Teachers and students must be more accountable - EDITORIAL

Schools and universities are again producing news for all the wrong reasons. The last few days we heard of how two primary school kids were brutally abused for allegedly stealing money from a teacher’s purse. We have also read much about how ragging is raising its head at universities; the worst of it being reported in universities of Peradeniya and Kelaniya. 

All these issues make parents and the loved ones of school children and university students ask the question whether our children are seeing their rights being abused? Regarding the primary school students- who have been allegedly accused of stealing money owned by a teacher- can these kids be punished again when they have already been punished? 
Teacher-student issues are sensitive. During these present times much of these issues are highlighted in social media. There is pressure being exerted on teachers and educational authorities through the use of social media. Hence these inquiries that are connected with students must progress to an end fast and a system must be made rather than finding fault with ‘who was bad’? 

A canning incident that took place in a Northern school has already attracted extreme social media attention. Social media has been used to hold the teacher to account. Teachers have been threatened using social media after the incident. Some teachers who have been threatened with harm have opted for transfers. These incidents go on to show that things have gotten out of hand where student-teacher relationships are concerned. 
State minister for Education Dr Suren Raghavan has been quoted in our sister paper ‘The Sunday Times’ stating that there is a lack of a uniform mechanism when dealing with ragging incidents at university. 

He has also gone on to state that teachers have not been trained to manage ragging incidents at universities. The same can be said about how to deal with a schoolchild if he or she is involved in a theft; even if it is done with the childhood mentality of just for kicks. 
Teachers and university lecturers must be given a thorough training on child psychology because some challenging issues like misbehaviour and ragging incidents must be dealt with promptly. There must be a punishment for a ‘playful theft’, but in the case of the Horana schoolboys they have already received some form of punishment; newspapers reporting that they allegedly underwent some form of torture. 
If one takes the brutal punishment of children it is important to remind everyone that the education ministry had sent circulars in the years 2001 and 2016 banning corporal punishment in schools.

 But what’s of concern is that an alternative wasn’t specified. In such situations teachers can be confused regarding how to punish students who misbehave. 
Coming back to the ragging incidents that have taken place it’s vital that we all remind ourselves that an anti-ragging law was enacted in parliament in 1998. For the record as many as 3500 complaints were received by the police and the university system during the past five years. However the concerns here are that only a few cases get reported.
A system change is needed here in both schools and universities. Since what’s alarming is what’s happening in schools-in terms of corporal punishment- there must be accountability on both sides. 

Teachers must also change their attitudes towards children because now education experts point out that showing love and affection and giving aggressive students more responsibility and if necessarily the power through a ‘prefectship’ just might be what the ‘doctor’ ordered to change a child from someone who is channeling too much energies to get the attention for wrong reasons to someone who sets an example to others in sports and academics. Parents also have a role to play and must remind themselves that ‘education and good habits begin at home’.