Find root cause of widespread cases of indiscipline in schools

Despite widespread condemnation of indiscipline in schools, more cases are being reported.

Unruly students have taken to indiscriminate torching of dormitories, oblivious pf the fact that the cost of rebuilding them will be passed on to their parents and guardians.

Besides, some teachers have fallen victim to acts of indiscipline after being assaulted by students. It is worrying that students now carry weapons to school to harm their teachers rather than pursue their quest for knowledge.

To continue to decry acts of hooliganisms by students without taking corrective measures is pointless. Time has come for decisive and deterrent action to be taken.

Abolition of boarding schools as some education stakeholders have suggested might not be the solution. The re-introduction of corporal punishment in schools may worsen the situation besides running counter to the Children's Act 2001 that protects children against all forms of abuse and violence, and through which corporal punishment in schools was abolished.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child 1990, to which Kenya is signatory, also abhors any form of discipline that involves violence. That does not, however, mean that we should sit back and fold our hands as leaners become increasingly unruly. Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha has proposed measures that can tame indiscipline if rigorously implemented.

For instance, when rogue students understand that no other school in Kenya can admit them after they have been expelled from another school, or that they will not secure certificates of good conduct in future, they will think before acting irresponsibly.

Many student offenders have been able to escape harsh punishment because the law categorises them as minors. However, the same law provides that those convicted of crime but are below the age of 18 years should be taken to Borstal institutions.

Where a student is found guilty of arson or assault on a teacher, such student should be treated in the manner prescribed by the law. When this is seen to be done, it will act as a deterrent.

Yet even as the government acts tough with unruly students, the need to identify the root causes of indiscipline cannot be over-emphasised.

Various reasons have been advanced, among them the use of drugs. Random tests on students will be able to establish the veracity of such claims, giving way for corrective action. We cannot continue to handle criminal students with kid gloves.