There were Past Complaints Against Teacher Suspected in Hitting Students

A math teacher at Yerevan’s No. 129 middle school, Lena Abgaryan, submitting her resignation, was dismissed from work at the beginning of the current academic year, said the school principal Tamara Petrosyan, speaking with Epress.am today.

According to her, Abgaryan asked to be able to resign for health reasons.

As reported earlier, a video was uploaded on YouTube on Oct. 14 (http://www.epress.am/FVideo.aspx?vdid=66) which depicted a female teacher hitting students in what appeared to be a school in Yerevan.

Information quickly circulated in blogs and social media sites such as Facebook identified the school as No. 129 middle school named after Gai (Hayk Bjshkyants) in Yerevan and the teacher as Lena Abgaryan. 

Visiting the school today, Epress.am correspondents attempted to compare the classrooms in the school with that shown in the video. Led by Petrosyan, Epress.am correspondents visited classrooms, which, according to the principal, were renovated about four years ago. She doesn’t rule out the possibility that the video in question was filmed “a long time ago.”

Note that the principal, after viewing the video in which the teacher is mainly seen from the back, to some extent likened the teacher in the video to Lena Abgaryan, noting that “from the back, it was her.” However, according to Petrosyan, she didn’t recognize any of the students.

Lena Abgaryan was employed at No. 129 school since the 1970s. Once (in 2006 or 2007, the principal had difficulty remembering), parents had complained that Abgaryan was using profane language, as a result of which the teacher had been reprimanded. 

Asked by Epress.am whether there had been any past incidents of violence by the teachers and if they had received any complaints, Petrosyan said that in order to know about this or that incident parents must complain, which hasn’t happened — neither have there been complaints by students, she added.

Note that a RA Ministry of Education and Science representative confirmed today that the incident occurred at No. 129 school 4 years ago during math class.