Look at the bigger picture
I think that if you ask all of our parents whether they got a ‘clip’ at school, they would say yes; and looking back at it, they would say ‘it was probably deserved’. It used to be a way of teaching respect and discipline, something that is sorely missing amongst today’s youth. By no means am I condoning this teacher’s behaviour as times have moved on, but I think we should all look at the bigger picture. How are teachers supposed to discipline unruly and disruptive children these days when even escorting a child out of the room can be considered a reason for dismissal. Imagine a class of more than 20 disruptive 14-year-old boys and ask yourself how you think you’d handle this?
From Ms Lira Carroll
Dubai
My experience as a teacher
In my own experience of being a teacher, I make sure I am equipped every day with self-control, a calm mood, a high level of tolerance, poise, heart and power. All of these characteristics are hard to possess if the students provoke and aggravate me and try to get under my skin. It is hard to believe that you can still maintain your poise, but what I did is come out of the room, call for someone to take over and walk to the canteen or go to the faculty room. After 10 minutes, I would come back again equipped with the same characteristics as the beginning of the day.
From Ms Corazon Tarcena
UAE
Hitting is unacceptable
Hitting your students is totally unacceptable. The teacher is a role model for students. We all know there are non-violent and educative ways to discipline children. The teacher needs to have psychological and emphatic skills to deal with the children, not just the subject knowledge.
From Mr Gash M.
Al Ain
What to do if they misbehave?
The cases need to be investigated properly. Sometimes, students are out of control and difficult towards the teacher. If the students are misbehaving with their teachers and teasing them, then what do the educators do?
From Mr Hajat Ali
Dubai
Find other ways to punish
There are other and more effective ways of punishing students rather than beating them up. If I was the father of this student, I would be very upset. Good teachers are a guide for society. But, not all teachers are good.
From Mr Jon Rossing
Seoul, South Korea
Stand up
I agree. If children are misbehaving or not listening to the teacher, they can be punished by making them stand outside or so. But, hitting is not the solution.
From Ms Aaliya S. Q.
Dubai
Not acceptable
I don’t think that it is ever right to hit a child.
From Ms Anna-Karin Marquard
UAE
Put yourself in their shoes
I believe that punishment is alright, but it depends on how you administer it. Sometimes I believe you need to put yourself in the shoes of those teachers to know what they go through when dealing with unruly students. This era of smartphones is a trying moment for teachers who have to deal with children who are chatting or spending time on social media while in class.
From Mr Mukimbiri Kabanda Edson
UAE
Unhappy with the videos
Teachers can discipline their students, but should not hit them badly. I was so sad and disgusted after watching the video.
From Ms Racquel
UAE
No justification
The video is highly disturbing to watch. It is sad to witness the teacher behaving violently and beating the student repeatedly on his head. Corporal punishment is in no way justifiable. The use of force and violence against pupils and teachers abusing their authority should not be tolerated under any circumstances. Teaching is a noble profession and those serving in the role must learn to maintain their calm and patience rather than to vent their anger on helpless children. The teacher shown in the video must be reprimanded.
From Ms Fatima Suhail
Sharjah
Comparing it to the past
If we, the 1980s children, compare this with our childhood, we as children were given worse beatings in school, with slim bamboo sticks, rulers and dusters and slaps were so common. And parents were alright with it. In the past, parents considered those beatings to be good for disciplining us. But people react to the beatings so differently nowadays. I would say in our school days the teachers had the freedom to take out their anger on us if we misbehaved or if we were indisciplined.
From Mr Fakhri Lokhandwala
UAE
Not suitable to be a teacher
The latest video was disgusting! Teacher or not, he has no right to punish the boy in this manner. It shows that he isn’t suitable to be a teacher because he has to resort to so much violence. Shame on him.
From Ms Sarah Ahmad
Doha, Qatar
Install cameras in classrooms
In the latest video, the teacher is beating the boy so badly. The way he hits him on the head, anything can go wrong and the child could get severely injured. It seems like he isn’t aware of his own strength and the child’s capacity. The teacher needs to be punished. Additionally, I think that CCTV cameras should be installed in all classrooms. And the authorities should keep an eye on all teachers and take action against those who do wrong.
From Ms Aarti Vyas
Mumbai, India
Hitting at home
When children are subjected to hitting at home, then they only listen to teachers when they are hit.
From Mr Syed Shams
UAE
Crossing the limits
Parents send their children to school with the trust that they are in good hands. Such behaviour from teachers is highly unacceptable. Children can be disobedient, they are children after all. But such reaction from adults, especially teachers is crossing the limits of safety and responsibility. Maybe proper training is needed here.
From Ms Shereefa Fatima
UAE
Do they have no rights?
Does the teacher have no rights to punish students? If not, then how can a teacher discipline his or her students?
From Ms Shyma Nashrin
UAE
Should know better
All teachers study how to teach and they study children’s psychology. So they should know better how to deal with various behaviours. And if they haven’t studied any of that, they are not good teachers then.
From Ms Marina Bhandari
Dubai
Two sides to a story
We should hear the teacher’s side of the story, too, before making any judgments or taking any action. Children these days are difficult to manage.
From Mr Noor Ahmad
UAE
Editors’ note: Is there a debate topic that you feel strongly about? Something that you would like to see discussed in the community? Email us on readers@ gulfnews.com. You can also post a comment on our Facebook page or tweet us @GNReaders.
