ABUSING CORPORAL PUNISHMENT AS A TOOL TO POWER

      
              
I started my school days in a small factory school where teaching staff are appointed in a similar manner like many of the other management schools in Madurai. The only difference is that this school has a bigger space comparatively to other schools from the surrounding villages. Canning, undressing students and kneeling are some of the common forms of punishments that I have observed during my childhood days. My mother has been more of an activist in those days despite being a home maker who knows less of the world and people outside. I say this because she cared more for her children and her friends. I still remember three to four incidents during my childhood when my mother came forward and spoke rather questioned my teachers including the Principal. 

Incident 1: When some of my neighbouring class boys shirts were removed as punishment and made to go to other classes, she objected.

Incident 2: My speed of delivery of words is much faster comparatively right from my childhood, however the case is much different now. One day this so happened that I finished my prayer after lunch before others and the teacher on rounds canned me and I had a mark on the back of my arms. The next day my mother came and fought with the teacher and after that told her that if she hits me for questioning her she will take things seriously. From that incident onwards I still remember the teacher always used point out, “If I hit your mother will take me to my higher authorities”. I think she was my Maths or Tamil Teacher.

Incident 3: Once my sister got canned very badly and all I remember is my mother talking to the teacher angrily for not understanding her problem and discussing with her of how to solve. After this incident my parents sent my sister to Kodaikanal where she stayed with my grandparents and continued her studies. This period of her life, to my knowledge was blissful, of course who will not love the beautiful landscape and a lovely pet dog and cat.

Incident 4: Once one of my very good playmate and classmate called Gayathri had high fever and her father I believe is a labourer or a technician. Her mother left her under our care, our group and asked us to take care of her. This so happened the Principal came for substitution and was checking our notebooks for handwriting to the best of my knowledge. Gayathri was not doing well and she had bad handwriting or incomplete work but the Principal got so wild and she started canning her. Immediately we all together told her that she had fever and she canned us as well which made her more aggressive and blindly canned her which caused lot of markings on her legs. After that she did not come to school the next day and we all told our parents of the incident. My mother questioned the Principal the next day for canning me for only conveying the information that she was not doing well. The day after that when Gayathri came back to school, my mother saw her condition and on seeing a few of my other classmates also started complaining to my mother. So she asked her parents to complain on the Principal to the management, but they were scared because of other higher authorities whose children were also studying there. The situation was entirely different in this case. So my mother took this as a personal concern and I along with her told my father. I do not remember following which my mother persuaded my father to chat with Gayathri’s father and he took a written statement from him and personally met the management and the Principal got suspended. She did come back to the school but we all forgot about her by then as is was a year later, but at that time she was reformed.

Incident 5: I was in Dindigul and had no idea of computers and never had seen one. Unfortunately, I happened to join my middle school a little later than others I was behind syllabus and missed out a few classes on binary calculations. So I failed in the test and my computer master canned me. This in fact developed an aversion towards the subject until I started enjoying using the technology for research and got admired by my research supervisors for learning to use softwares swiftly and ethically. My mother not only complained to the Principal and later got to know that the computer master was staying in a house which was under the supervision of my father and so my father also had a word with him.

What brought me all these memories back? The decision of mine to agree to work as an Academic Co-ordinator though attending the interview for a Principal since I believed that besides other reasons is also an opportunity to understand and gain more knowledge on Indian educational system at school level – primary, secondary and higher secondary. This so happened that the school where I agreed to work in Madurai had compartmentalization system of education. I wonder whether is this the real pathetic case of all the schools and the students in Madurai or not, I am not sure – for my nephew gave me a different opinion of the school where he studied earlier. I have very little idea of his current school as is not even a month since the year started.

Objection to implementation of corporal punishment, leave aside schools in Madurai, I got inspired through my mother from childhood because she always used to tell that women who hit other’s children are not good women and do not make a good mother (why my sister’s-in-laws used to bother my mother for sparing the rod for they do not know to discern between pampering, disciplining and use of corporal punishment). This is how I had been growing up and this so happened that I spent the last four years of my education is one of the best schools in South India at Chennai. I owe a lot to the nuns and other teacher who had put in lot of effort on me and made me a confident person and brought the innate personality to life. I still admire the leadership of the Principal of my school at that instance and only when I last visited my school before leaving to Australia, I got to know that might be the last visit to my school as on old student for most of the teachers were already retired and others were in the verge of retirement.

The person who got appointed along with me here in Madurai as Principal also bothered about canning when I was feeling they are better for I know that is much worse in some of the other schools, or maybe I did not get a chance to observe . But I only got to know that the teachers are encouraged by the attitude of some or rather I should mention it as most of the parents who come to teachers asking to can their children while I even had the experience of a parent telling me that they are using medication on their son for being naughty. Of course without a change in the attitude of the public this is not possible to ban and prevent the use of corporal punishment entirely while parents themselves question teachers for not using corporal punishment. This was at this juncture that I got appointed to Thiruppuvanam, Sivagangai as Academic Co-ordinator to a CBSE school that is to be established. Need not say accepting the mode of education by itself was a problem which I found on arrival for many parents used to keep complaining and have displeasure on the amount of time and effort that parents need to spend on their children unlike Matriculation/ State Board. It was at this juncture I found that many parents also used to complain and question the Principal of that school as well for implementing corporal punishment. Initially I observed that she used to implement only when teachers bring students stating that they were doing mischief. I do not know what happened or maybe because right from security to few attenders started comparing indirectly on how students get scared for making mistakes and immediately regret with no need to hit or scold them, if I happened to find out. In fact even after scolding they used to smile happily. This could also be one the reasons besides other personal contempt and displeasure or jealousy and me not agreeing to nod “yes” to say that a mobile phone that I got for myself for my birthday as gifted by someone else or might be because not being bothered about the story of an “alliance” that she made up and asking to fall in love and marry that “man” and much more than that. What ever be the reason the ploy was laid before – but the point here is that corporal punishment was used rather abused on small students below 10 years – to teach me to use corporal punishment; to hurt me since I cannot see others being hurt for innocence thinking that I will not ask and an idea for what reason I do not know that either to make me go meet men in uniform and/or human rights commission people.

The point here that I want to convey on this blog is, despite as seen in the map of India, Tamil Nadu falling under the circle of banning of corporal punishment and the act against the physical and mental (and  I believe should be better framed as emotional) abuse leading to deterioration in mental health and physical well-being of the child has been incorporated into the Act to Right to Education Bill and UNICEF, India, one should be practical that corporal punishment cannot be banned completely without a change in attitude of the public (as parents), despite schools, management, principals/heads, in-charges and teachers get together and prove their ability in moulding students without implementing corporal punishment. Here I have incorporated what the media has published further on the decision issued by Ministry for Women and Child Development and this news not only from one single representation of media, but is a well cited article in detail that corporal punishment is punishable to imprisonment and penalisation with money. However what is pathetic in the country is that when corporal punishment has been abused to harass students and to pent out their emotional imbalance, I believe that a little more than penalisation and imprisonment is required.

People who are heading such institutions leaving aside their duties and responsibilities, showing negligence towards the responsibility of safety which is under the direct supervision of the head of the school and monitored by him/her and work towards their own selfish gratification, I believe they need a little more bitter treatment and lesson learnt for life. The case that I faced here is much more of irresponsibility and abusing students for selfish purpose and the acknowledgement of parents towards the misuse of children in helping to gain more power and maybe money as well, besides the personal harassment that I faced which I need not discuss here. However, I should not fail to accept that there were many who questioned and complained. Appreciate their braveness in striding forward!!! Maybe people like them should be together when they are receiving an opportunity to ask at a common platform rather than finding excuses for not coming!!!

The consequence of abusing corporal punishment and mental, which I will call as emotional harassment in this context on students, could have more implications and stress on students for this instilled fear of sharing problems with someone whom they can rely on and doing things which they believe is wrong for no one will like to hurt someone whom they like. Besides when the government and activists are banning corporal punishment with common cause that this instills the spirit of learning to use violence, what will be the end result of abusing corporal punishment for no valid reason for cases similar to Gayathri?

I believe this needs no great psychology to understand that all students are not equal in learning to speak a foreign language and some depending on the environment and society they grow, may not be able to spell out clearly certain words, why my nephew at the age of 11 still cannot spell out certain big words clearly; not because he is a dull-head because he knows the usage of vocabulary but is not able to pronounce the word clearly like a grown up individual and is still a kid.

However taking things positively forward on my personal side since I had no trustworthy contact details or appointments to raise my concern, I believe in the interim I maybe spending time at home and not earning my daily bread, but in the process I gained knowledge which I would have gained even otherwise if required as a matter of job responsibility and also learnt more about the Indian system of education at the level of school.

Read the blog to follow for further readings.....