Principal allegedly cancel matric dance

Parents of pupils at Elandspoort high school are infuriated by the school principal’s decision to cancel the matric dance.

They say they did not receive any notice from the principal about the cancellation of the event. It is alleged that the principal decided to cancel the ball because of the pupils’ bad behaviour, which parents had allegedly not been informed of during the year. Shirley Bonn, one of the parents, mentioned that the principal did not call a parents’ meeting to notify them about the pupils’ poor behaviour.

“In the beginning of the year, the pupils were given the impression that they would have a matric dance in September. At a later stage the date was extended to October and most recently it was moved to November, now it has been cancelled.”

Another parent, Delana Naidoo told Rekord that this made them angry because they had spent money on dresses and suits for the dance.

The parents allege that the principal is rude and has no time for them.

Bonn stated that she went to see the school principal some time ago and was told that the matric dance was cancelled because of the pupils’ ill-discipline. The principal allegedly said that the dance was merely a privilege and could be cancelled whenever they felt it needed to be.

“I stated my disapproval, as my daughter has not been one of the pupils that were disruptive and should not have to suffer the consequences for others’ misbehaviour. A system should be put in place to deal with unruly pupils, as the one size fits all approach is not an effective solution.”

Naidoo made it clear that the principal’s decision was unreasonable.

A petition was signed by the pupils and some parents to have the principal’s decision overturned, but it did not change the situation, as Bonn received an SMS from the principal on Friday confirming that the dance remained cancelled.

Bonn wrote a letter to the Education Department and the school’s governing body (SGB) a few weeks back regarding the matter but she has not received any response, except from the SGB representative, who allegedly told her the dance was not cancelled. “On 16 September the school principal called me and was very rude, telling me that the school governing body is only there for the school and not for the parents to consult if they have a problem,” said Bonn.

Parents are unhappy about the principal’s decision because they have already spent money. The pupils and parents said that they will be having their own matric dance without the school.

The school refused to comment.