Teacher threw six-year-old girl’s sandals in the trash and made her walk around barefoot because she was playing with the strap during class
South Carolina school officials are investigating after a parent accused a teacher of throwing away her six-year-old daughter’s shoes and making her walk around barefoot.
The teacher threw away Taraji Edwards’ sandals as a punishment after losing her patience with the girl, who had been repeatedly asked to stop messing with them in class.
The child’s mother, Chartrese Edwards, said the incident happened last week at Bryson Elementary School in Simpsonville, WSPA-TV reports.
The girl said the strap was bothering her.
‘She began to cry, ‘no mommy I don’t want to wear those sandals’,’ Edwards told the station.
She asked her daughter why and the child revealed that her the teacher had thrown them away in math class the day before.
The child said she was embarrassed after having to walk around barefoot before the teacher told her to retrieve her shoes from the trash and put them back on.
‘I do not want to get treated like that,’ she said. ‘I’m only six.’
‘I feel like it was malicious behavior,’ Edwards added.
She added that she is angry because the teacher, who has not been named, could have used a better method.
‘I raised her with dignity and respect to take care of herself, especially her appearance. And you take shoes I bought for her and you throw them in the trash’ she told Fox Carolina.
‘You don’t have that right to do that, you don’t have the right to take my baby’s shoes off her feet and throw them in the trash and humiliate her in front of her peers.’
In a statement, Greenville County Schools District said in a statement that it doesn’t tolerate embarrassment or humiliation as a form of punishment and is investigating the matter.
The school has approved for a home bound teacher for Taraji, WSPA reported.
Her family has set up a GoFundMe page to raise money to send her to a private school, but no donations have been received as of Wednesday morning.
A post on the page says: ‘Taraji is very sad and afraid to return back to school.
‘We are concerned for maltreatment in the school system because of Taraji bringing this to our attention and the media.
‘We want to send Taraji to a private school since she is not able to return because of the humiliation of her teacher and the emotional and mental breakdown she is having!’
