Bullying Case File: Daxin Elementary School, Nantun District, Taichung City

Daxin Elementary School Bullying Case File

### Teacher Corporal Punishment and Psychological Abuse Incident From March to October 2024, teacher Lu Mei-chen inflicted corporal punishment, intimidation, and psychological abuse on a student. After parents complained, the school's handling was lenient, and the student was ultimately forced to transfer.

**Violation of Article 8, Paragraph 2 of the Basic Act of Education** **Violation of Article 38 of the Directions for Teacher's Guidance and Discipline of Students**

### Incident Summary

**Three Major Misconducts**

* **2024.03.15 - Hitting Hand with a Pointer:** Teacher Lu Mei-chen forcefully struck the student's hand with a pointer. Several other students received the same treatment. When she asked the parent to come to the school in the afternoon, she claimed the "student has IQ and emotional problems," concealing the fact of the corporal punishment. * **2024.05.07 - Smashing an Apple on the Desk:** During lunch break, she snatched the student's apple and smashed it on the desk. In the contact book, she wrote "Don't run around during lunch break," which contradicted the facts, in an attempt to cover up the truth. * **2024.06.19 - Forced Confession:** She inexplicably accused the student of cheating on an exam and deducted points. She interrogated the student in the classroom, forcing a confession even after the student denied it twice. It was later confirmed that the accusation was false.

### Complete Record

**Incident Timeline**

* **March 2024:** Teacher Lu Mei-chen, while grading homework in the classroom, was dissatisfied with the student's work and swept the workbook from the desk to the floor. The student had to pick it up. This happened 3 times. Three other students (No. 6, 8, 9, 12) suffered the same treatment. * **2024.03.15:** Teacher Lu Mei-chen administered corporal punishment in the morning, hitting students' hands with a pointer (No. 6, 9). In the afternoon, she asked the parent to the school, claiming the student had IQ and emotional issues and suggested a hospital evaluation, but did not mention the morning's corporal punishment. She referred the student to the counseling office for group counseling. * **2024.03.27:** Parent and student visit Taichung Veterans General Hospital for a consultation; the doctor arranges a psychological evaluation. * **2024.04.03:** Parent and student undergo the psychological evaluation at the hospital. * **2024.05.07:** The student was eating an apple during lunch break. Teacher Lu Mei-chen snatched the apple and smashed it on the desk. The student had to rest their head on the desk with apple debris for the lunch break nap. In the contact book, she wrote "Don't run around during lunch break," which was clearly inconsistent with the day's events (Attachment). The parent wrote in the contact book, "My child was frightened by the teacher." * **2024.05.08:** After reading the parent's comment, Teacher Lu Mei-chen reprimanded the student in front of the whole class: "If I don't do this, will you listen?" She replied in the contact book that it was the "third offense of eating," but after confirming with the student, it was the first time. That evening, the parent and student received the report from the hospital; the doctor said the evaluation was normal. * **2024.05.23:** Teacher Lu Mei-chen wrote in the contact book that the student called a classmate a "cheater" because the classmate cheated. She asked about the hospital results. The parent replied that they had reminded the student to speak kindly, that the doctor's examination was normal, and that emotions would be unstable if subjected to corporal punishment or having things thrown, affecting class performance (Attachment). * **2024.05.24:** After reading the parent's message from the previous day, Teacher Lu Mei-chen left a message in the contact book asking the parent to contact her. That night, the parent contacted her. The teacher stated she had given the student many chances and would resort to direct punishment in the future. The parent was extremely dissatisfied that the teacher not only didn't apologize for the corporal punishment, throwing the book, and smashing the apple but also intended to continue the punishment. The parent strongly protested, disagreeing with corporal punishment and psychological abuse, and demanded an apology to the student. * **2024.05.27:** Teacher Lu Mei-chen verbally apologized to the student in class and asked, "Is this apology okay?" * **2024.05.30:** Parent files an official complaint with the Bureau of Education (Attachment). * **2024.06.06:** Daxin Elementary School receives the official letter. Principal Wu Zheng-xian has a detailed talk with Teacher Lu Mei-chen. * **2024.06.12:** Principal Wu Zheng-xian calls the parent to inform them that the school has received the letter from the Bureau of Education and will process the complaint. After a preliminary understanding with Teacher Lu Mei-chen, he claims "it's not that serious." * **2024.06.13:** The parent meets with the Director of Student Affairs, Hsu Meng-shun. Between 6/6 and 6/13, the school made no effort to show concern for the student. The parent requested the director to explain the school's zero-corporal-punishment policy to the class and that students could seek help from the Student Affairs Office if bullied. The parent also requested the counseling office to show concern for the student. The director said he would consider explaining it to the class, taking the teacher's feelings into account, but agreed to have the counseling office help. He stated the bullying investigation would take 2-4 months, during which he could only increase the frequency of class patrols and remain administratively neutral, following procedure. * **2024.06.14:** The Director of Student Affairs provides a consent form for counseling office care (Attachment). * **2024.06.18:** The consent form is returned. Teacher Lu Mei-chen writes on the exam paper: "Stood up to look at a classmate's exam paper" (Attachment). The student did not stand up or cheat; adjacent classmates also did not see the student stand up. An unfounded accusation, and 5 points were deducted. * **2024.06.19:** Received an official letter from Daxin Elementary School accepting the campus incident case (Attachment). In the morning, the parent called the Director of Student Affairs, Hsu Meng-shun, to help understand the cheating accusation. The director did not go to the classroom to check or investigate the facts. Teacher Lu Mei-chen interrogated the student in the morning; after the student denied it twice, she was forced to confess. After the forced confession, the teacher wrote in the contact book that he stood and looked at the right-side classmate's paper (Attachment). The counseling office checked in with the student. * **2024.06.20:** The student again asked the classmate to the right, surnamed Chou, if they had stood up to cheat during the exam. The classmate confirmed it did not happen. The Director of Student Affairs did not clarify the facts, and points were deducted from the exam for no reason. * **2024.06.26:** Processed school transfer. * **2024.07.03:** Interview by a three-person investigation panel consisting of a lawyer, a parent association representative, and a teacher representative. The investigation report would then be sent to the school's evaluation committee for a decision. * **2024.07.31:** Received the interview transcript. * **2024.08.03:** Director of Student Affairs Hsu Meng-shun called and requested a signature on the transcript which contained errors. After refusing to sign, waited for a corrected version. * **2024.08.08:** Signed and returned the corrected transcript. * **2024.10.11:** Received the disciplinary action letter. Teacher Lu Mei-chen was only required to attend a 4-hour workshop on "Positive Discipline and Classroom Management" and write a 1500-word reflection. Deeply disheartened by the school and the Teacher Evaluation Committee's protection of the teacher (Official Letter Attachment).

### Personal Experience

**Parent's Evaluation and Suggestions**

* **School's Attitude:** Teacher Lu Mei-chen's corporal punishment and improper discipline clearly violated the law, but Principal Wu Zheng-xian, as the convener of the bullying response team, claimed "it's not that serious," casting doubt on the team's impartiality. Director of Student Affairs Hsu Meng-shun, based on administrative neutrality, could only increase patrol frequency and offer no further protection. Seven days passed between the school receiving the letter and the principal contacting the parent, during which no one from the school showed any concern for the victim, but they did consult with Teacher Lu Mei-chen. The school failed to promote its "zero-corporal-punishment policy" to students, leaving them unaware they could seek help from the Student Affairs Office after being punished, a clear dereliction of duty. When asked to promote the policy in class, the director prioritized Teacher Lu Mei-chen's feelings and refused the parent's request, showing no consideration for the students who would continue to suffer. * **Another Case:** In the first half of 2024, another teacher bullying incident occurred at the school. Because there was clear audio evidence, the teacher was immediately removed from their position and replaced by a substitute.

**Suggestions for Parents**

* The only way for students to protect themselves is to carry a recording pen at all times. * If a bullying incident occurs, reporting it to the school only leads to a three-way meeting between student affairs, the parent, and the teacher, which is ineffective. It is recommended to seek help from the **Humanistic Education Foundation** and the **Taichung City Bureau of Education**. * When seeking third-party help, **collect as much evidence as possible**: call recordings, on-site recordings, paper records, message records. Clear evidence can quickly move the case to the evaluation committee, shortening the 2-4 month ordeal and preventing secondary harm. * If you have difficulty writing an official complaint, first list the events chronologically, then use a command in ChatGPT: "Please rewrite the following text in the format of an official document." * Don't blindly trust the teacher's account. It's recommended to wait for other parents after the first parent-teacher meeting to **form a Line group together**. Whether it's a forgotten textbook or a mixed-up homework assignment, you can quickly help each other. Most importantly, besides the child and the teacher, you will have a third-party perspective to refer to.

**The Child's Voice** After three months of mental and physical stress, my child was labeled as having "IQ and emotional problems," forced into a counseling group and lengthy hospital evaluations. These events terrified my child. "It was the teacher who lost control, but I was the one sent to counseling?" Only after the hospital evaluation came back normal did my child choke up and reveal the truth about being hit and having books thrown. Only a parent can protect their own child.

(Links to download complaint templates and supporting evidence documents follow)