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SCHOOL

Swedish student burned by iron in hazing attack

A student at the prestigious Swedish boarding school Lundsberg in central Sweden was attacked and burned with an iron by nine other students during a "hazing" ritual on Saturday, the latest in a long line of bullying incidents at the elite school.

Swedish student burned by iron in hazing attack

The attack, which occurred at the school, has been labelled by police as aggravated assault. The Swedish Schools Inspectorate (Skolinspektionen) stated on Monday that the attackers had used an iron.

The student, who is new to the school, has been shifted to three different hospitals since Saturday, although his injuries have been described as minor.

In October, the Swedish Schools Inspectorate told the school that it will impose a 500,000 kronor ($75,000) fine if it didn’t act to stamp out the practice of bullying and violence among pupils.

The school, which is the alma mater of Prince Carl Philip and many other high society members, has had a bad track record with students assaulting others in hazing rituals.

In May last year, students at the school spoke out after being forced into oral sex and eating manure.

In 2011, a student had their nipples burned with an electric fly swatter.

Founded in 1896, Lundsberg was inspired by British boarding school tradition and currently has an enrollment of around 200 students, around 60 percent of which are boys.

TT/The Local/og

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SCHOOL

Bavaria plans 100 million rapid Covid tests to allow all pupils to return to school

In the southern state of Bavaria, schools have been promised 100 million self-tests starting next week so that more children can start being taught in person again. But teachers say the test strategy isn't being implemented properly.

Bavaria plans 100 million rapid Covid tests to allow all pupils to return to school
Children in the classroom in Bavaria. Photo:Matthias Balk/DPA

State leaders Markus Söder said on Friday that the first 11 million of the DIY tests had already arrived and would now be distributed through the state.

“It’s no good in the long run if the testing for the school is outside the school,” Söder told broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR) during a visit to a school in Nuremberg.

“Contrary to what has been planned in Berlin, we’ve pre-ordered in Bavaria: for this year we have 100 million tests.”

Bavaria, Germany’s largest state in terms of size, plans to bring all children back into schools starting on Monday.

SEE ALSO: ‘The right thing to do’ – How Germany is reopening its schools

However, high coronavirus case rates mean that these plans have had to be shelved in several regions.

In Nuremberg, the state’s second largest city, primary school children have been sent back into distance learning after just a week back in the classroom.

The city announced on Friday that schools would have to close again after the 7-day incidence rose above 100 per 100,000 inhabitants.

The nearby city of Fürth closed its schools after just two days of classroom time on Wednesday, after the 7-day incidence rose to 135.

The Bavarian test strategy plans for school children to receive one test per week, while teachers have the possibility of taking two tests a week. The testing is not compulsory.

But teachers’ unions in the southern state have warned that the test capacity only exists on paper and have expressed concern that their members will become infected in the workplace.

“Our teachers are afraid of infection,” Almut Wahl, headmistress of a secondary school in Munich, told BR24.

“Officially they are allowed to be tested twice a week, we have already received a letter about this. But the tests are not there.”

BR24 reports that, contrary to promises made by the state government, teachers in many schools have still not been vaccinated, ventilation systems have not been installed in classrooms, and the test infrastructure has not been put in place.

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