A primary school teacher in George has been suspended by the Western Cape education department pending an investigation after allegedly posting a video in which a grade 1 pupil was mocked for not being able to afford a pie during a school fundraising initiative.
In the video, which has since gone viral on social media after it was posted in a school WhatsApp group, the teacher can be heard allegedly taunting the child and instructing his classmates not to share their pies with him.
The boys and girls can clearly be seen eating at their desks while the little boy covers his eyes.
Angry parents and community members protested outside Thembalethu Primary School on Wednesday, demanding the teacher’s dismissal.
The department confirmed that psychological support would be provided to the child and his family.
More than 500 people, including members of political parties and local activists, gathered at the school, calling for accountability.
The video, originally recorded by the teacher and shared in the class’s WhatsApp group, quickly spread online.
The boy’s upset mother explained that parents had been asked to contribute R40 for “pie day”.
She said her family, who are unemployed and struggling financially, could not afford the amount.
“I am devastated and feel so weak.
“We feel useless because we could not get this money, and it makes us feel even more helpless as struggling parents.
“What hurts us more is that our child hardly speaks, prefers to be alone with us at home and does not play with other children outside,” she said.
“We didn’t have data, so we never saw the video in the WhatsApp group.
“If other parents hadn’t made the video go viral after they couldn’t reach us, and if community activist Faith Mdaka hadn’t come to our house late at night to explain that our child was [allegedly] bullied by a teacher, we would not have known.
“Our child would have kept suffering in silence.”
The video, recorded during breaktime on Tuesday, shows pupils eating their pies while a woman’s voice instructs them to focus on their own meal.
The woman, presumed to be the teacher, is heard calling another pupil by name, telling him not to look back at the child without food.
The woman then clearly states that the video would be shared on WhatsApp to “show parents what happens to children who do not bring money for pie day”.
It is understood the teacher later bought the child a pie.
Community member Phumeza Tyazi condemned the teacher’s alleged actions.
“The teacher could have handled the situation differently.
“Instead of humiliating the child and violating his rights, she could have let the child leave the room or shared her pie with him.
“She had no right to film the child.”
Tyazi said she had dropped everything on Wednesday to support the parents of the targeted child.
“When my neighbour showed me the video [on Tuesday] night, I could not hold back my tears, my heart was so broken, and I could not believe that a teacher could [allegedly] humiliate a child like this.”
Education District Southern Cape Region director Jewel Jonkers said the alleged incident violated the Protection of Personal Information Act (Popia), which prohibited teachers from taking pictures or videos of pupils without parental consent.
“We consent for schools to film learners only for education purposes and nothing beyond that,” Jonkers said.
She told the parents of pupils at the school that the teacher had been suspended and that district psychologists and counsellors would support the child and his family.
The Western Cape education department, meanwhile, said the teacher had, in fact, later bought a pie for the pupil, which was given to him after the humiliating video was recorded.
“The manner in which this was done, however, was totally inappropriate,” the department said.
Mandisi Tshingana, a South African TikTok content creator and 2025 Humanitarian Award winner, is now raising funds for the child.
At the time of publication, more than R30,000 had already been raised by members of the public to assist the family while they look for work.
The education department said teaching and learning had continued during the protest, the teacher had no prior disciplinary record and a formal investigation by the Labour Relations Directorate was under way to determine the next steps.
“We remain committed to ensuring that all learners are treated with dignity and care and that appropriate professional conduct is upheld at all times.
“A thorough investigation is now under way,” department spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said.
The Herald
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