First, licks for the adults!

THE EDITOR: There has been a call for the introduction of corporal punishment in schools. Licks for students is the clarion call by many who are concerned about the violent nature of the “flowers of our nation.” The Minister of Education has set up a committee to review the removal of corporal punishment in schools. Protagonists who object to the recall of corporal punishment offer alternative methods which make good reading for our “educators” but lack realism in the classroom, particularly in our Junior Secondary and Senior Comprehensive Schools.

How can there be better interaction between teachers and students when there are either no teachers or no students? How can there be learning when gambling is the culture of the classroom? The reality of the indiscipline among students in our Junior and Senior Secondary Schools, from my own experience as a retired teacher, stems from the fact that schooling is perceived as a good “ole trini lime”. Students attend school without books. Are you surprised that we must rent them books, when they walk around with cell phones? The book bag is a haven for powder, perfume, cream, shoe polish, a deck of cards and a walkman. A copybook or page in their back pocket is sufficient for the day’s lesson. Students diligently attend classes when there is no teacher! Walk the corridors and frequent the washrooms when there is one! This is the new culture that characterises schooling. It is the culture of our ‘trini’ society — so why blame our innocent children?

Our teenagers are still in the process of learning that which is right from that which is wrong. Their morality is a reflection of the mores of their parents and the society at large. This morality is transported in the classroom. If therefore there is violence and indiscipline in the classroom, it is simply an extension of the culture at home and in the society. It must be remembered that our Junior and Secondary Schools were designed to cater for the less academically inclined students. There are the students who have difficulty in learning and consequently in discerning what is right from wrong. Should we give licks to our students who are slow learners and are still in the process of learning right from wrong, as opposed to our adults who have attained maturity in years of understanding that which is right from wrong? Do we beat adults for the wrongs, which they commit? Licks for adults who indulge in corruption! Licks for adults who beat their spouses! Licks for adults who drink, drive and kill! Licks for adults who commit adultery! Licks (Public Whipping in the Square) for adults who rape or commit incest! Licks (Public Whipping in the Square) for adults who steal, murder and kidnap! Only if such measures are introduced, could there then be justification for corporal punishment in schools.

IMAAM IQBAL HYDAL
Chaguanas