Parents with kids in the public school system are awfully quiet when serious issues like this arise…I’d demand they be fired immediately & banned from school property.
How embarrassing for everyone involved. All 3 should be fired immediately!!!
DES said it was “committed to upholding the highest standards of conduct”, but what they did was put them on remote work? Fire both for cause.
Those two characters should have been fired on the spot! I don’t care who the hell they are it’s obvious that they should not be even near a classroom. If this is allowed with mere conflict resolution training or some other “intervention”, will you, the parents, sit back and do nothing? Your children deserve better.
Bring back the British teachers. They were the best. But sent away..The irony.
The state of them! Yikes! What in the world do they teach?
Remind us again oh great Ju Ju why the exorcist was relocated from EEPS?
Ju Ju front page = highest paid and our Education system is still a mess!! She had decades to recruit the best teachers, clean out the “pass the coconut” poor performing teachers? Yet, she FAILED. We have the Govt budget to FIX our Education???
1.) Make out teachers the highest paid in the world (2 yr permits based on test scores and drop the life-long under performers?
2.) Clean house!!
3.) Make every parent responsible – education is not a babysitter and parents need to realize that school is cherished for millions of people around the globe.
4.) We could fix this within a generation and should be up against the likes of Japan -but respect and good governance needs to be the order of the day.
5.) Our literacy rates are appalling compared to 1st world countries with such a low and manageable population.
6.) Civil service needs succession planning instead of lifetime expat contracts and guaranteed CI status???
Where is the blame for the woman?
Only in the Cayman islands…..MLA making over a 1/4 of a million dollars a year tax free and teachers in a brawl in class.
This would immediate dismissal anywhere else in any industry.
There should not be any fraternization between coworkers in the same public sector department or division. Regardless of this gray area that is merely frowned upon and discouraged; both these gentlemen should no longer be employed as government educators after being involved in a physical altercation at a Cayman Islands public school, government or Crown property while being under the employment of our Cayman Islands Government. This behavior and their actions leading up to this event, should not be tolerated on any level, whether in a public or private sector position and most of all in a system of which the capacity is to set an example for our young people and children whether Caymanian or foreigners.
Sure I watched a movie about this already
another glorious day for the civil service…..zzzzz
this would never have happened if only we were paying them a minimum of $7500 a month.
Imagine physically fighting over a single mother. their dads must be so proud.
Fire them both. I know that they are not Caymanians because if they were then they would be without a job. However, the DES is filled with Non-Caymanians/’So called Paper Caymanians’ who look out for their own, so it will be interested to see how this will be handled and the final outcome.
Hamil represented Cayman as a young athlete . How can you say now he is not Caymanian? Because Caymanians never do anything wrong. Right. We’ll fire both of them and hull see who was here in a work permit and who is Caymanian. Deal with the issue – teachers fighting in front of kids – instead of making it about immigration.
fire and deportation should be in effect.
I have said it before and will say it again- the Education Ministry has been failing the parents and students in the “quality of some of the teachers” they are hiring. No wonder some of the students are behaving very badly if these are the examples they have to follow. Government is spending a lot of money on teachers salaries, free breakfast and lunches, computers, nice classrooms etc.
The results continue to drop, the Member responsibie for education continues to “bury her head in the sand” which is evident by the fact that she hardly bothers to show up for their graduations. Please explain how these teachers are working from home? Are they continuing to teach by zoom while these investigations are going on? I hope not.
No the students are behaving badly due to the bad parenting skills employed on this island.
Not turning up to graduations? you know there’s literally nothing to celebrate at these events. They somehow ‘graduate’ from Primary School, and then High School, aka compulsory education. This foolishness needs to stop. Celebrate the few high achievers, and then the earning of a bachelors degree. Other than that, it’s all hubris and garbage.
Fighting in front of children, their students? How are they not immediately fired?
Exactly! breach of public standards, code of conduct and assaulting another person is a criminal offence, how hard can it be to fire them?
civil service don’t do firings….
Because it is Cayman. Ethics and logic don’t exist here.
“Caribbeanisation” coming home to roost. Thanks Roy and Truman.
No no no 8:16, not Truman, he might be guilty of other things but Caribbeanise is the last thing he would do, he loved the British teachers. But Roy, yes, and Oswel, they were desperate to get teachers “who understood our children”.
more Mac and juju
Alden too. He was an education minister.
Truman Bodden made sure we had good teachers as well as making sure our Caymanian children got scholars to attend the best universities around the world. Our system began failing when the Ministry abandon GCE and GCSE and replaced it with the mediocre CXC, once they did that then they phased out the British teachers who were doing such a good job in our school. Back then the parents, students and the teachers respected and supported each other. Now everyday is a war and survival of the fittest!
Amen amen amen brother or sister @ 5:39.
5 39 He’s responsible for gangs taking hold though.
No, not really,7:29. He refused to accept that such things were happening in Cayman and especially in our schools because gangs he thought were so non Caymanian, but he did not CAUSE the gangs to start. That’s another big big question that no one wants to take on.
For setting such a bad example they should be fired.
Questions…
1. Who won?
2. Are people surprised at this, when we have members of the government with actual criminal convictions?
3. The people trying to make out that expat teachers, probably Jamaicans, are somehow more likely to do this, is ridiculous. Personal relationships cause friction that leads to violence. It happens here, it happens in Japan, it happens in the UK, it happens in Chile. It happens everywhere. It often leads to far worse than a brawl. What is interesting, is how it’s going to be dealt with.
Questions 1 & 2 are valid. Point 3 is more of a statement than a question. The statement is for the most part inaccurate. Yes, it does happen all around the world, but with far less frequency than within certain nationalities, cultures, etc. I don’t know of many Polish, Canadian, or Icelandic terrorists, but I have heard of many terrorists hailing from certain other parts of the world… Same holds true for crimes…some groups, for whatever reasons, are more predisposed to crimes, crimes of violence, etc… Just saying.
As to #2: No people are not surprised, just look at who they elect. Caymanians love their criminals.
There should be 0 tolerance for this shit. Fire them both immediately!!’
After school boxing lessons working out well, are they?
placed on remote working as a precaution? how about fired on the spot, then arrested, then deported?
Nationality?
Ooooooo Meghan and Harry will be very upset with you for asking that question.
Swamp
All three local
Male, 5:20. They think with their d*&k.
If there’s one thing that’s not worth fighting over it’s women. There’s billions on the planet and if she’s juggling 2 guys she’s definitely not worth it.
As a women, I agree with you on this. Don’t go chasing no h@es
Typical for this viewership – blame the woman that was not involved in the altercation. Sad the intellect and ethics here.
Hey, we’re railroading all three. Don’t interject morals.
Au contraire. Having been there once or twice, each chap thinks he is the King of his Domain, ultimately the Queen decides. Doesn’t make her the bad person, especially if children are involved.
Best to not judge people when you don’t walk in their shoes.
Peace…Love.
‘Sacred vessel’
*wessel
Imagine being the biggest, baddest, meanest alpha…at a primary school.
Idiots.
Who was arrested for fighting with a teacher in Cayman Brac during the last few weeks?
Carpet, brush much?
No wonder that the kids fight if the people who they are meant to be learning from fight (and fight over women!!).
Look at the teachers, then look at the baby mama they’re fighting over.
Bring in 3rd world teachers with little or no education or any sense of propriety , and third world behavior will result.
What a fine example to set the students ..!
CMR has their photos…Classy.!
👊🏽 I say you pay for you get, 3rd world labour and the standards to go with it.
well said. everyone wants to point to 3rd world behavior but no one wants to discuss the employers who are addicted to 3rd world labor.
Teachers in Cayman are well paid,!
Employers in this case being the CI Government.
The Education department has a duty to ensure that teachers are qualified to the highest social, as well as education standards.
You brits and Canucks bring third world attitudes to Cayman. Go home.
3rd world teachers? At least 2 of them are Caymanians. One represents Cayman in athletics.
Let’s blame the teachers for our abysmal parenting schools.
An exorcism will sort them out. That and years paid leave sounds about the usual ticket.
Might get rid of the bad juju….see what I did there? …..I’ll get me coat!
world class!
The New Cayman developing new tools & resources for the impending future, – nothing to see here folks just our Country’s evolution. 🫠
Cayman Public Schools = World class.
World class expats.
Exactly. Investigate. Fire. If not Caymanian, deport. Should take no longer than 30 days if sensible laws and procedures are being followed.
sensible and anything govt. related should never be in the same sentence unless the word ‘not’ is there.