David Pecoraro, a math teacher at Beach Channel High School in New York City, has been "reassigned to an administrative office" after a video of him swatting at and spitting on a student surfaced online, the New York Daily News reports.
According to the Daily News, this isn't the first time the Queens teacher has slung his saliva at a student.
"He’s always getting in kids’ faces and spitting all over them," Beach Channel junior Otina Rosario told the paper. “It’s disgusting.”
Pecoraro, however, says the video doesn't tell the whole story.
"The kid put gum he had tried to put on my rear end that was already chewed and that was on his desk in my mouth — and I spit it out,” Pecoraro told the New York Post. “Then he spit in my face.”
When the video begins, Pecoraro is already in confrontation with the student, saying, “You can’t make contact with me. That’s illegal!”
As the confrontation ensues, the teacher attempts to yell the math lesson into the student's ear, and the two swat back and forth at each other until Pecoraro spits.
Secret video in other schools across the country have also revealed shocking teacher behavior. Last November, 15-year-old Julio Artuz secretly recorded video of his Bankbridge Regional School teacher verbally abusing him.
After asking that he stop calling him "special" the New Jersey teacher responded with threats and explicit language.
"...I will kick your a-- from here to kingdom-come until I'm 80 years old."
After the video surfaced, the school put the teacher on paid leave and launched an investigation.