Discipline our students right

EDITORIAL

Published: 16 Mar 2013 at 00.00
Newspaper section: News

Although corporal punishment was officially banned here 12 years ago, some schools still condone the practice. Now it seems some parents do as well.

When a clandestinely filmed video of a female teacher caning a student was posted online last week, it should have drawn howls of outrage. Instead the clip received more positive than negative responses.

One interpretation is that some parents are content to let teachers discipline their children for them. Another is that a recent well-publicised surge in behavioural problems among students has created a backlash among the public. Both interpretations have merit.

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cleardawn
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Discussion 12 : 16 Mar 2013 at 17.1612
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DonAleman: Sorry to hear about your childhood nightmare - an extreme version of an all-too-common story. The nuns, like many parents, succeeded in convincing their victim that he was an abnormal, "bad" child who deserved to be beaten, imprisoned, and held back until his will was broken. And now it makes you very angry, no doubt, to be told that the nuns were just plain wrong, that you didn't deserve it at all.

Now, you have a choice. Will you repeat the nuns' abuses? Or will you treat kids with kindness, love and respect, especially when they do the dumb, selfish things that kids sometimes need to do to learn what life is all about?
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cleardawn
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Discussion 11 : 16 Mar 2013 at 17.0011
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There are two types of "discipline": Internal discipline and external discipline. Thai society excels in external discipline: that is, forcing people to do things against their will on pain of violent, extreme punishment, humiliation, prison sentences, etc. Forcing people to pretend to believe obvious lies: that the local boss/teacher is perfect, that their rubbish schools are the best, etc., etc.

Then there is internal discipline: self-discipline. It comes from self-respect, from freedom, from doing as you choose and taking the consequences; real, not artificial, consequences, including pleasure as well as pain. Hitting kids destroys it.
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lungstib
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Discussion 10 : 16 Mar 2013 at 15.4110
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"such as suspending them from school or transferring them, which carries a stigma that is likely to make even the most unruly student behave"

You must be joking. Since when was giving them time off school a punishment. Get real.
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bertkok
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Discussion 9 : 16 Mar 2013 at 12.129
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The problem as I see it is indiscipline. Not the discipline exerted by teachers or parents, but self discipline. In schools children are so used to being disciplined by teachers that they fail to learn to discipline themselves. The standards are set by the teachers, who went through the same processes. The results can be seen in all aspects of Thai life. Just look at the traffic.
My son was taken out of the Thai education system and is now home-schooled, his performances have improved and his social behaviour has matured.
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barryw
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Discussion 8 : 16 Mar 2013 at 11.478
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Many of the problems in Thailand are caused by 1 - people having kids but then being poor parents insofar as having no time or ability to offer moral guidance to them (it is not only a Thai problem of course), 2 - poor role models and 3 - as Dis#4 points out - a near total lack of law enforcement with selective justice.
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ronniec
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Discussion 7 : 16 Mar 2013 at 09.447
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felixqui #2 is spot on.
We exist in a system that, despite thinking we are 'civilized', relies upon violence.
We are still barbaric. We have yet to move beyond threats, intimidation and punishment in order to get people to behave as society desires.
Culture is your enemy, as is ignorance, and yet the values of our system perpetuates them.
If parents and schools could nurture the inquisitiveness of children into a thirst for truth and understanding, we would actually stand a chance of moving beyond violence and, at last, becoming civilized.
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DonAleman
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Discussion 6 : 16 Mar 2013 at 09.336
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I attended a Catholic primary school whose Nuns, ( teachers),were
chosen by size and degree of brutality.We had at least 100 "Rules"
which, if violated,didn't cause "embarrassment", it caused real
pain that often lasted for days.I, singled out because of my really,
really bad behavior, was beaten, it seemed, hourly, which, without
I surely would have been executed by now.My 5 best years were spent in 4th
grade - yes, then they failed dummies and clowns !
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justfacts
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Discussion 5 : 16 Mar 2013 at 09.025
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#1 if the problem in america is easy access to guns, why are more people killed in thailand with guns....where access is much more difficult?
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bkk-farang
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Discussion 4 : 16 Mar 2013 at 08.284
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Many of the articles we read in the BP come down to people ignoring existing laws. I think many Thais and foreigners living here ignore many laws because most of the time there are no consequences. In many areas like traffic, nightclubs, casinos, illegal betting, illegal street vendors, pirated goods and more there seems to be no law enforcement at all and people get used to the idea that they can do whatever they want.
And then there are a few well published cases where some rich people kill others by accident or on purpose with their cars or guns and get away with it.
Without an honest police force these problems won’t go away.
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bkkmatt
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Discussion 3 : 16 Mar 2013 at 08.013
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Diss 1. I would say bullying is more common in the USA and UK.
One would even say that bullying is part of growing up and how to deal with different attitudes.
If you are reffering to behaviour, I think Thai students are generally very respectful and polite but what they lack on the whole is determination, application, desire and the will to improve and gain knowledge.
There is too much talking, playing with gadgets and a sabai sabai attitude in Thai schools.
Not forgetting the little darlings know they are going to pass every subject, every year.
These incidents are a very small fraction of Thai students in general.
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Discipline our students right | Bangkok Post: opinion