Banning school visiting days call for more consultations

Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed announced the ban midweek while in the Head Teachers’ Conference in Mombasa, a decision that didn’t involve neither teachers nor parents. [Photo: Maarufu Mohamed, Standard]

The sudden ban on school visiting days following recent woes facing boarding schools could be a knee-jerk reaction to bigger problems in the education sector.

Education Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed announced the ban midweek, which could be yet another sign that those entrusted with the education system are groping in the dark for solutions.

Her decision, which involved neither teachers nor parents, made another statement on the wanting response from policy makers. The argument she made was that the visitation by parents disrupts the focus of the students.

How can a visit by a mother destruct a son's concentration in school? How would a visit by a concerned father disrupt the otherwise flawless learning going on in the institutions and unhinge a daughter from the important task of studying?

Such decisions need wide consultation with all stakeholders, the parents, teachers and most importantly the students themselves. We may be the parents, but the days of prescribing solutions for our children without actually talking to them about the problems we think they have, are long gone.

Dr Amina owes us, at the least, an explanation on how she arrived at the decision to ban such days and how she thinks this will contribute to the overall wellness of our children.

Telling parents to only see their children when they come home from school is almost ludicrous.

The CS should let parents be parents and work well within guidelines agreed upon by the school boards and Parents Teachers Association.

It is this top-down approach to current problems that has in the past led to eruption of the underlying issues bedeviling our education system for years.

The CS should not bury her head in the sand. She should confront the actual ills of the system and let the children and the parents be.

It is unthinkable that a highly ranked Government official can advocate for parents to be away from their children for three months. The children need love too. Let them have it, even if it is under strict supervision.