Teachers can only do so much
SOUTH African schools are under siege and the time has come for decisive intervention.
Since the beginning of the year, our news cycle has been dominated by incidents of school violence.
Something seems to have gone deeply wrong and, as a nation, we seem to be sinking in this desperate situation.
Schools have become dangerous places and no longer where young ones are sent to be moulded into upstanding citizens.
In the latest incident, a 19-yearold Mondeor High pupil was stabbed to death near his school after being attacked by a group of boys from a nearby school.
The mind boggles at the age of the suspects, following the arrest of a 13-year-old boy and two 15-year-olds as his alleged accomplices.
For heaven’s sake, these are children and for them to be associated with such a dastardly deed should be a serious concern indeed.
In sending our condolences to the families of those affected by this spectre of criminality, we need to analyse where the wheels came off and how the situation can be arrested.
First, discipline in schools has been a long-standing challenge which is beginning to look insurmountable in the wake of the latest tragedies.
What needs to be understood is that the task of instilling discipline in young ones cannot be left to schools only. It is a societal concern that should involve all sectors of society, starting with homes, churches and the community.
Schools can only do so much to supplement the foundation that has been laid from the home.
It is important for parents to know what their offspring are up to and to discharge their guiding duties consistently and conscientiously.
As far as schools are concerned, it has been argued that the abolition of corporal punishment in schools served to worsen the discipline problems.
I must point out that as a former teacher my relationship with corporal punishment is an ambivalent one.
I was subjected to assault by teachers during my school days and hated it yet, I found myself meting out the same physical violence on my charges.
The arguments and justification for this ambivalence is a subject for another day but save to say, I am convinced that beating children does not in the end bring out the best in them.
The aversion for corporal punishment should not mean the complete discarding of the concept of punishment. The purpose of punishment should, however, not be to inflict harm through physical violence but the correction of unacceptable behaviour and the modelling of proper and expected behaviour.
Notwithstanding the challenges facing our schools, teachers should desist from administering any form of corporal punishment.
What can tip the scales in favour of schools in the battle to discipline pupils is the co-operation and partnership of parents.
It has been said ad infinitum that parents simply cannot afford to abdicate their responsibilities to schools. The reality currently is that a considerable number of these parents become parents by accident and are thus not ready to discharge any duties associated with parenting.
This task is then left to grandparents, who may find it difficult to do so owing to several factors. The absence of fathers, which is rife, exacerbates the situation, with children from these circumstances more susceptible to outside influences.
Real parents love, guide and take care of their children. They invest their hopes in them and make sacrifices to ensure their children become the best they can be.
To all worthy parents out there, let us know and love our children. In so doing, we shall be making a huge contribution to the building of a strong, peaceful and prosperous nation.