Demonstrators, including young activists and monks, scattered through the streets in the central town of Letpadan when hundreds of riot police dispersed the protest, lashing out as they moved to block streets.
The police action comes just days after Myanmar authorities violently cracked down on a supporting rally in the main city of Yangon.
Student protesters have embarked on months of demonstrations calling for education reform, but plans by a core group to march to Yangon have been halted by police near a monastery in the dusty central town of Letpadan, who surrounded around 150 activists from March 2.