Even though emotional abuse has been well researched, there is little classroom research that has examined teachers’ and pupils’ perceptions of this form of child abuse. This study sought to determine who the perpetrators of emotional abuse are, and why some teachers emotionally abuse pupils in Zimbabwean primary schools. In addition, possible African cultural practices that could influence teachers to abuse pupils emotionally within the classroom were examined. The study consisted of a randomly selected sample of 300 primary school teachers, 150 primary teacher trainees, and 200 Form One pupils in the Masvingo province of Zimbabwe. Results indicate that most male teachers were engaged in verbal abuse such as labeling and name-calling while most female teachers were engaged in verbal aggression such as shouting at students in schools. The underlying message from both teacher trainees and teachers appears to be that teachers are not aware that emotional abuse is a form of child abuse with serious consequences on the development of children. It was also clear from the findings that emotional abuse of students by teachers is a reality in Zimbabwean primary schools. References