A curious love for undisciplined children

By George Davis

CHILDREN HAVE always been bad in this country. A child in 2013 is arguably no more prone to acts of rank indiscipline and violence than the child of the 1960s. It's a fact that every generation can tell stories about the misdeeds of members of their pubescent or adolescent group.

While children, especially those at the secondary level, have always been bad, the sad reality is that parents, parenting and guardianship have all deteriorated over time. This erosion in quality has created a new, more foul-mouthed, undisciplined and splenetic child who wreaks havoc on schoolmates, school administrators and their poor old teachers. The diminishing presence of parental guidance and leadership has seemingly given children a free pass to insult and disregard their peers, along with any adult who attempts to instill discipline or the recognition of good manners.

Many of those parents brought to book for threatening or attacking a teacher who had a run-in with their child will protest to a magistrate that they acted violently because of their love for that child. But what a curious love that is! It's a very curious love for a child which makes a parent want to chop, stab, shoot, douse with acid or kill anyone who seeks to take disciplinary measures against that child. This kind of love emboldens children to eschew discipline and good behaviour in schools, safe in the knowledge that it will be 'hell-and-powder-house' if a teacher bwoy, or teacher gal, as much as speaks to them harshly. This is part of the reason why teachers, crucial authority figures in the lives of many of us growing up, have been reduced to cowering souls, afraid to apply a rap on the knuckles as punishment for even the worst kind of behaviour.

What makes the situation most curious is that those who love their child so much that they would beat a teacher who 'dissed' that child, don't love that child enough to ensure that his or her schoolwork comes first. They love the child with such passion and would lay down in 'wuk-house' as a consequence of defending the child, but make no great effort to ensure the same child has all the tools required to assist its education. They love the child enough to kill someone who dares reprimand them. But, curiously, they don't love the child enough to forgo buying the outfit for the big dance so the same child can have lunch money for the next two weeks, and not have to miss a single day of school. They love the child so much they would borrow a gun and round up the entire community to go to a school and 'mash-up' a teacher bwoy, whose crime was simply to discipline their unruly child. But they don't love the child enough to forgo the Hennessey purchase and ensure the child gets a crucial textbook.

outrageous behaviour

It's the behaviour of these parents and those who facilitate their slackness, despite knowing better, which has contributed to the kinds of incidents where a gang of uniformed schoolboys can assault, rob and seriously injure the driver of a public-passenger vehicle.

For those shocked and wondering what the devil has happened to our schools over the years, maybe it is that the devil really has happened to our schools over these many years. These days, schoolgirls are not simply students. They are hot girls, turning up at these institutions of learning to cavort and carry on with the security guards, male faculty, bus and taxi men, along with assorted businessmen in the surrounding school community. Schoolboys are not merely students anymore. They are bad men, turning up at schools to look gal, 'par' with their bad-man friends and revolt against any attempt to subject them to discipline and order. Obviously, not every schoolgirl or schoolboy fits this profile. But too many schoolgirls and schoolboys do.

In all of this, I am sorry for our teachers. The poor souls, exposed to some viperous children, and armed only with eraser and marker, are expected to do what many parents have long ceased to do with their children in the homes. Massa God is unlikely to be pleased. Selah.

George Davis is a journalist. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com or george.s.davis@gmail.com