Fire teacher, kindergarten urged

A kindergarten has been urged to sack a teacher who allegedly sealed children's mouths with gummed paper when they refused to take afternoon naps.

More than 10 parents gathered outside Fengzehu Kindergarten in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, on Tuesday and asked that the management fire the teacher, Yangcheng Evening News reported.

The parents said two children in the teacher's class did not want to attend the kindergarten earlier this month.

At least six children told their parents that the teacher sealed their mouths with gummed paper and tied their arms when they refused to take afternoon naps, gossiped in class or drank water slowly, the newspaper reported.

One of the mothers said her 4-year-old daughter cried out during a dream one night, asking the teacher not to use gummed paper.

The mother said she had seen red marks on her daughter's upper lip.

The parents also asked the kindergarten to install cameras inside classrooms and in the playground.

However, the management said that after an initial investigation, two other teachers had never seen any evidence of malpractice by their colleague. Children in the class also voiced their affection for the teacher in an inquiry conducted by the kindergarten, management said.

The local authority said it is carrying out further investigations into the complaints.