Seeking new ways of enforcing discipline

By Phares Mutembei

When corporal punishment in schools was banned on March 13, 2001, ardent discipline masters castigated the move in view of rampant indiscipline in schools.

Some begrudgingly stopped caning, but most teachers ignored the Ministry of Education directive to stop caning.

“We were left with no befitting alternative to curb indiscipline and some of us still whip students. It is our mandate to maintain discipline,” says a primary school teacher.

Cases of students sustaining serious injuries have been reported not to forget some fatalities.

The jury is still out on whether the ban on caning has positively worked to produce responsible students. In the UK, teachers say pupil behaviour is worse since abolition of caning 25 years ago.

Successive governments have failed to introduce an effective way to deal with misbehaviour since striking pupils with a cane or slipper was outlawed in 1987, the annual conference of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers was told recently.

According The Guardian, teachers said detentions fail to deter pupils, while exclusions and suspensions are only handed out in the most serious cases because inspectors take a dim view of schools that suspend students.

Weak methods

“The forms of discipline currently available to teachers for dealing with inappropriate behaviour remain totally inadequate,” Julian Perfect, a London teacher told a teacher’s conference.

 “The ban was a badly thought idea. Indiscipline in schools is at worrying proportion because the Government made it illegal for teachers to stem it through the rod,” says a teacher in Nairobi.

 Teachers and parents are yet to agree whether caning achieves the desired effect.

At Linet Academy in Kasarani, parents, teachers and student have resorted to holding dialogue on emerging issues at school and at home.

The meetings empower students to openly raise issues as teachers and parents assess the student’s progress. The interaction, says Mary Ann Ng’ang’a, a teacher in the school is working. Cases of indiscipline have gone down significantly coupled with good academic performance.

“I believe in what the Bible says about correcting a child. I am a disciplinarian by nature. But at the same time, there is a strong distinction between correction and beating a student,” says Ng’ang’a.

“Beating a student is abusive and can instil fear in a child and affect learning. We do not cane our pupils. The interaction helps students ask questions and we talk about performance and other matters,” she says.

Role of parents

That does not mean students found on the wrong side of the law get away with it.

 “We counsel them about their mistakes. In case a student has not done home work, they are kept in a separate room to complete it.”

However, she insists discipline has to start from home. “Parents should know their role. If they do their bit it would be easier for teachers to concentrate on educating the child. House-girls do the duty and beat children because parents have failed,” she says.

“We allow parents to walk in anytime to address issues about their children. When teachers have that information, they know which buttons to press and understand their students,” she states.

Education Permanent Secretary James ole Kiyiapi is strongly against corporal punishment.

“Caning is not allowed under any circumstances. You don’t have to cane because there are other ways of achieving discipline,” said Prof Kiyiapi.

Plan Kenya, a non-governmental organisation has initiated the Learn Without Fear global campaign against corporal punishment. It seeks to impart teachers with skills of using positive behaviour reinforcement through better communication.

“We are sensitising teachers on the negative impact of corporal punishment and the benefits of the supportive discipline methods,” says Plan Kenya’s Florence Kinyua.

The campaign has received pockets of resistance as a deterrent measure to curb runaway indiscipline in schools. Plan International’s report on corporal punishment says supporters of corporal punishment defend it in the name of tradition and sometimes religion.

It says when Kenya scrapped school fees in 2003 the class size tripled and with it came a big challenge to maintain discipline.

“Corporal punishment inflicts pain and can cause psychological trauma. It is important for us to know the difference between discipline and punishment. We advocate for discipline but we are strongly against corporal punishment,” adds Kinyua.

Creating awareness

“We still have children who are deviant, indication that corporal punishment isn’t working. We are creating awareness on teachers and parents with a view to promote the safety of the children in school. Caning is still widespread and there is an urgent need to put in place child-friendly and positive forms of disciplining them,” says Kinyua.

Antony Mureithi, a parent, says: “It’s wrong to cane children. The children will not learn in peace. Even at home I don’t cane my children. I just deny them some privileges and that has worked fine.”

But Thiaya Maina disagrees: “I value the cane to motivate discipline. Wayward children should be whipped with an appropriate instrument, such as a fine leather belt. As long as it’s on the buttock it is okay. I cane my children and they understand that if they fail in their duties they have to be caned,” says Thiaya.

A poll of 814 teachers, conducted  in UK and published last week, found a third of teachers had been hit or kicked by a student in the last academic year.