THERE is not much one can add to the outcry that followed reports of the alleged gang rape of a pupil at Jules High School in Johannesburg this week.

Of course a court of law will determine the circumstances of the incident. Though charges against two boys have been dropped, the police have assured us they are doing everything possible to gather credible evidence.

The parents do not believe this to be the case and argue that a grave injustice was committed from the time the alleged rape took place to the manner in which the police and school authorities reacted to the incident.

Even teachers and the headmaster have been accused of dismissing the girl and laughing.

If it is true that this happened we are in bigger trouble than we think.

There are obviously many sides to this tragedy and the truth will hopefully become clearer with the passage of time.

The 15-year-old pupil and her family claim her drink was spiked and she was gang-raped.

On the other hand, nameless and faceless individuals have informed some journalists that the girl was an active participant in all that transpired.

The bottom line is that legally a 15-year-old, drunk or not, cannot consent to sex. Even if this little girl were not raped, are we not concerned that children are having sex at school, in broad daylight and in full view of other pupils?

Does it not turn our stomachs that fellow schoolmates were watching and filming this? Even the alleged perpetrators are schoolboys who should be flying kites instead of appearing in court over rape.

Regardless of what the actual truth is, we have so many reasons to mourn as a nation.

We should mourn because the age of innocence, a period when a child was a child, a time of exuberance and idealism has died a painful and final death.

We should also be shattered that school grounds are no longer what they used to be.

The time has long passed when a school was a sacred environment where young minds were taught and challenged.

It is not just the lessons from textbooks that were significant at school, but also the more enduring lessons about respect for one's self, for others and for rules.

There was a time when we all knew that mischief was part of the learning experience, but we realised that the school was not a place where you could do exactly as you pleased and get away with it.

A friend of mine had me in stitches when she related how she often stops her car and shouts at pupils who have turned bus stops into love nests.

I am sure you've encountered this scene: It's after school, boys and girls in uniform, their shirts half sticking out, sleeves rolled up and ties loosened, and in full view of the public, smooching and groping as though their lives depended on it.

Driving past I often wonder whether these children do not mind being the target of gossip at school. But once I turned the corner to see more girls and boys with their lips locked and legs entwined, it becomes clear that this is the standard to pursue.

Shame on the nerds and uncool fools!

Back in the day the mere accusation of having a boyfriend or girlfriend was enough to cause such shame and heartache.

So when did life change so radically and are we happy with what we see?

Looking back to my own childhood, a lot of my peers, from classmates to friends, were always afraid of something or someone.

Some among us were naughty but it was a different type of "naughtiness".

We were always afraid of a teacher, a parent, an older sibling, a neighbour and even the juveniles knew how far to go, or not to go. It would be dishonest to pretend life then was perfect but for goodness sake, certain things just never happened.

Yesterday this newspaper reported that a 48-year-old caretaker raped an 11-year-old pupil at school.

What an outrage! Adults and children alike are breaking every moral code known to man.

When will this nonsense end?