Parents could help by taking their children's phones every so often and checking all the video and photo files - don't let them have password-protected folders, and check all their memory cards. If you think that's a gross invasion of their privacy or a breach of trust, then you probably haven't done it before! If you don't know what I'm on about, you need to learn how modern phones work.

The answwer is simple. All mobile phones should be handed in to a form teacher in the mornings, and collected as they leaver the school. They don't NEED phones during schooltimes!

#1 is also right. No passwords are necessary for schoolkids. They haven't earned their right to privacy until they no longer depend on their parents for financial support.

For once I agree with Scaramouche. It should also be brought home to parents that their child’s behaviour is largely their responsibility

Good Lord!

Is it something in the drinking water, that is causing all this?

Students are in school to learn. They shouldn't have any need for a cell phone (mobile phone) in the classroom at all. I think the Education Ministry should do a flat out ban on cell phones on school property.

And if any bleeding heart person says other wise. I'd like to see how they would resond if an inncodent like that happened to them, and it was posted on the internet?

when i was at school contraband was held until the end of term when it was returned, do the same with phones but i suspect it will the parents who complain most with this policy, as they seek to wrap their kids in cotton wool. I wonder what the punishment will be for this 15 year old, a wee slap on the wrist & a return to school where the other kids will look on him as some kind of folk hero. It's time that 14+ year old kids were dealt with as adults, it may just tempt them to think before they act. The Childrens panel is a toothless alternative to punishment, which is why we are seeing such a rise in crime carried out by this age group, becuase they know any punishment they recieve will be ineffective just like ASBO's

It's not just a case of banning phones during school hours, teachers should be allowed to fight back. They should have a legal right to fully defend themselves. That 15 year old should have been given a good kicking by his headmaster, as little thugs like that only understand one language.

As for these Children's Panels, they should be scrapped for young thugs that commit adult crimes. And while we're at it, bring back the cat, and borstals.

#7.....I have to agree....the PC idiots will turn blue in the face of course.....but its a fact...thuggery such as this should be dealt with in similar fashion.....a good leathering in front of their peers....will soon put paid to their bullying posturings.....bullys of all shapes and sizes whether they be individuals or countries......respond only to actions in kind......history proves me correct.........PC liberalism has created more problems than ever.....its a failed experiment.....how many PC liberalists are on the front line in Iraq or Afganistan.....nada.......!!!!

Why is it that teachers who have been abused and assaulted have to face the offender every day afterwards? Where else does this happen - the offender and his/her victim in daily contact?
One solution would be for the pupil to be removed and sent to another school and his/her parents to be responsible for paying any increased travel costs, not the local authority. Maybe parents would then be forced to take some responsibility for their child's (!) behaviour.

It's all carrot and no stick.
The phone should have been pushed down the Ned's throat, removing any teeth on it's way.

All above comments correct the question is "what will the government do about it" answer bring in more red tape and legislation, employ more staff to tackle the problem, some idiot of a manager getting paid more money than he is worth to come up with yet another bright pc idea, we, the people of scotland need to rebel, it's high time we started to fight back against the yob culture the only way they understand and return law and order to the schools and streets, had this laddie attacked me in this fashion I would probably be in a jail cell and he would be in hospital because I would have fought back "big time"!

Its high time this PC friendly culture was given the boot, bring it all back, the youth of today have no fear. There is no real punishment for them they are just laughing at the system and will continue to do so whilst the bleeding hearted maniacs are in charge, what ever happened to our system I would like to know. I was educated under a system where you did wrong you were punished and It never did me any harm at all, the softies are in charge im afraid, still "poor we lamb" proably grew up in a broken home with no real parental support eh!

#2, Scaramouche, is absolutely right. Nobody should complain who is not willing to take the simplest step: Collect all mobile phones in the morning and don't hand them back to the wee rascals of both sexes prior to leaving the school premises in the afternoon. These overly pampered youngsters whose parents would do anything for them, including blowing icing sugar into their rectums, have no business watching bestiality scenes and the like on their phones when in school or attacking whoever they choose to be their victim and shooting the incident in order to show the abuse to a world-wide audience of idots to enjoy.

#12 - "wee rascals" ? I dont think so - these 14 and 15 yr old "wee rascals" are pretty much fully grown men and women - rather you than me !

Professor Eric Wilkinson, of Glasgow University's education department, is sadly mistaken if he thinks that "this will have been a one-off incident".

Is the problem really kids having phones, or is it that pupils think it's ok to hit other people?

Both of my children have phones and take them to school - they have never hit a teacher (or another pupil) nor have they ever recorded such an incident.

However, if a pupil were to hit a teacher, I think it is probably a good idea for someone to record it - at least there is evidence so that it is not the word of the teacher against the word of the pupil...

"WILL SOON LEAD TO A CATASTROPHIC BREAKDOWN IN DISCIPLINE" Don't you think that
discipline broke down many years ago and we are now paying the price.
Bring back the belt and let teachers use it.

a wake-up call to schools to act promptly to stop further abuses of technology taking place in the classroom?.....
Who cares about them abusing technology, we need to stop the abuse of the teachers.
So long as we are led by the nose by
'bleeding heart liberals and social workers' this situation will continue to worsen, it wont be long now till the papers report teacher murdered in the classroom.....

#5 Aye, the belt did us no harm or did it? During the barbaric days of corporal punishment, many of the teachers should have been arrested for assault.
The only difference between these nasty adolescents and many teachers who doled out corporal punishment is that the teachers were allowed to do it under the law. Many teachers were of course, wonderful human beings and the best ones were those who hardly ever needed to punish any student.

I happen to agree with bringing back the belt. But not in primary schools. Other punishments will work with under 13s.

It's the 13 and upwards who, yes, ARE bigger than they were of that age group 30 years ago. Indeed, it's a whole generation ago since the belt was removed. Kids today have no idea what the legendary tawse can do.

It's not as if we are advocating striking them anywhere else but the hand! That would be wrong and illegal. But there HAS to be a physical deterrent, because nothing else has worked.

The "little darlings" are bigger, bolder, brasher and more badly behaved than when I was in 2nd year. And I remember one pupil actually breaking a wooden chair over a teacher's head .... I did not go to a wimpy school. It was a tough inner city school.

I'm not sorry to to say it, but the "PC brigade and namby-pamby liberals" are the ones who've brought secondary schools to their knees by taking away corporal punishment. Not all teachers approve of the belt, I understand that ...... but if you don't tackle the problem head on, the "wee ones" will walk all over you.

Take away some of the privileges and "rights" we have given them. The only rights a child has from birth is to protection from all sorts of abuse by adults. The belt, used only because of bad behaviour, is not "abuse", it is "correction" .... ie; training!

#2 Agree completely, with criminal prosecutions for anyone commiting an assault. All the evidence is there on youtube or the phone itself.
Gie' someone a battering on the street, you get done, so why not in school?

As to the belt, I don't know. I went to a tough school, and it wasn't that much of a deterrent, to some it was a badge of honour to get the scud. What worried us most was our parents finding out, because our Dads would give us absolute laldy, 500% more than any school teacher could, and over a much longer period.

I agree with most of the above comments. No mobile phone in schools, why do they need them??Give teachers more powers and make parents teach their children manners. Also bring back the belt and any other deterrent, some children act like animals and get away with it!!

Do not let his relative youth confuse you about Alan Williamson. He is a very competent head teacher and enjoys support from the staff of the school.
His problem (if it is his) is that he has no sanctions he can employ that are anything like effective. Suppose he had punched a 15 y/o man: he would be out of a job, out of a career, and fortunate to be out of jail. Yet this ned and his accomplices will get off and the worst thing that will happen will be that they will end up in another school, plaguing another set of teachers.

It is high time "children" behaving in this way were named. It annoys me that the teacher is named in the article, and presumably has to deal with the sniggers of like minded youths in the YouTube world. The miscreant, on the other hand, who is quite old enough to punch a grown man in the face, and indeed someone who he knows cannot strike back (because as we all know, the retaliating teacher will be vilified, have to go to a tribunal, will most probably be suspended, etc etc), is able to float under the radar. He is to suffer the cruel and unusual punishment of " a Report to the Children's Panel". That'll teach em, eh!
So, get his name and face in the press. Doorstep his parents and ask them what they are going to do about it. Of course, there will doubtless be the usual "background issues" that will be found to explain this coward's behaviour. Sadly though, no amount of social deprivation can excuse the thuggish cynicism of a child who would find is amusing to video a common assault.

#21 To strike another human being whether on the hand or any other part of the body is abuse. I agree that nothing else has worked! We have seen the situation go from teachers abusing students to students abusing teachers. I agree with #22 (Biker) that we should fine the parents. Yes, the particular kids need to be taught a lesson but violence only begets violence. There has to be another way!

My partner and I have been on the end of kids behaving badly, it's cost us a front door and two double-glazed windows. Anything from the parents? No of course not. Parenting in the UK is diabolical. The kids got ASBOs, the parents got sympathy... what the hell is wrong with our society?? Abjuring parents of their responsibilities to teach some self-control to their kids. We need to stop bleating about the kids and tackle the useless parents!

The problem is lack of disipline, none at school and even less at home.
If corporal punishment is to stay in the past, then a new punishment must be found.
An american styled boot camp could be the answer to many youngsters who would otherwise remain nutcases for life.

There is absolutely no reason for pupils to have mobile phones in schools. None at all (unless someone can give me a valid reason for a child to need a mobile phone during their school day). They should be banned from school premises full stop. Children shouldn't need them anyway. It's a cop out for parents to say they need them for emergencies. If parents took more responsibility for the safety, supervision and behaviour of their children, they wouldn't need such protection from danger.

As for dealing with the discipline issue in schools, I agree that the belt should be brought back, but only for use in extreme cases where other measures aren't working. No one, regardless of their job, should be subjected to this kind of violence. As long as there are no ways available to teachers of dealing with such behaviour, it will continue, and get worse. ALL pupils who strike a teacher or another pupil should be charged with assault.

Ex-ladywood resident needs serious help. Mr Williamson is a very experienced and effective senior school manager, and it is his effectiveness and clear vision since being appointed in October that has made him a target for the pond-life.

The handling of this by the Scottish media has been a disgrace. The anti-socials film their violence with the aim of getting it aired on Youtube: the BBC shows the full clip, with no regard for the right to anonymity for the school staff involved. The perpetrators win, and any other sociopaths out there now have a blueprint for a copycat attack.

Some facts. Mr Williamson's lip was not burst, and he was not knocked to the ground. Pamela Munn's comments are an utter outrage. Perhaps she should visit real schools before pontificating her wacko theories. Mr Williamson has the full support of the school community, and the incident was efficiently and calmly dealt with on the day of the attack. Hawick High School is a superb school, situated in a unique and caring community, and it is appalling that the name of this progressive and ambitious school is being brought to national attention through the actions of odious individuals. As a guest of the superb senior school Burns supper on Wednesday night, I saw Mr Williamson enjoying the efforts of hard-working pupils, with no evidence of facial injury!

The politicians should get a hold of the moral vacuum that is this country, and start with the media. Actions have consequences, and there should be clear sanctions for irresponsible and wanton exploitation of violence, by thugs, and the organisations that showcase their 'exploits'.

Given that the headmaster and his colleagues know where this 'student' lives wouldn't it be an idea to pass that information and a few quid to some of the local hard men in Hawick with a request to sort him out? A good hiding would teach him an important lesson in life, i.e. that there is always someone bigger and harder than you out there so you had better behave.

Why did police only caution this thug? Surely they had all the evidence they needed for a prosecution.

I do not think there should be a complete ban on mobile phones as they could provide a life line for pupils in dangerous situations. But......I think there should be a basic model for school children, one without a camera - the rest should be banned in schools as camera does not provide any safety features. That together with rules that mobile phones must be switched off whilst in lessons seams a sensible idea to me. I think you have to think further than 'hitting' a child!

You are right, Wherryman, I forgot the quotation marks around 'wee rascals' (as I forgot the second 'i' in 'idiots'). Sorry.

There is one method that will always work in school: Be friendly, but let them feel the consequences should they get out of line. Pupils need to know who the boss is in the classroom. A good teacher does not need to work the belt on youngsters. Leathering is abuse, disgrace to both parties involved and a clear sign of teacher weakness. Not because do-gooders and PC-babblers tell us so, mind you.

This talk about carrying a mobile phone is just a red herring. The real story is that discipline at home and in the classroom has collapsed.

A lot of it has to do with the banning of corporal punishment and the increase in the PC goody-goody brigade.

Get rid of all this crap about hurting someones Human Rights and get back to basics. Discipline starts at home and a belting by the parents would stop a lot of this nonsense from ever happening.

And to all of those who think this is wrong - get a life - i am certainly advocating a return of corporal punishment and even more I would support the return of the death penalty for proven murder.

I went to primary and high school in south africa, if this kid had tried to hit a teacher there he would have had his arse fed to him.

Treat violence with violence!

Oh yes that will do the trick won't it?

If aggression is a learnt behaviour we can see exactly where it comes .. look at these posts!

We should be teaching our children that violence is wrong not condoning it with more violence.

Some people need to think again and its not just the 'PC Goody goody brigade' nor the human rights activists that think this way.

Having kowtowed to the PC brigade, Liberty, civil rights organisations, Lib Dems and other assorted weirdos, we are now "reaping" what we sowed. We have left ourselves with an inability to impose common-sense sanctions - or at least the threat of them - leaving unruly brats to rule the roost.

I also blame a section of teachers who are within the loony fringe described above. There are some who would not want to infringe upon the "human rights" of pupils. Witness the idiot teacher last week who returned a knife to a boy pupil only for him to scare a young girl witless.

Who in their right mind would return a knife to a pupil? Perhaps an EIS representative could offer an excuse?

The answer is simple.

Bring back the belt/cane and USE IT.

This is a minority of kids here. The vast majority behave themselves appropriately and have respect for their teachers. Why should they be made to suffer a ban on mobile phones when they have done no wrong? All that will do is create an atmosphere of lack of faith in the system.

This daft government is far too keen to slap bans on evrything. The ban on using phones whilst driving, the ban on guns, the ban on smoking, the ban on hunting... I could go on and on. If these bans are not as a result of listening to lunatics, they are the result of knee-jerk reactions to incidents which took place at various times.

Banning mobile phones from schools will stop only one thing. All it will stop is the filming of incidents like this. It will not stop them happening, neither will it improve the behavior of "problem" pupils. Also, do they really think that they will be able to enforce this?

In the 1970s, smoking and posession of cigarettes by pupils was forbidden. Neither me nor any of my mates ever had any trouble at all in smoking at school and having fags on us. Even if one of us got caught and had our fags confiscated, there were always plenty of others who still had their fags on them. It will be the same with mobile phones. The idea of banning mobile phones is senseless and will send out the wrong messages.

It's an assualt:simple as that. The video is evidence: simple as that. Throw the power of the Law at both kids and make an example of them (young offenders' 'prisons' are not Butlins, despite what folk say) Make sure that every kid in Scotland knows what happened to them.

As for Google (you tube): They broadcast a criminal act prior to a court session. Illegal. Sue the b**gers.

Then again, if you have the 'Brit' army stomping around the world in illegal wars killing thousands of people for the Yanks, the kids would be right in shouting 'hypocracy'. The 'led' usually take on the morality (or lack of) from the 'leaders'.

I suggest zero tolerance for this type of "crime". Since we are no longer able to chastise children effectively, then children should be removed from school and home (assuming ineffective parenting to be the norm) and placed in a "boot camp" for a week to teach them how to behave Time spent in a boot camp should increase exponentially for successive crimes.

To those who think a child needs a mobile phone for school, this is absolute nonsense. Has the world gone mad? Give me an example of a situation where a child needs a mobile phone at school. Keep them out of schools. If found, the school should confiscate it, and the parents should have to come and collect it and discuss why the child had it there in the first place.

Although the problem is not phones per se, they have no place in an educational establishment. As for the behaviour, bringing back corporal punishment is NOT setting an example of violence. It should be a last resort measure to instill a measure of discipline that currently isn't there. The kids who are behaving themselves have nothing to fear. Those who think it's OK to punch another human being,be it teacher or fellow pupil, give them 10 of the best. It's less likely to happen again. I find that the people who cry "brutality" about the belt are those who are too young to remember when there was discipline in schools. It did the job, and the majority of those who were in receipt of it had no lasting damage. Bring back the belt!

Sorry petrolhead I dont think that returning the Belt/Cane to use would help. Consider the size and bulk of these "kids". I'm not sure that it could be done within the confines of the law. Nor could I see them standing by compliently waiting to recieve the punishment. This aint a do gooder attitude just a practicality.
Zoe. I dont agree that violence is a learned skill. For many children (and adults) its a substitute for reasoned discussion. It dos'nt have to be taught, it's just innate.

Petrol Head, you been consuming that stuff yourself or just giving the brain an off day? "govt too keen to ban everything including mobiles in cars" You advocating the use of a mobile whilst driving then? banning the use of mobiles in school might well prevent this sort of incident happening since the evidence would seem to suggest it was set up in order to be videod and put on YouTube. It would be very rare for a kid to banjo a teacher otherwise. As for smoking in school , it may have escaped your notice that it is now illegal for that to take place and our local school has pretty much totally eradicated it by excluding any pupil caught doing so. Quite what wrong message would be sent out by banning mobile phones from being used in school. You don't make that clear

I wonder what planet Prof Wlliamson is living on? I can tell of a number of assaults on teachers at my wife's school, which is a so called "good school". Verbal abuse is rife and threats of malicious complaints are made if teachers dare to tell off some of the reprobates. Actual malicious complaints are made without thought and when they are discovered to be thus, a lunchtime detention ensues. Even physical asaults are given no more than 3 day exclusions.

It is high time those who merely want to disrupt schools were not allowed in until they agree to the rules. It makes it safer for pupils and teachers alike and allows learning to take place.

Changed days and not for the better - mobile phones in school??? We were not even allowed to wear black tights in school (c.1977) and when I thought I would be a smart ass and sneak out of the house wearing them to school I was given the belt - did it make me beat up people, bully people, hit my children, turn me to a life of crime - no, it taught me not to break the school rules and to have a bit more respect.

#50, I couldn't agree more.... I too overstepped the mark once or twice, and got the belt for it. Did I like it? No, of course not! Did it harm me? Well, I wasn't very happy when the palm of my hand was stinging for half an hour! Did it mentally scar me, or cause me to become a violent human being later in life? Absolutely not! id it turn me into a quivering wreck or a bully? No. It taught me that there are rules. It taught me to respect people. It taught me to behave. There's nothing like that at school any more, and there is no respect or discipline.

I notice that nobody has actually come up with a sensible reason why our children should be allowed to have mobile phones at school. Could that be because there isn't one, I wonder? The phones aren't the real problem, but they are indicitive of the way that schools have ceased to become places of proper learning.

Belt them. Who gives a tawse-er for their human rights ?

The belt achieved nothing in the school I went to. I got it once for not doing homework, and all it taught me was to hate the teacher who used it and to prepare my lie a bit better next time. The more brutish pupils just showed their 'scars' off as a badge of honour, much as their successors do now with ASBOs.

Corporal punishment, and all "might is right" thinking, breeds violence and ignorance and is not a solution - Iraq, anybody? More investment in teachers, pupils and schools is part of the solution. The rest has to be left to people who both care and understand - and neither politicians not supporters of corporal punishment need apply.

#53. We obviously have different experiences of getting the belt, and learned different lessons from it. I think that part of the problem is this idea of yours that people who agree with corporal punishment as a last resort measure to deal with those who cannot be reasoned with are branded as aggressive thugs who don't understand or care.

I agree with corporal punishment, because I know that there has been a decline in disciplne in schools because it was outlawed. I also love young people. I work with them on a voluntary basis. I enjoy their company, their energy and their enthusiasm. I am not an uncaring person who does not understand, and nor did I support the activity in Iraq. So you see, believing the belt t obe a deterrent to teachers being physically assaulted does not make one a warmonger or a bully.

Way to go Vinny.
Zoe and the rest of the bleeding heart liberals wake up and smell the coffee.
These young thugs do what they do because they enjoy it and know they can they away with it.

Those two wee basta**s should be immediately expelled with their parents named, shamed and publically humiliated. The kids should also be sent to borstal - tough luck to them - commit the crime then do the time
The headteacher should also be allowed (and encouraged) to sue the kids parents.
And the government are thinking of keeping kids in school till they are 18 - welcome to wacky races....

Corporal punishment is obviously still allowed, as long as it is inflicted on the teachers.

This whole incedent has been blown COMPLETLY out of proportion. Mr. Williamson didn't fall to the ground, he hasn't got a split lip, it happened in the canteen in front of half the school, the punch was unprovoked and it wasn't "happy slaping". Personally, I think t6hat if the belt was brought back, it might cause more pupils to bunk off school. Some of the teachers could abuse this punishment. Mr. Williamson is a GREAT rector and 99.99999999999999% of the staff and pupils respect him and are shocked and disgusted at what happened.

They should 'ban' phones in the classroom, not in schools but in the classroom. They must cause a terrible distraction to thousands of youngsters and cause teachers a real headache when they are taking classes.

With regards to the despicable assault, I see the solution to be bringing back corporal punishment in schools(i.e. the cane or belt).

It is just SO unacceptable that this kid punched the Head teacher of his school AND had it filmed that tough action needs to be taken so it does not happen again.

It just goes back to the fact that here in the U.K. we have been to lenient on crime for too long now. These kids know they can get away with this sh*t and nothing will happen to them.

We need to toughen up, get real and stamp this kind of behaviour out by youngsters.

Embra #53 - where do you get this idea that people who want a return of coporal punishment don't care or understand? I care that our schools have fallen into a state of chaos and unruly behaviour,disrupted by a yobbish minority who inflict their disruption and violence on others. I care that children should be allowed to be educated in an environment which is peaceful and safe. I care that the staff shouldn't be subjected to this kind of bad behaviour. I also care that my own kids education should not be disrupted because one or two little numpties are just there for a laugh..... And I understand that unless schools are given the powers to deal with them, the education system will be a lot worse in years to come than it is even now.

If my own kids hit a teacher, or even verbally abused them, the head teacher would have my full backing in giving them a few hard ones with the belt. Just what exactly do Zoe et al suggest schools do with these violent, unruly and disruptive kids? I'd really like to hear a sensible answer, and not just saying expel them, because that just removes them from any chance of education they may get, puts them on the streets, and sets them up for an unhappy and unproductive future. That, as far as I'm concerned is failing them.

I don't think anyone is suggesting that the belt be used as a matter of course because someone has been a bit naughty. It would be, as several others have said, a last resort with the kind of kids who just won't listen to reason and are possibly destroying the one chance of a decent education that they will ever get. It's all very well to be touchy feely and give it all the fluffy stuff, but folks... IT DOESN'T WORK!

A few years ago I taught in a school in sub-saharan Africa where teachers were generally shown respect by the pupils AND the parents. One pupil at the school started dodging classes. The head teacher secretly reported this to the boy's father and the boy's father was invited to the school to chastise his son severely in the school playground in front of the whole school. It seemed a bit extreme at the time, and I'm not saying that the school and the boy's father were right to do this but it WAS effective.

Scotland is different from Africa, however. Here schools are given targets for reducing suspensions of pupils and head teachers are criticised if they dare expel a pupil. Teachers are at real risk of having false accusations made against them. Teachers cannot even chastise their own children (i.e. in their own family) without risking losing their livelihoods. Well-behaved pupils are having their education disrupted on an hourly basis. Examination boards are having to make their exams easier. Those schools who do manage to cope a bit better (e.g. catholic and episcopalian schools) face a diatribe of insults from secular humanists, secularists and the grand orange order, instead of being praised for their (albeit modest) achievements in regard to discipline. Those educationalists at the top, who presumably have to dance to the tunes of our elected politicians, are more interested in banning mobile phones than in dealing with the problem of violence in our classrooms.

Maybe, just maybe, it's a good thing that mobile phones are letting the general public get some idea of what is going on in our schools.

Kids are dispruptive thanks solely to bad parenting.

33 I have had deallings with Mr Williamson and his thinking was far from clear. All I was pointing out was that the rector has to take resposibility for the behavour of the pupils in his charge. I never had much time for Mr Horne either but this never happened when he was the rector.

64, I assume by your logic that you would be responsible for the actions of your child at ALL times? Should the managing director of a 1,000 strong workplace be responsible for the behaviour of ALL of their employees at ALLl times? Does a Rector have the ability of the M.D. to 'instantly dismiss' without the interference of other bodies?

Methinks you have an axe to grind over another matter that has no place on a discussion about calculated, planned physical attacks on human beings who choose to try and improve the future of our nation through education.

I agree with the magority. As the saying of old, "Spare the rod and spoil the child". We've let all form of respect be lost by the liberal leftist fueled by Hollywood and I am ashamed that this force has such a wordly affect.

Although I read the comments daily I rarely get round to responding. However, I am so saddened by this story, the posts and the general state of schools at home.

I teach in China, to English speaking kids of all races who cannot access local schools because of language. The kids pretty much all have mobile phones to keep in touch after school on their journeys home as after school clubs etc mean kids are making their own ways home on journeys of up to an hour.

That aside, the thing that saddens me most is the fact that in Scotland there seems to be such a bank of kids who don't want to learn and therefore don't make the most of their opportunities. Here, education is seen as the key to success. I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to teach kids who want to learn, who try their hardest and whose parents value education. If I work out how to bottle the magic I'll bring it home.

Meantime I wonder...is it because it's free, it's a right and there's no responsibility within it, that school is so disrespected by a minority?

Some of these kids need a tanking to restore respect. The softly softly approach has been a monumental failure.

I seem to remember my son getting into trouble at the school and the headmaster stating that if he did not make a good effort to achieve an education, then he could not expect his teachers to make one either. I would suggest that the truly problem children are removed to cubicles in a room somewhere and educated by close circuit television. There is no reason at all why teachers should be subject to this kind of behaviour. That is the good thing about technology, you can stiff the wee b*st*rds without breaking the law.

Headmaster, sue the parents for every penny they'll ever see.

Ex-Ladywood Resident said:

"what the Article does not say is that Mr. Williamson has only recently been appointed in October. He was appointed internally"...."Mr Williamson must take some responsibility for the lack of discipline in Hawick High school."

Mr Williamson (funny how we know his name, but not the thug who hit the one person in the school he knew had too much to lose to fight back) was appointed after an exhaustive interview process, and gained the job against external candidates. So how is that "appointed internally"?

He had just excluded the culprit permanently, thus surely taking responsibility for discipline in HHS. What more do you expect him to do?

Discipline will get better and better, as he removes the small but noisy minority who do not care (or understand) that the School and town is sick of their attitude. This will offend their parents, who will see Mr Williamson as the problem, rather than their offspring. Sounds like this correspondent is one of them!

Hawick is an excellent school with superb pupils, brilliant teachers and is a great place to study and work. We hear a lot about the the 1% of pupils who have a bad attitude to school, but if you go to any school show, concert, sporting occasion, Burns Supper, Creative Fashion Show, charity event, etc. you will see just how much Mr Williamson has helped this school - he is incredibly supportive of all extra-curricular activities. Academically he has done nothing but encourage teachers and pupils to be ambitious and aim higher every year.

The only good thing about this incident is that pupils and parents are now having to decide who they support - Mr Williamson, or a thug who hits people who are not legally allowed to hit back. My advice to any parent who supports the thug by pretending it is Mr Williamson's fault is to:

1) Take your kids away from HHS - they are no longer welcome.

2) Don't be complaining to