Kindergarten teacher in Tachov region scared boy with tales of the devil — school inspection confirms violations

A kindergarten teacher in Kladruby, in the Tachov region, allegedly frightened a young boy with stories about the devil and punished him by making him stand alone in the washroom — behaviour that led to serious psychological problems for the child. The boy's mother reported the case, and the Czech School Inspectorate has since confirmed the allegations.

According to the mother, the trouble began subtly: her son frequently complained of stomach pains and refused to nap after lunch. Later, things got worse — the boy became unusually tearful. On one occasion at the playground, he wandered behind a fence and explained that the teacher sent him there alone "as punishment" whenever he cried.

The mother said the teacher was excessively strict with the boy, pressured him, and frightened him by invoking the devil, a figure the child was terrified of. At home, she said, there were real fits of hysteria — her son would scream that "they're coming for him because he's a bad boy." She also claimed the teacher favoured her own granddaughter, allowing the girl to skip the afternoon nap and avoid eating food she disliked, unlike the other children.

What the inspection found

The mother decided to pursue the matter after her son began developing health problems. A psychologist's assessment found that the stress he had experienced led to anxiety. "Both he and I are still under the care of specialists. My son no longer attends the kindergarten in Kladruby, but he's still dealing with the aftereffects," the mother said.

The Czech School Inspectorate confirmed that children had been treated unequally during lessons. According to the authority, some of the situations described in the complaint did indeed reflect an inappropriate pedagogical approach. Inspector Marie Sladková explained that the teacher had indeed given her granddaughter special privileges — for instance, allowing her to skip the afternoon rest period or eat only part of her lunch if she wished.

The inspection also confirmed that the boy had been frightened deliberately. According to the findings, the teacher asked the child why he was telling his mother about her improper behaviour, and scared him with the image of the devil.

How kindergarten management responded

However, the inspectorate did not uphold complaints against the kindergarten's director, who had also been named in the report. According to Sladková, management has since taken personnel measures, drafted a new code of ethics for staff, briefed the entire team on it, introduced new rules requiring respectful treatment of all children, and implemented regular classroom inspections.

Kindergarten director Pavlína Tvrzová said she had transferred the teacher to a different group — and did the same with her granddaughter. "Our colleague is now under closer supervision. Of course, we'll need to keep a more watchful eye on staff behaviour going forward. But I'm glad the inspection considers the matter resolved," she said, adding that she did not wish to comment further, since "stirring up the conflict further would not benefit the institution."

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz