A kindergarten teacher in China is facing backlash after reportedly burning a 4-year-old girl with a hot glue gun.
According to the South China Morning Post, the incident occurred around 10:30 a.m. on May 27 at a kindergarten in Fengxian, Jiangsu province.
CCTV footage from the classroom shows the teacher, identified as Chen, lining up several students for talking during class. She made a boy touch a hot glue gun, causing him to immediately pull his hand away.
After sending the boy back to his spot, Chen pulled the 4-year-old girl forward and, despite her attempts to avoid it, pressed the glue gun against her upper lip twice. A male teacher was present in the classroom but did not intervene.
That afternoon, the girl returned home with blisters on her lip, and her condition worsened, leading to pus discharge. When she began to cry, her parents took her to the hospital and subsequently reported Chen to the police.
The girl's mother expressed her outrage to local media, stating, "I reviewed the CCTV with the police, and my heart shattered when I saw the footage. I cannot understand how a 4-year-old could have done anything so wrong to deserve such cruelty."
Adding to the parents' anger was Chen's initial explanation, which significantly differed from the CCTV evidence. She first claimed the girl had injured herself, then later changed her story to say it was an accident.
The glue gun used by Chen was reportedly a craft tool intended for a classroom decoration project.
Local education authorities have suspended the teacher from her duties, and police are investigating the incident. Additionally, psychological counseling is being provided to the other children in the affected class.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.