The moment where A Russian English teacher hit a pupil in Cần Thơ City.

CẦN THƠ — A Russian teacher has left his job after a video showing him hitting two Grade 2 pupils at a private school in the southern city of Cần Thơ circulated online, prompting the school to report the incident to authorities.

The city’s Department of Education and Training confirmed on Thursday evening that it had been informed of the incident at Việt Hoa School in Cái Răng Ward. The teacher, who taught English at the school, has apologised to the pupils, their parents and the school, and is no longer teaching there, according to the department and the school’s principal.

The video, lasting more than a minute, reportedly captured the incident at around 4pm on September 22 during an English lesson at Việt Hoa School, which provides education from primary to high-school level.

According to footage, a man wearing a brown shirt struck two pupils in the face in front of their classmates. He also appeared to grab another pupil by the neck before lifting the child and carrying them out of the classroom.

School principal Trần Tấn Bửu identified the man as a 35-year-old Russian national, referred to as P., who was teaching English. The other adult seen in the footage was a Vietnamese teaching assistant.

Neither worked directly for the school. Both had been supplied by an English-language centre under a partnership programme offering enhanced English lessons to primary and lower-secondary pupils.

The school signed a contract with the centre covering the period from June 8, 2026, to May 31, 2027. The Russian teacher began teaching at the school on August 18.

Bửu said the incident occurred in class 2A2 during a conversational English lesson. The class had 36 pupils and was divided into two smaller groups to give them more opportunities to practise English with a foreign teacher.

He said the teacher had previously been friendly with the pupils and often played and joked with them. On the day of the incident, the lesson initially proceeded normally, with pupils approaching the teacher to interact with him. However, the teacher began hitting pupils during the final eight minutes of the class, surprising those present.

The teaching assistant did not react in time, Bửu said.

The school’s security cameras recorded images but no audio, making it difficult for the school to establish the full sequence of events and the reason for the teacher’s actions.

Bửu said the school and the English-language centre met with the pupils and their parents to apologise after discovering the incident. The pupils returned to school the following day.

The English-language centre subsequently terminated its contract with the Russian teacher, according to the principal.

The school has reported the incident to Cái Răng Ward Police and the relevant external security authorities for investigation and handling in accordance with the law.

The school is awaiting the authorities’ conclusions on the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The Department of Education and Training said the parents had discussed the matter with the relevant parties and had shown understanding towards the teacher, based on information received by the department.

The investigation remains ongoing. — VNS