'I'm so heartbroken': Mum says son, 11, hospitalised after beating by classmate

A woman has claimed that a school bully punched and kicked her 11-year-old son for ignoring him.

Chen, 46, told 8World that her son was hospitalised after coming home from a school in the north with a swollen head and complaining of nausea.

"I'm so heartbroken that I don't know how to describe it," said the single mother.

Chen said that the bullying incident happened on Oct 8 afternoon, while her son and his classmates were waiting at the canteen for an oral examination.

According to the boy's version of events told by his mother, he had slipped after placing his hand on a freshly-painted wall.

Chen said that her son ignored a classmate who asked what had happened.

She added that the classmate then became "angry" and hurled profanities at her son, who later told him to "don't talk to me like that".

The classmate then pushed Chen's son to the ground, while punching and kicking him.

A teacher was notified and brought the boy to the school office for medical treatment.

According to Chen, the bully is one or two years older than her son but is also in the Primary 5 cohort.

Boy suffered mild concussion 

Chen, who works in the engineering industry, said she received a call from her son, who told her about the bullying incident and was in pain.

The boy returned home after the examination and felt dizzy and wanted to vomit.

Fearing for his health, Chen took her son to the accident and emergency department at KK Women's and Children's Hospital at Bukit Timah Road.

She said that after her son spent the night in a ward, the doctor said that he had a mild concussion.

He was discharged from the hospital the next day to take an examination in school on Oct 10.

The mother took her son to the hospital again on Oct 24 after her son's face became bruised and he complained of pain in his cheek.

Mum hopes for apology

Chen said that her son has since told her several times that he doesn't want to go to school anymore.

She added that a teacher observed that he seemed more withdrawn in class.

In a post on SgfollowsAll Instagram page on Saturday (Nov 2), the boy's relative, who didn't give their name, wrote that their nephew has been very traumatised and might be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder over this incident. 

Speaking to 8World, Chen said that she has been in contact with the school about the incident.

She said that the bully's parents had apologised to the school, but neither to her nor her son.

They have also not expressed their willingness to pay for the medical expenses, which amount to thousands of dollars.

Chen hopes that the two children can reconcile and for other parents to educate their children and not encourage bullying.

The police told AsiaOne that a report was lodged.

The school said that they have counselled the student who caused hurt and engaged his parents.

They have also meted out "appropriate disciplinary actions" to help him learn from the incident.

"The school is committed to ensuring the well-being of all students. We have been engaging the student who was hurt and his parent to offer support, and put in place measures to ensure that he continues to feel safe in school," said the school's spokesperson.

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chingshijie@asiaone.com .