A student's attack on Sandys Secondary School principal Melvyn Bassett during a high school prom could have been avoided if the school had a peer mediation programme in place.

Sheelagh Cooper, head of the Coalition for the Protection of Children which sponsors the programme, stressed this yesterday after learning of the incident which occurred at Sonesta Beach Hotel on Saturday night.

Fifth-year student Kiwon Butterfield punched Mr. Bassett after his name was not called during Sandys graduation ball ceremony.

It is understood that Mr. Bassett and the student's mother had agreed that the student would only be allowed to take part in the ceremony if he had his dreadlocks covered as was the school policy.

But Mr. Butterfield, who had already received his graduation certificate with other graduates at the school on Tuesday, showed up at Saturday's ceremony with his dreadlocks uncovered.

After his attack on Mr. Bassett, he apologised to his peers and parents for disrupting the evening.

But The Royal Gazette understands that he has refused to apologise to Mr.

Bassett until the principal apologised for "discriminating'' against him.

Mr. Bassett was off the Island yesterday and could not be reached for comment.

But Chief Education Officer Joseph Christopher said the Education Department had launched an investigation into the incident.

And while the department was awaiting a written report from Mr. Bassett, Dr.

Christopher said: "We wish to state our unequivocal support for Mr. Bassett and to reiterate that the Ministry abhors the use of violence to resolve disagreements between students and administration. It will not be tolerated.'' Ministry stands by school principal Dr. Christopher noted that individual schools had their own policy on dress and uniform. And he said students and parents were expected to adhere to the policy of the school.

"If a student does not comply, then the student must accept that there are consequences which follow,'' Dr. Christopher added.

And National PTA president Anthony Steede agreed.

Noting that a lack of respect for authority was becoming prevalent among students, Mr. Steede said: "It's a concern we have had for the last couple of years and it's getting progressively worse. There is not only a lack of respect for teachers and principals but for anyone in authority.'' He pointed out that the recently-released Code of Conduct, if followed, could help.

"It speaks specifically about acts of violence and what will happen to those who carry out such acts,'' Mr. Steede said. "And while the Opposition is concerned about people being suspended for 45 days, we must send a message that such behaviour will not be tolerated.

"A lot of these children are lacking in their upbringing. In some cases there is no respect for anyone, including themselves.'' Mr. Steede admitted that he did not believe the code will be a deterrent for every student. But he said: "It will go a long way to deter some people.'' An advocate of corporal punishment, which is included in the code, he added: "I know a lot of administrators don't believe in corporal punishment. But young people need to get the message that they (teachers and principals) are serious and that there will be consequences for their actions.

"Parents also need to be aware that not all of their children are angels. We need to be ever-vigilant and conscious that our children behave and not take their sides immediately. People need to understand that they can't be attacking teachers or they will face the consequences.'' But Mrs. Cooper said the promotion of "draconian'' measures such as corporal punishment in the absence of programmes such as peer mediation was a retrogressive step.

"Corporal punishment has been available for schools to use in Bermuda for years and despite that, things have gradually deteriorated to the situation we now find ourselves in today with a larger and larger portion of our students considered to be unmanageable,'' she said.

"If corporal punishment worked we would not find ourselves going from bad to worse. The fact is that it doesn't work.'' Instead, Mrs. Cooper said, an approach should be used which focuses on the root of youngsters' behavioural problems.

Referring to the Sandys Secondary incident she said: "That should have been an issue which was mediated before it got to that point.'' Peer mediation -- which allows students to air their grievances in the presence of student and teacher mediators -- was proven to work, Mrs. Cooper said. But it was only being used in six primary and three secondary schools.

"Up to now the Government had not provided us the funds to have peer mediation in all schools,'' Mrs. Cooper said, adding that it was working particularly well at St. George's Secondary and at Northlands Secondary.

The Coalition -- which received $20,000 a year from Government for the programme which aims at preventing disagreements from becoming serious and resulting in violence -- hoped to expand peer mediation to all primary schools in September and to middle schools next year.

But Mrs. Cooper said the Coalition still had to mainly rely on private individual and corporate donations to run the programme.