Teacher fired for ordering pupils to slap one another

The Qingpu District Education Bureau has fired a teacher who punished his fourth grade students by demanding that they slap each other in the face, local media reported Thursday.

The unidentified teacher, who worked at Xiaokang Private Primary School in Qingpu district, was frustrated with the class because some of the students went out during lunchtime to play on a nearby staircase, which he thought was dangerous, according to a news report on Shanghai Television Station. As punishment for their misbehavior, he told the whole class Tuesday to slap their desk mates in the face.

One student, whose desk mate was absent, had to slap himself in the face, said the boy's father, surnamed Li.

Li told Shanghai Television Station that he confirmed the incident with two other children in his son's class, who said they couldn't stop hitting each other until the teacher was satisfied that the slapping sound was loud enough.

The teacher also didn't let the students eat lunch.

The school and the involved staff will be punished financially for the incident. They will also have to apologize to the children and their parents.

The Qingpu Youth Mental Health Education Center has also arranged to provide the students with psychological counseling, the report said.