NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Police are investigating after, school district officials said, a student attacked a substitute teacher at Miami Central Senior High School in Northwest Miami-Dade, and it was all caught on video.
Cellphone video of Monday’s incident was posted on Facebook, where it quickly garnered attention among users.
“I was just wondering, like, what caused that student to fight the teacher like that?” student Tiara Rene said.
The footage shows the female student throwing punches at the female teacher near a desk in a classroom at the school, located in the area of Northwest 95th Street and 18th Avenue.
Moments later, the teacher is seen grabbing the student’s hair and pushing her head down before appearing to place the student in a headlock.
“I was next door in another class, and I heard arguing,” student Nicholas Aguilar said, “and then that’s when all the students were screaming and running out of the class.”
Meanwhile, other students were seen laughing and recording the incident on their own cellphones.
The clip, which is about a minute and a half long, only captured part of the fight.
“It’s all over Instagram,” said one student.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools officials said the student involved was not supposed to be in that classroom.
Students at the school have identified the substitute teacher as Ms. Ferguson and said she is typically nice to them.
“I’m shocked because Ms. Ferguson, she’s nice,” said Sabrina, a sophomore at the school. “She would never, like, put hands on a student.”
7News caught up with Theodora Roundtree, an elementary school substitute teacher who saw the video.
“Well, I think that the students didn’t want to step in because they didn’t want to get in no trouble getting involved with it,” Roundtree said.
“Children don’t have no respect no more, you know? It’s way different. We had respect. We didn’t fight no teachers,” Roundtree added. “We sat down, we did what they said, we get our work. We just showed respect. I don’t understand this generation these days. This is what’s taking place now. I hope things change.”
The school district has not identified the student involved in the fight.
In a statement issued Monday night, M-DCPS spokesperson Daisy Gonzalez-Diego said Miami-Dade Schools Police is investigating.
The statement reads, “Miami-Dade County Public Schools does not tolerate incidents that jeopardize the safety and well-being of students and staff members. We are deeply troubled by the behavior exhibited on this video. As part of their investigation, Miami-Dade Schools Police will be reviewing various video sources and interviewing witnesses to determine the circumstances behind this unfortunate event. Disciplinary action is forthcoming.”
Gonzalez-Diego went on to add Tuesday:
“This is a regrettable and isolated incident between a student and a teacher, who otherwise maintained an amicable relationship. The Miami-Dade Schools Police Department continues to investigate this unfortunate matter; however, all indicators point to the student having been the aggressor. It is evident the employee used great restraint to de-escalate the situation. As a result of her unacceptable behavior, the student will be disciplined according to the Code of Student conduct and may be facing criminal charges.”
M-DCPS officials have not confirmed the identity of the substitute teacher.
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