Student leaps from classroom window

The boy jumped after learning he had failed two subjects and would be kept back a year.

AJMAN // A Grade 11 student fractured his pelvic bone and "lost a lot of blood" yesterday when he jumped from the first-floor window of his school after learning he had failed two subjects and would be kept back a year.

The student, 17, was at the school - which has not been identified out of consideration for the family - with his mother to collect his end-of-year results. When the boy saw how disappointed his mother was with the results he leapt from the window.

"We were meeting with parents and handing out school results when it happened," said the school's vice principal. "As per our criteria, he cannot be promoted to the next grade since he has failed two subjects - maths and accountancy."

Police said they received a call from the school and an ambulance was immediately dispatched.

A source at Ajman Khalifa Hospital confirmed that the boy was recovering. "A CAT scan showed no head injuries. He is being treated for his fracture," he said.

Brigadier Ali Alwan, the director general of Ajman Police, said the case had been handed to public prosecutors who would decide if they boy would be charged with attempted suicide.

"In this case it involves someone classified as a minor," said Brig Alwan. "Prosecutors will exercise their judgment; our work to hand them the case is done."

School authorities said they would provide the family with financial assistance to cover the resulting medical bills. "If they wish to seek treatment outside the country or here in the UAE, we will try to help them in every way possible," said the school principal.

"We are very concerned about his mental state and will provide counselling once he recovers."

The student will be allowed to repeat Grade 11 once he returns. "We cannot promote him to the next grade," said the principal.

A woman, whose son is a close friend of the boy, said she rushed to his side immediately after he jumped.

"I was shocked by the decision he had taken," she said. "The lesson all parents should learn is not to pressure children to perform. We can't always expect our children to ace papers and become engineers or doctors."