THERE has been a spate of news on parents lodging police reports against teachers for apparently punishing their children. What irks me is the incessant complaints teachers get for caning or pulling their students’ ears. While I do not dispute the fact that some punishments meted out have led to serious injuries, I feel that most times teachers are not intentionally hurting their students.
As a 90s kid, I believe most parents gave teachers the right to punish their children. Heck, my parents told my teachers to wield the rotan (cane) on me if I misbehaved or performed badly in class. This message was conveyed to the teachers on my first day of school!
I was brought up in an era where teachers were considered sacred and had every right to educate us not only on the lessons in the classroom but also in life. By disciplining students, the hope was that they would correct their mistakes and grow up to be capable adults.
The sad thing is there are some parents who are overprotective of their children. This has to stop! Children have to learn to toughen up and not take things for granted.
I’m now in my 30s and going through troubled times running my own business. But all those years of getting punished back in school and the humiliation I felt actually made me mentally stronger and more able to weather the challenging situation I am in now.
To sum up, I would like to quote famous comedian Russell Peters: “Beat Your Kids”.
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