Preschool teacher left in tears after three-year-old pupil throws water bottle at her

MALAYSIA: A young preschool teacher in Malaysia has revealed online that she broke down in tears after a three-year-old child threw a water bottle at her head in protest.

According to the Malaysian paper Sin Chew Daily, the teacher recounted the incident on the social media platform Threads, describing it as the first time she cried because of her job in her four years of working in early childhood education.

She said that the child, who had been moved to another classroom due to behavioural issues, reacted angrily to the move and threw a water bottle at her.

“Although early childhood education is a profession full of love and fulfilment, behind the colourful classrooms and joyful atmosphere lies a hardship that others cannot understand,” she wrote.

The teacher admitted the incident dealt a heavy emotional blow and marked the first time she had to ask colleagues for help in handling student behavioural challenges.

She also expressed frustration at the tendency of some to dismiss such incidents as “just how it is with many kids.”

“Most of the children in our school have serious behavioural or emotional problems,” she said, “I don’t understand why they are so angry. Are they spoiled, or have I failed as a teacher?”

The teacher revealed that the child involved had a history of inappropriate behaviour. Despite raising concerns with the parents, the situation had only worsened.

With regards to this incident, the teacher is now preparing a summary report and plans to communicate further with parents and stress that such behaviour will not be tolerated.

Her post struck a chord online. One netizen shared a similar experience, saying: “I get you. I used to be a teacher and had students throw pencils and homework papers at me. Educators are really being tested over and over again.”

Another lamented, “We used to respect teachers and be grateful for the knowledge they taught us. What’s wrong with children nowadays?”