A veteran Queens math teacher was yanked from the classroom yesterday after a cellphone video posted online showed an apparent confrontation with a student.
Department of Education officials said they are investigating 19-year veteran David Pecoraro, a vocal union leader at Beach Channel HS in Far Rockaway, on allegations of corporal punishment.
An 80-second video posted on YouTube last week captures the alleged incident but doesn’t provide a clear answer on what the teacher did.
Toward the end of the clip, Pecoraro approaches a disrespectful student who’s been covering his head with his jacket.
As Pecoraro tries to remove the coat, the student flails and appears to make contact with him.
“You want to go to jail now? You don’t touch me!” Pecoraro says.
Then, with his arm by his mouth, Pecoraro makes a sharp sound that resembles a spitting noise.
The kid responds by spitting in the teacher’s face, after which Pecoraro pushes him away.
At the very end of the clip, Pecoraro can be seen wiping off his own face.
WARNING: VIDEO CONTAINS GRAPHIC LANGUAGE
“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 Post. “Then he spit in my face.”
Pecoraro, who denied spitting on the student, was placed on paid administrative duty.