Ylarde vs.

Aquino
GR No. L33722, July 29, 1988
FACTS:
Private respondent Mariano Soriano was the principal of the Gabaldon Primary School in
Pangasinan. Defendant Edgardo Aquino was a teacher therein. During that time the school had
several concrete bloc!s which were remnants of the old school shop destroyed in "orld "ar ##.
Defendant decided to help clear the area so he gathered $% of his male students and ordered them
to dig beside a one ton concrete bloc! in ma!ing a hole where the stone can be buried. #t was left
unfinished so the following day he called & of the $% students including the 'ovelito (larde to
complete the e)cavation. Defendant left the children to level the loose soil while he went to see
*ane+ for the !ey to the school wor!room where he can get some rope. #t was alleged that
before leaving he told the children ,not to touch the stone-. After he left the children playfully
.umped into the pit when suddenly the concrete bloc! slide down. /nfortunately 'ovelito
(larde was pinned to the wall causing serious physical in.uries which as a consequence led to his
death 0 days thereafter. 1he parents of the victim herein petitioners filed a suit for damages
against both Aquino and Soriano.
ISSUE: "2' both Soriano and Aquino can be held liable for damages.
HELD:
As held in Amadora vs 3A ,it is only the teacher and not the head of an academic school who
should be answerable for torts committed by their students-. "here the school is academic
rather than technical or vocational in nature responsibility for the tort committed by the student
will attach to the teacher in charge of such student this is the general rule. 4owever in casea of
establishments of arts and trades it is the head thereof and only he who shall be held liable as
an e)ception to the general rule. #n other words teachers in general shall be liable for the acts of
their students e)cept where the school is technical in nature in which case it is the head thereof
who shall be answerable. 4ence Soriano as principal cannot be held liable for the reason that
the school he heads is an academic school and he did not give any instruction regarding the
digging.
A teacher who stands in loco parentis to his tudents should ma!e sure that the children are
protected from all harm. 1he e)cavation instructed clearly e)posed the students to ris! and
should not be placed under the category of "or! Education such as school gardening planting
trees etc. Aquino acted with fault and gross negligence where instead of availing himself of
adult manual laborers he instead utili+ed his students. 5urthermore the warning given is not
sufficient to cast away all serious danger that the concrete bloc! ad.acent to the e)cavation would
present to the children. 4e is therefore ordered to pay damages to the petitioners.