A teacher has been charged with assaulting a student in a high school classroom in the NSW Hunter.

Police were called to Maitland Grossmann High School on Tuesday afternoon after reports a pupil had been assaulted by a male teacher.

“The teenage boy was assessed at the scene by NSW Ambulance paramedics, however, was not physically injured,” police said on Wednesday.

The 62-year-old male teacher was arrested at 9.30pm and later charged with common assault.

Opposition Leader Chris Minns was asked about the incident after a video posted on social media showed the boy was grabbed by the collar during a classroom scuffle that escalated after scrunched-up balls of paper were thrown across the classroom.

“I don’t know the circumstances,” Mr Minns told Nine’s Today show on Wednesday.

“Teachers have never been under so much pressure,” he said 

“Discipline in school is important. Part of that is ensuring that when teachers make call or principals they are backed up.

“If there are examples of that in NSW education we have to make sure the teachers are backed up.”

The teacher was given conditional bail to appear before Maitland Local Court on April 6.

The Department of Education is investigating.