10 Nov Hitting in Schools. Still going on !
Kids being hit by teachers!
Honestly, until I saw this happening right in front of my eyes yesterday at a pre-school I never thought this is still going on.
I was returning after some work and was passing by the window of a playschool and heard a kid crying and an adult yelling at the kid. I quickly looked through the window and saw a child on the floor, a teacher hitting him, another teacher, and the rest of the kids looking at them.
I immediately wanted to go ask the front office what was going on, but without proof, they could tell me nothing was wrong, so I took small video footage. I didn’t get the major part of what happened, but still, I was glad I had it taken. My video had only the last part of what happened- The child on the floor, a few hits on the hands, and the screaming teacher asking ‘thalli viduveya thalli viduveya (will you push? Will you push)?!
I couldn’t see the expressions on the other kids as they were facing the other way, but I’m sure they would have been scared too.
I went to the front office and asked why was the teacher hitting a kid inside & they immediately denied it. I told I have a video taken & how could they hit children. The lady there immediately told it is a special child. I asked, does that give them the right to hit. Then she told me I don’t know what would have gone wrong & I can’t ask them all this. She also told me they have a CCTV and they wouldn’t be hitting anyone. I was about to go into the classroom to check for CCTV and also planned to tell the children no one has the right to hit you all anymore. But they immediately locked that room from inside. I told to give the lady, the number of the one who runs this place.
She gave me the contact and was visibly nervous. I quickly contacted that person & told them what I saw. Her voice sounded very tense. She asked me to send the video to her. I sent and waited for her to get back with an explanation (any explanation for hitting would not have been enough, I just wanted to hear what she wanted to say).
She called back in 10 min and now sounded very angry and pissed off. Also more confident than she earlier was. Obviously, I understood coz the video I took didn’t have too much hitting in it and probably she felt I couldn’t do anything with it.
This is what she said- you have no idea why we hit this boy. He is very naughty. He Removes his shorts in class, how weird is that.? You have no idea how it can affect others. His parents are also OK with us disciplining him. He is very hyperactive, pushes other kids, doesn’t eat his food, etc. So we do this at times. His parents know this. And how can you take a video of what happens in our school.? That too from the window.?! That was so wrong.
She was making me feel I am at fault.
I told her this.
You have no idea whom you are talking to. I am a sexuality health educator who knows it is completely OK in children to be curious about their body parts & you are all at fault as neither you nor the parents know how to handle these things properly. Better attend a class with me itself on sex ed and you’ll know. And also, how dare you to say me taking a video is wrong.?! Do you think I should have asked permission to enter the school and take it? You would have let me? What nonsense. You do shitty things & now blame me.? The audacity.! OK, first of all, I have no intention and interest to talk to a person who thinks hitting kids is Not wrong. And second, not just you people, but none of the schools know certain behaviors are normal in children, so I’ll try to do what I can in getting this msg across. Thank you. Bye.
From the other side – Ok.
.
.
🔴Dear parents –
➡️Do check what kind of school you are sending kids to. What training teachers have received with regard to child development or every age-appropriate sexual development.
➡️Do check what kind of school you are sending kids to. What training teachers have received with regard to child development or every age-appropriate sexual development.
➡️Make sure kids are happy to go to school. If they are distressed, evaluate why.
➡️Schools should not force kids to eat, do activities, read or write. Find a place that understands the pace of your unique child.
➡️Schools should not label kids as hyper, naughty, etc. Kids are kids. Some run around all the time, some sit in a place, some talk a lot, some don’t, and some kids have their own issues they are dealing with. They don’t have to Behave. WE ARE ADULTS. we need to behave according to their needs & capabilities.
🟢Dear schools & teachers –
➡️I don’t know much about early childhood training, but I’m sure all schools make teachers go through them. Apart from that, age-appropriate sexual development is also something the school should know. Only then you won’t shame the child for what it normally does at a certain age.
No need for elaborate training, at least sex abuse prevention & reporting classes are important for teachers in schools. Aware in Chennai and tears can help.
➡️Even if a kid according to you is naughty or bad or hyper or doesn’t eat or whatever it is, HITTING is not the way to get the behavior to change. Can we parents come & hit all your teaching staff if the child’s behavior doesn’t change? Oh, that would be outrageous right??!!
Then how is this okay?
➡️Also if you think you are only hitting one (so-called naughty) child and other kids are all OK coz you are not hitting them, don’t be in a bubble – you are affecting the other kids who are watching this violence too! They won’t trust you as safe adults & won’t be their best around you either. But you don’t see it that way, right? Bleah 🙄
✅So figure out how to help the child, and if you can’t do it, tell the parent to take the child to another place that knows what they are doing. There are amazing places that don’t hurt children.