Thursday, September 29, 2011

NO GOOD REASON TO BEAT CHILDREN

Letter to the editor, Times of Swaziland

29 September 2011

SOURCE

There is no good reason to have corporal punishment anymore

Sir,

This is a response to the feature article on corporal punishment, published in the Times on 27 September.

I had a teacher in primary school who used to abuse this privilege. He would make us put our heads under his desk, then he would whip our butts.

When reacting to that, we would raise our heads and hit the bottom of his desk. I still wish to meet him now and see if he can repeat those antics.

That was pure abuse. My boarding master in high school would beat us with a hosepipe. We are, and were not, animals.

Cruel

That is termed ‘cruel and unusual punishment’. I would not like any teacher to lay hands on my child; if there are any problems I need to be called.

With all the things happening, sodomy and stuff, there are so many sick adults out there and I don’t know who to trust, period.

Leave my child alone and I will take care of it. Besides, why would you want to take on the responsibility of disciplining someone else’s child?

Most parents don’t discipline their children and they expect the teachers to do their work for them. Most children are raised by TV and video games and absent parents.

Then the teacher is expected to work out a miracle. Even the Bible says "let the wheat and tares grow together".

Rewards

The parents who do their work at home will reap the rewards and those who don’t likewise.

You reap what you sow. Besides, children are crazy these days.

Just this week in my city a principal quit his job because a pupil brought a gun to school.

If I were a teacher I would not mess with anybody’s child.

These children are also crazy like their parents. It takes a village, my foot! Let’s face it; the world is changing.

These days, even your own children, you don’t just hit them. They were showing a 10-year-old on TV who shot and killed his father.

Beating

With all this social media and stuff, no one can truly say they know their children anymore, so slow down on the beating because you might be the one getting it.

Has any research really been done on corporal punishment? We have a university in Swaziland, we have learned people etc.

This has been an issue for a while. One former US President (John F Kennedy) said, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country."

I am trying to prove, kutsi siyatoyitoya yet where we as individuals have an ability to make a difference we are lacking.

Violent

Bantfwana labatelwe batali labatoyitoyako vele will be violent.

So it is not only our children, natsi batali siyagula, our children have inherited our dysfunctions.

No matter how hard we hit them, unless we look for solutions, we are just marking time.

Maye mine, I enjoy a well-researched article. Next time, before writing such an article, just do more research and writing on it.

Make it a scholarly and appealing subject.

Pholile Mazibuko

See also

SWAZI SCHOOL ‘TORTURES’ STUDENTS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/09/swazi-school-tortures-students.html

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