Pangasinan school held liable for failing to address bullying incident
A school in Pangasinan was held liable for negligence by the Supreme Court after they failed to address an incident where a grade school student was punched by bullies inside a classroom.
According to the decision, the incident took place in 2007 when Rhys Palaganas was enrolled as a grade school student at Mother Goose School in Dagupan City, Pangasinan.
During a computer class, he was seated beside his classmates identified as Noel Fernandez and Mark Dy. Without warning, Dy suddenly punched Palaganas' left arm three times before Fernandez followed up with two more punches. The pair continued to get physical with him until Palaganas was punched a total of six times by Dy and five times by Fernandez.
Their teacher, Gerald Gomez, wasn't there to witness the incident as he had been in the comfort room.
Days later, Palaganas reported the incident to his Hekasi teacher, but he reportedly did nothing on the matter. Afterward, one of his classmates saw his bruises and reported the matter to their class adviser.
After summoning Fernandez and Dy, the two admitted to punching Palaganas.
Palaganas' parents found out about the incident and requested an investigation by the school principal, Julia Palaroan, but their efforts continued to be ignored.
Eventually, Palaroan showed the results of the investigation report, where she downplayed the bullying incident of Palaganas as a form of "teasing," saying it's natural and part of the growing up process.
Aggrieved, his parents eventually filed a formal complaint in court against the parents of the bullies as well as Mother Goose School for negligence.
The Regional Trial Court ruled the school and Gomez were both liable, noting their duty to protect students during school hours. The Court of Appeals upheld the decision but cleared the teacher, who was absent when the incident occurred.
The SC affirmed the latter's ruling as they explained that academic institutions have a "built-in obligation of providing a conducive atmosphere for learning, where there are no constant threats to life and limbs of the students. Thus, the school must ensure the maintenance of peace and order within the campus."
They may avoid liability only upon proof they exercised due diligence.
Moreover, the school was found negligent for its "lack of proper protocols, failure to inform the victim’s parents promptly, and inaccuracies in its investigation."
"By failing to address the harm committed by one student against another and by negligently handling the punching incident after it had already happened, Mother Goose School failed to exercise the diligence of a good father of the family in providing a safe learning environment to its students," the SC said.
"Every parent who entrusts their child to a learning institution does so with the assurance that the school, owing to its obligation not only to provide but also to maintain a safe learning environment, will protect the child from harm or will promptly address similar incidents after its occurrence. Unfortunately, Mother Goose School failed in this regard," they added.
Mother Goose School has now been directed to pay the victim’s parents P650,000 in damages and attorney’s fees.
