At the age of 12, Brittany Murray had been the victim of bullying at school for more than a year. Then she made a bad mistake.
Murray has told The Age that other students spread rumours that her mother was a junkie, and made fun of her body. She fought back with her fists, and one day, when she heard an older boy was going to beat her up, she brought a knife to her school, Rosehill Secondary College in Victoria.
Her older sister pulled her out of school. According to Murray when she tried to re-enrol, the principal, Peter Rouse, didn’t reply. Murray turned up to the school, vandalised cars, and ended up punching Rouse in the chest.
Murray is now 16. She has been studying at St Joseph’s Flexible Learning Centre, for students with complex problems. She wants to return to a mainstream school, but 20 state schools have knocked her back.
“I just want to pass year 12 and get the education that I’ve missed out on,” she says. “I want to try to get somewhere in life.”
‘I deserve another chance’: The student no school wants https://t.co/Bs9jPRaVpV
— The Age (@theage) February 27, 2017
Top Comments
I feel for her and think it is a good thing that she actually wants an education - many in her situation would be happy to do nothing. However, she can still do her VCE. There is Distance Education where you do it by correspondence. Sort of like homeschooling.
She has a right to an education not necessarily at a mainstream school. She is attending a flexible learning centre where she can do year 12 and pass if she puts in the effort. They are not denying her that right.