Problem children

(letter to the editor)

Sir,

Teachers in some secondary schools in Britain are worried that their job may become impossible shortly unless something' should be done to restore discipline in the classroom. In the problem schools mostly in large cities a small minority of teenage pupils deliberately disrupt lessons to such an extent that the teachers can no longer teach their classes effectively. Some within the teachers' unions consider that the permissive nature of modern society is responsible. Small children who are continually encouraged to express their individuality without restriction are naturally reluctant to accept school discipline when they grow older.

Furthermore, modern teaching techniques which appear to stress personal enjoyment at the expense of serious academic work might be teaching the child to put his own selfish interests before his duties to the community in which he lives.

Perhaps the problem can be solved by improving facilities for the psychological guidance of these difficult children, or by better cooperation between the schools and the parents, for the parents may be mainly responsible for the aggressive behaviour of their offspring.

But some of us believe that there ought to be a return to more old-fashioned methods. At present, in some schools teachers may not even slap a child who misbehaves. But personally I feel that caning should be reintroduced, and this might produce the desirable result.

ex-teacher Bakenham.

I. Should caning be reintroduced as a means of restoring discipline?

II. Are parents to blame for the aggressive behaviour of their offspring?

CHILDREN

“MUST HAVE A CHILDHOOD”

Children are under increasing pressure to grow up and must be allowed a childhood, teachers have demanded.

Members of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers said children's rights, such as the right to education, should include the right to a childhood.

Delegates at the ATL's conference in Gateshead said it was too "uncool" for children to be children. Kay Johansson, a teacher from Denbighshire, north Wales, said "they seem afraid to play." A teacher at Rhyl High School said: "In the schoolyard where I used to see children playing games that would keep them fit, teach them social skills and stimulate their creativity I now see groups of children standing around discussing who has the most expensive pair of trainers or the latest mobile phone."

Mrs. Johansson has worked in the profession for nearly 40 years and said the children's values were frequently not their parents'. "All too often the values and attitudes of our children are the latest offering of the young male advertising executive who wants to make a large bonus by increasing the profits of his latest client. With their own peer groups as role models rather than responsible adults they are more likely to find out about the very things we should be protecting them from. The more and more that children gain access to this adult world the more they believe they are adult. This idea is happily reinforced by the type of companies that produce sexy undies and seductive party clothes for six-year-olds and cheeky ring-tones for their phones." She said none of this helped teachers do their jobs and children were being "robbed of their childhood".

Maxine Bradshaw, from Ysgol Llywelyn, also in Denbighshire, said there was no clear division between adulthood and childhood. "Too often children are treated as equals rather than minors," she told delegates. She told the conference about a poem written by a child in her class of eight and nine-year-olds. It read: 'Happiness is being able to pay the mortgage'. "Where was that child's right to a childhood, free from the dangers of adulthood?"

John Faulkner

/The Times, Dec 10, 2006/

PARENTS URGED TO TALK TO CHILDREN

Too much television and a lack of family meals are damaging children's conversational ability, a report says.

The Basic Skills Agency found many parents did not "see the point" of developing verbal skills, focusing instead on reading and writing. Some four-year-olds threw tantrums in class because they could not communicate in any other way. The BSA wants primary school teachers to work with families to improve children's conversation. Its report - Talk to Me - says verbal skills are declining "year on year". It says all-day television, parents' long working hours and the "decline of the family meal" are causes of poor communication. It also cites the "splintering" of families into different rooms in the house, with children as young as four watching TV alone in their bedrooms.

The increased use of forward-facing buggies means babies and toddlers have less chance to communicate with parents, the report adds. The "greatest impact" on children's verbal skills was among disadvantaged families.

The report backs US research conducted in the mid-1990s, which found that by the time they started school a child of professional parents had heard about 50 million words. For those of working-class background it was 30 million and for those with parents on income support it was 12 million.

BSA report author Sue Palmer found parents were "wary of schools interfering in their family life and resentful of any suggestion that they don't know what's best for their children".

The gap between homes and classrooms had increased since 1996, when a gunman killed 16 children and their teacher at a school in Dunblane. With greater security in place, primary schools had "struggled to remain the inviting, welcoming places they once were", Ms Palmerfound. Her report calls for head teachers to make more use of parent-helpers and to invite parents in more often. It says: "When it comes down to it, it's hope - not objectives, targets or evidence - that motivates people. Hope is what gives us the energy to make time to make connections, and we ignore its immeasurable importance adulthood."

John Faulkner

/ The Times, Dec. 10, 2006/

WHAT THE SCIENTISTS ARE SAYING…

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