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Private school English teacher Sonia Mackay, 43, said she was "deeply sorry" for her actions after she pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of the boy.

Mackay, who taught at a school in Adelaide, Australia, admitted to having sex with the 17-year-old pupil.

The former teacher at the Christian Brothers College in the city appeared in front of South Australian District Court on Wednesday.

Reading a letter of apology, the tearful Mackay said she knew what she had done was wrong.

"I am deeply regretful of my actions," she said.

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"Through my indecent actions, I have brought great distress to the victim and his family."

The boy's mother — who hasn't been named — told the court Mackay had called her and asked for her son's phone number, saying she wanted to help him with his work.

But the mother said she became worried when her son started disappearing for days on end.

"I had no idea where he was sleeping, who he was with, was he safe or worse," she said.

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"When he attempted to come home she bought him expensive underwear and gifts so he had no excuse but to stay with her."

She brought up one time when her son was at home and Mackay called him threatening to hurt herself.

"I saw my son terrified," she said. "He believed it was his fault for leaving her alone."

In South Australia, the age of consent is 17 but increases to 18 if one of the people involved is in a position of authority over the other.

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Mackay, from Henley Beach in Adelaide, was arrested by detectives from the Special Crimes Unit in December 2017.

When she was arrested, a letter was sent home to parents informing them the teacher had been suspended.

In September, Mackay pleaded not guilty to two aggravated counts of indecent assault, and one count of unlawful sexual intercourse involving a second, separate boy, according to Australian media.

The case returns to court in December.