Bring courtesy back to our school children

One day, as I was trying to make my way into the crowded corridors of the school, I noticed something that really struck me hard: none of the students strewn around ever bothered to move to the sides to at least give me ample space to pass through.

They did not even bother to lower their loud and boisterous voices while already knowing I was about to approach their company. To make things worse, two bantering girls who were making their way out of the class room almost hit me with the broom one was toying with. And when she saw me, she just took her gaze away from me and hurriedly left without even bothering to make some sort of an apology.

Courtesy is now a rare virtue among our school children. Time was when we all gave way when we saw a teacher, an employee or a school administrator coming our way. We would all scamper and run to the sides to give way to them. We waited and gave our greeting for the day until we were dismissed by a smile or a wave of a hand or a pat on the head.

We lined up when we went to the comfort rooms or when we needed to buy something from the school canteen. We were in cues when we received school issues like free notebooks or stuff from a sponsoring company or perhaps government issued Nutri-Bun, wheat flour or corn mill (darak mais) from the US relief service. We practically lined up for ever yt hi ng.

In the classroom we knew we had to tone down the noise, rise and greet whenever a teacher, an administrator, or just even an adult stood by our door. We would usually play talking or even running around while waiting for the next teacher to come. But when he/ she showed up by the door we need to be told to compose ourselves and greet him/ her.

I starkly noticed these past few years how many students fall to observe simple courtesy. Is it because they belong to a totally new generation? Is it an excuse that many of them have parents who barely have time to spend with their children? Or is it perhaps that they are watching too much television and youtube videos?

Indeed, things have changed a lot these days. But I refuse to accept that we cannot bring back courtesy among our school children. I personally believe that whenever home fails to put across the value of courtesy on children, the school should play a supporting role. Our school children are the future of our motherland. If they fail to imbibe good virtues such as basic courtesy, how else can we expect them to be good citizens of the future?

Schools should immediately reassess the values integration program in the different subject areas and perhaps come up with immediate measurable solutions to arrest this decline. Good teachers not only impress good lessons and impact useful concepts on their students, but they also affect them with good values to turn them into better men and women.

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The author is Teacher III at Bitas Elementary School, Arayat, Pampanga