SINGAPORE: A former Mandarin teacher from a Kinderland preschool admitted on Wednesday (Mar 5) to abusing four children under her care.
The court heard how Lin Min, 35, forced two of them to drink water and handled them roughly when they refused to.
Following the incidents, parents of these two toddlers observed that their children had nightmares where they would say “no” or “bye bye lao shi (teacher)”.
The case made the news in 2023 after videos of the incidents circulated online. A few incidents involving other teachers from the same preschool chain emerged after that.
Lin has since been fired from the school and barred from working in the preschool sector.
She pleaded guilty to three counts of ill-treating a child, with three charges of a similar nature to be taken into consideration for her sentencing. The four children in the charges were between one and three years old.
The victims cannot be named due to a court-imposed gag order protecting their identities.
The court heard how Lin had forced one victim – a girl who was nearly two years old – to lie down, and poured water into her mouth on Jun 30, 2023.
Her actions were captured on video by another teacher.
Lin noticed how the girl had not been drinking water. In an attempt to feed her water, Lin tilted the bottle towards the girl’s face but the latter turned away.
Lin then grabbed her around the mouth, insisting that she drink her water.
The girl cried as Lin raised her voice. Eventually, Lin pushed the girl until she lay on the floor. Lin then forced the girl’s mouth open and poured water into it. The girl could be heard coughing and choking on the water.
After she stopped, Lin commented in Mandarin that the water would flow out as the girl’s mouth remained open.
The girl’s parents remained unaware of what happened until the preschool informed her. They noticed that the victim would wake up in the middle of the night and cry, saying “no” and “bye bye lao shi (teacher)”, suggesting that she wanted the teacher to go away.
Also in June 2023, an angry Lin tried to get a boy, then about two years old, to drink water.
She manhandled him to lie on the floor but the boy repeatedly screamed and struggled to sit up. Lin then commented in Mandarin that the boy could go to Japan and take part in sumo wrestling.
On another occasion a few days later, Lin again tried to get the boy to drink water.
She grabbed the boy’s forehead and held his head backward while bringing the water bottle close to his mouth. She repeated this several times as the boy pulled her hand off his forehead. The boy took a few sips of water eventually.
His parents also did not know about the abuse until informed by the preschool.
They later told the police during investigations that they observed that their son did not like strangers touching him around his head and back.
He would have nightmares where he would say “no, no, no I don’t want”.
The preschool had guidelines for teachers handling children, including how a misbehaving child should be “verbally disciplined and/or advised”, or deprived of his or her favourite toys or games only.
If these measures fail, teachers are supposed to consult the principal for advice. Under no circumstances can teachers take matters into their own hands. Teachers are also not supposed to shout, yell or scream at a child, or be rough with them.
According to standard operating procedures, a teacher facing a child with severe behavourial problem must bring the matter up to the principal’s attention. When a teacher is overwhelmed with frustration and is at breaking point, she or he must ask for help.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Jotham Tay said that there was an obvious element of cruelty in Lin’s acts as the children had been distressed, yet Lin persisted.
Mr Tay also disagreed with the defence characterising the case as “overzealous concern”.
It was clear that Lin was not actually concerned for the wellbeing of children at some points, he said.
Furthermore, it had been difficult for children to report such instances, as seen by how their parents were not aware until they were informed of the incidents, said Mr Tay.
The prosecution argued for Lin to be jailed between 18 and 24 months.
Lin’s lawyer Kalidass Murugaiyan differentiated his client’s case with previous court cases where offenders had acted maliciously. Lin had not been acting out of malice and cruelty, he said.
His client was a childcare teacher who knew that dehydration in young children is very dangerous, said Mr Kalidass.
“She misjudged, she did the wrong thing and she will be paying for it with a very heavy price. We only say that the price should not be too heavy,” said Mr Kalidass.
District Judge John Ng adjourned sentencing to Mar 13 to consider the factors in this case.
For ill treating a child, Lin can be jailed for up to eight years, and/or fined up to S$8,000 (US$6,000).
