Wednesday, 23rd April 2008
Education Minister urges parents to realise need for discipline in schools
Education Minister Dolores Cristina at the Naxxar Secondary School yesterday. Photo: Jason Borg.
Discipline in schools is very important and parents need to understand this and follow it up with their good example, Education Minister Dolores Cristina insisted yesterday.
She was speaking during a visit to the Naxxar Boy's Secondary School where a series of acts of bullying and violence against teachers was reported recently.
Ms Cristina explained that she was visiting as part of familiarisation tours to various schools but also because it was considered to be a vulnerable school with students having behavioural problems. In an attempt to tackle these problems, there was an ongoing pilot project at the school where, last week, a prefect of discipline was appointed with the aim to focus on the school's needs and establish the best plan forward.
She added that calls for applications were being prepared to recruit prefects of discipline in the various colleges.
The Malta Union of Teachers said last week that the post of prefect at the Naxxar school was no more than an "ad hoc arrangement". It complained that calls for applications for the post had not been issued.
The new post of college prefect of discipline was created in the reform agreement signed by the MUT and the government in July 2007. The responsibility included the coordination of activities, policies and procedures related to the promotion and encouragement of good behaviour and discipline in the college schools.
"I believe that the prefects of discipline make a big difference in our schools as we have to determine what is causing children to act the way they do," Ms Cristina said, adding that one had to look beyond the children's school life in order to help those children whose behaviour stemmed from problems at home.
She stressed on the importance of discipline in schools, adding that parents should discuss any problems regarding the child with the school head. "Schools are there for everyone to give a good example and it was not acceptable to have adults act violent in schools... Violence in schools is unacceptable," she said, irrespective of whether it was children on children or if it involved parents or teachers.
Ms Cristina added that she understood that teachers might want protection and, while an element of security had to be ensured, this had to be done through communication that would also help to better understand the needs of particular schools.
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Comments
The system in Malta caters for high achievers. The syllabus is vast and the teachers simply cannot help poor students as much as they would like to. The problem needs to be tackled at the onset, that is, in the very early school years. Students should not arrive in the secondary school not knowing even the basics. It is humiliating for a student not to be able to recognize the alphabet at the age of 13! Such a student has no self-esteem. Low self-esteem leads to many problems – violence among them.
The opportunity centres should never have been closed. They should have been improved and refined, so that each student succeeds! Teachers in such schools should have been picked carefully. They should get ongoing training, support and help. The very best teachers are needed to work with these students. Most of them were too!
Teachers in ex-opportunity centres had been pleading for many years for professionals to help them diagnose and prepare individualized programmes for students. Many students I have taught I ‘think’ were dyslexic, ADHD. Many teachers did their best to create new and interesting ways to help their students overcome their learning difficulties. It was often by trial and error, with no outside help. It is the same situation today in all secondary schools. Teachers are always hard pressed for time because of the vastness of the syllabus. There is little if any time for discussion.
I ask myself, how do schools abroad do it? Their students achieve without the stress put on our students. I have had the opportunity to visit schools in Denmark, Norway, Holland, Lithuania, Italy and Australia. Teachers have the time to discuss with their students. Students learn by doing as well as by studying from books. Learning has more meaning. Parents are involved with their children’s learning and shoulder some of the responsibility for their children’s learning. Teachers, parents and students work together for the success of the students.
We need to take a closer look at our education system to help our students achieve, have more self esteem, become more confident. We should pull the parents more to the school to work together with teachers for the good of the students. Violence and aggression is often the result of misunderstanding between the parents and the school.