Parent speaks out about 10-week school exclusion over watching, cheering on fight

Nine students have been suspended from Whyalla Secondary College this year due to fights, some off-site. (ABC North and West: Lucas Forbes)

A Whyalla parent says a recent spate of suspensions and exclusions at a South Australian school has gone too far and will affect her daughter's education due to her learning disability.

Prue Tooby said her daughter had been excluded from Whyalla Secondary College after she was a bystander and cheered on a school fight that went viral on social media.

Ms Tooby said her daughter had a learning disability and that missing 10 weeks of year 11 could have a serious impact on her schooling.

"There's only one [public secondary] school in Whyalla and all the kids go to that school because it's a public school. They can't exclude children, they need to look after their education," she said.

"Maybe exclude them for two weeks. Ten weeks is a bit extreme."

Security guards returning

Nine students have been suspended from Whyalla Secondary College this year for perpetrating, filming, or cheering on violence, including two off-site fights. 

South Australia's Education Minister, Blair Boyer, said he stood by the school's leadership and his no-tolerance policy for violence. 

"I make no apologies for the zero-tolerance policy we are taking to violence in schools," he said.

"I support the school and its strong stance on violence, but also for the support it's providing to the students during this time, including weekly check-ins by teachers and home booklets for continued learning."

Education Minister Blair Boyer says security guards have been reintroduced at Whyalla Secondary College.  (ABC North and West: Lucas Forbes)

In response to a previous assault in 2022 the school implemented security guards, which were eventually removed. 

However, Mr Boyer said those security guards would be returning. 

"The advice from WSC, and the Department for Education, was that the school had a calmer term 3, and term 4 was completed without security guards on site," the minister said.

"In 2022, Whyalla Secondary College had some of the best SACE results the region has seen in a number of years. 

"Given there have been a recurrence of violence at the start of this school year, security was immediately reinstated.

"The school is also in discussions about fast-tracking the introduction of the mobile phone ban."