Corpun file 5962

The Star, Kuala Lumpur, 16 July 2000

Delinquency

Punishment is effective, show research findings

By Simrit Kaur SET limits, don't be afraid to punish errant students -- these are some of the findings, in a nutshell, of several studies conducted on discipline-related issues in school. They indicate that students should be punished without fear or favour if indiscipline is to be kept in check. Parameters must be set on acceptable behaviour so that schoolchildren know what they can do and what they can't get away with. While schools used to be synonymous with discipline and obeying rules, the same cannot be said today. Press reports over the years have highlighted how sophisticated and frequent acts of delinquency have become. Vandalism, truancy, fighting, stealing, and arson are just some of the unacceptable behaviours being exhibited by Malaysian students, even at primary school level.

Firm in punishment
While schools in general are suffering from an image problem, thanks to serious crimes like the stabbing of a seven-year-old in an extortion bid by two school boys, a study by Abdullah Hassan on Discipline Violations in Two Secondary Schools in the Federal Territory (1999) showed that students and teachers viewed discipline violations as "under control and not that serious". Abdullah found that the successful formula in curbing indiscipline was by being firm in imposing punishment without fear or favour. Any transgressions committed should be reported without harbouring the guilty party. Auxiliary powers to discipline teachers should be expedited and provisions in the 1947 Juvenile Courts Act (1947) which had a section revised in 1972. The Act states that the court may order parents to execute a bond upon their child being found guilty, in effect making parents responsible for their child's actions. The two schools were selected for the study because they had a high incidence of truancy and student expulsion.

Based on a survey sample of 220 students, Abdullah found that 17.5% of them were repeat offenders while 70% had violated rules but had never been caught. Of the remaining 30% that had been caught, 12.5% were caned, 10% had their names noted down in the discipline book while 2.5% each had been let off with a warning, been given advice or had their guardian called to school. The three most common offences committed by students were coming to school late, playing truant and leaving school/class without permission. Among the reasons given by students for coming late included getting up late, the bus was late, no bus, traffic jam, did it deliberately, lazy, slept late, and no interest in studies. Those who played truant cited these reasons: lazy to wake up, didn't finish schoolwork, found school boring, health problems, teachers practised favouritism, found the teacher boring, and weren't interested in certain subjects. [...]

Too comfortable for good

According to another study, the school ethos plays an important role in moulding disciplined students. Wong Chong Peng's research on School Ecology and its Contribution Towards Student Indiscipline (1993) showed that a number of undesirable behaviours were predisposed by factors in the school environment. They included the processes and procedures within the school, the quality of teaching and the curriculum. Wong's study, which was carried out in an all-boys secondary school in Negri Sembilan, painted a worrying picture of what can happen when the school becomes too comfortable and accommodating to students' bad behaviour. The school administration did not believe in corporal punishment. Nor did it practise sending students out of the class. It did not have a detention class either. Students who misbehaved were given a pep talk by the principal or told to pick up rubbish -- providing them a good excuse to leave class. A school needs to have a clear code of behaviour and set of values to guide it. Students need structure in terms of a clear set of rules to follow and should be punished when they violate them. This is especially important as many children are being spoilt by overindulgent parents who don't lay down the law at home. Wong's study showed poor attendance records, ranging from as high as 96% for Lower Six students and 64% Form Three.

One student had been absent for 90 out of 191 schooldays but teachers could also not strike out a student's name from the register from being absent, which gave the student no reason to change his behaviour. Generally, the researcher found the discipline level of the school to be unsatisfactory and the general upkeep of the school poor. "Some doors were missing and almost all the classroom doors could not be locked or closed properly. "Broken desks and chairs took a long time to be replaced as the schools didn't have the funds because of its partially-aided status." There was also poor enforcement of rules and regulations, thus students faced a conflict in deciding what was appropriate and what inappropriate. "Because of this non-threatening and accommodating environment, there was no reason for students to change or adjust their behaviour in school." Students who conformed were disillusioned and lost faith in the system because deviant students got away with it. "Students prefer a system of control where rewards and sanctions are well-defined and when action is taken when a tangible violation is committed," said Wong. Wong also classified teachers in the school into post merdeka and pre merdeka. Pre-merdeka teachers tended to be more firm with students and expected a certain mode of behaviour from them. The younger group, however, were only intent on teaching and had a take it or leave it attitude to indiscipline such as students talking in the classroom or misbehaving. They also tended to be friendlier and less autocratic and authoritarian compared to the older and more experienced teachers. Although most of the studies quoted are small-scale ones and the results cannot be generalised, they do provide an insight of what is happening in schools. The Education Ministry is on the right track by releasing a study recently on gangsterism in day schools, but a more wide-scale and in-depth study on discipline as a whole is needed before any measures are implemented.

Sarawak Tribune, Kuching, 19 July 2000

The days of the cane

Today, this question has been raised - to cane or not to cane? While the debate on the issue is raging, it is may be useful to remember the old adage - spare the rod and spoil the child. By Gabriel Tan Caning - as a form of corrective punishment on naughty students - was once a great deterrent. It also served as a lesson to other students not to break school rules and regulations. In the old days, it was common to see a teacher enter the classroom with a cane and textbooks under his arm. Indeed, the students paid more attention to the cane than the teacher as he marched in! The caning of students goes way back to the days when mission schools - both Roman Catholic and Anglican or Society for the Propagation of Faith (SPG) - were first established in Kuching. Even up to the 1950s, caning was still carried out. When this form of student discipline was a sort of order of the day, there were no protests from wealthy parents or those holding high office. In fact, the students themselves were terrified of having to go through the ordeal of caning ... usually on the buttock. They even tried to hide the punishment from their parents. Parents then, I reckon, were only too pleased to know that a good dose of discipline had been meted out to their naughty offspring. During those days, parents themselves were extremely strict with their children. So discipline in school and at home had done a world of good to almost everybody. For fighting or quarreling in school, especially during recess, those involved would be punished with six strokes of the rattan each. And if they repeated the offence, the number of strokes could be increased. Before the punishment was carried out, the offenders would be given a serious talking-to by the school principal or headmaster. This lecture alone usually had a lasting effect. Most students punished did not commit further mischief. There were some chronic repeat offenders and they usually got expelled from school. Expulsion was a severe form of punishment. There were even cases of incorrigible students who went from school to school and finally dropped out. Many who had been caned would vouch that it was no joke and would feel embarrassed and humiliated by the punishment. The whole school would know who had been caned. And those so punished would testify to this day that it was really painful when they had to sit down! Some students, who knew beforehand they would be shown the rattan, tried to minimise the pain with a few tricks of their own. They would put on an extra pair of pants to "absorb the shock." But the experienced principal was seldom fooled and the student would be told to remove that extra pants. There were even cases of students trying to protect their buttock by placing an exercise book inside the back of their pants to act as a shield. The trick often failed and the book would be moved. This act of trying to lessen the pain usually ended up with an extra stroke being given. The student would be asked to let down his pants before the caning was administered. Another form of caning in the classroom was done on an outstretched right-hand palm or both right and left. It could be five strokes on the right hand and five on the left. And the pain? Well, a student, so punished, would usually be seen grimacing even before the cane touched his hand! The marks left by the rattan either on the buttock or the palm could be clearly seen. The impressions left on the buttock could sometimes be still visible three days later. Caning was also given if a student failed to do his homework or fared badly in arithmetic or English grammar. In those days, only three main subjects were taught in mission schools - English (including reading and grammar); arithmetic and geography. For throwing a sweet wrapper, a student could also be given the rattan. Uttering a foul word, cheating, stealing, making vulgar signs, turning up late and telling a lie could all result in caning.

Many senior citizens could still recall the days of the cane and the teachers who did the caning. Some teachers who used the cane to exert their authority were given all sorts of nicknames by the students. Punishment in the classroom also took other forms. One was to make a student stand in a corner or on a bench. Another involved writing 100 or 150 lines of "I shall not lie again" or "I will not steal anymore." This was a costly affair as a whole exercise book could be used up. And most parents were rather poor in the old days. Caning was obviously well appreciated by parents then. There were no known cases of parents marching up to the school to protest or even making threats. Time has changed. Today, this question has been raised - to cane or not to cane? While the debate on this issue is raging, it is may be useful to remember the old adage - Spare the rod and spoil the child.

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Corpun file 5941

The Star, Kuala Lumpur, 11 July 2000 Metro KL

Police: Caning won't solve disciplinary problems

RESORTING to caning in schools as suggested by many will not necessarily solve disciplinary problems among children, according to KL police chief Datuk Kamarudin Ali. The use of the cane would result in negative consequences such as the burning of schools by students angry over corporal punishment meted out to them, he said. "Police investigations into cases of theft, damage to school property and the burning of schools showed such actions represent students' retaliation against the school authorities," he said. "One must weigh the consequences before resorting to the cane as it may have negative effects," he told reporters after attending celebrations marking the first anniversary of the formation of Crime Prevention Clubs in schools in the Brickfields District in Kuala Lumpur. In this modern age, school managements should opt for counselling -understanding the problems students face and trying to overcome them, he said. Kamarudin said police were ready to help schools organise talks and anti-crime exhibitions as well as study tours to police stations. On the fire at the teachers room of the SM Taman Tun Dr Ismail on June 24, Kamarudin said five students who could be responsible for the incident had been identified. He said investigations were still in progress.
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Discipline Developing proper classroom discipline Some teachers and parents claim that corporal punishment makes it easier for teachers to manage their classrooms. However there is little evidence that caning or beating are as effective as many people believe. According to experts in the field, "there is considerable data indicating that corporal punishment does not, in any consistent way, deter misbehaviour or encourage good behaviour on the part of children. Most experts agree that corporal punishment does nothing to fulfil the disciplinary goal of developing a childs conscience so as to enable him or her to behave well" Hitting children is also a dangerous practice, which can cause physical and psychological injury. It inhibits positive child development and positive forms of discipline. Children are holders of human rights. The Convention on the Rights of the Child requires everyone, in article 19, to protect children from "all forms of physical and mental violence" while in the care of parents and others. Teachers should impose non-physical disciplinary measures as an alternative to beatings or canings. Teachers can require students to write a statement describing the negative effects of their behaviour, or to apologize for the mistake in front of their classmates. The misbehaving child could sit on a chair or a mat at the back of the room and think about their mistake and of ways to improve their behaviour. You can ask the child to perform additional academic work. You can require the student to bring his or her parents to school to talk about poor behaviour. You can also discipline a child by assigning non-abusive physical tasks. You can ask students to perform light chores, to water or weed a school garden, or to fix what they have broken: "Learners who build chairs are not apt to break them. Learners who wash walls are not apt to make them dirty on purpose. If learners are reinforced for keeping their schoolyard neat and clean, they are less likely to throw trash on it," according to the Namibian Ministry of Education and Culture. Such punishments should be administered in a thoughtful and not in an excessive or exploitative manner. Every time you become upset by a student, you must remember a simple message: the goal of our actions must, first of all, not be punitive or to enforce our sense of discipline. Rather, it must be to help children to learn self-discipline and the rules of our society and the expectations and values of the culture. Children learn respect by being respected. US studies show a correlation between higher rates of corporal punishment and higher rate of violence. Studies show that significantly more

children who were physically punished engaged in both violent crime and property crime. One reason is that an ability to learn self-discipline requires self-respect. Self-respect comes when children feel loved and appreciated. Adults can think about how we can create childfriendly homes; learn to communicate their feelings to children; develop routines that reduce their need to nag; be honest and encouraging with children; help schools develop new approaches to conflict resolution (source: Kaufman, M. (2000) The issue of physical punishment and ending violence in our homes and communities, UNICEF). Setting Rules and Expectations Disciplinary measures will be more effective if you make clear your expectations as a teacher at the beginning of the term. If the students know the rules in advance, then there are no surprises when the teacher penalizes those who break them. Students are more likely to perceive the punishment as just, to maintain their respect for the teacher, and to obey the guidelines if the regulations are made explicit than if not. Furthermore, student acceptance of the rules will increase if pupils participate in setting guidelines for the classroom. The process of establishing guidelines will give them a greater understanding of the reasons for the regulations, and they will see themselves as having a stake in their enforcement.
http://www.unicef.org/teachers/protection/violence.htm