Devon Dick
RECENTLY, AN American judge, Michael Farley, declared that the 17-year-old student, David Young's vomiting on his Spanish teacher was an assault on the dignity of all teachers. What was the offence why this Johnson County Magistrate Judge made these insightful observations? It was Young's vomiting on his teacher. Though his attorney, Brian Costello, claimed that it was involuntary, other students testified to the contrary. The judge found that the vomiting was premeditated and he was convicted of battery. Part of his punishment was that the boy had to clean up after people who throw up in police vehicles. This appears to be appropriate action and punishment.
RESPECT OUR TEACHERS
Teachers are worthy of honour and respect. And if you can read this article then you need to thank a teacher and show respect to teachers. Anything disturbing that honour and respect should be repudiated. Jamaica has two issues that are assaulting the dignity of teachers, which might even, be worse than what happened in the United States.
Jamaica had a worse assault on the dignity of all teachers when students were guilty of spitting in a bottle of water and causing the teacher to drink it. Jamaica needs to follow the lead of the USA and at least, should make this an offence of battery. Hopefully, any judge would order offending students to clean up spittle for four months! Causing a teacher to drink another's spit is far worse that vomiting on a teacher. The former affects the internal and can cause serious infections while the latter affects the external.
LOST DIGNITY
The Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA), as it meets this week, needs to examine the assaults on the dignity of the profession. This assault on the dignity of teachers started a long time ago and it is getting worse. Talk - show host, Wilmot Perkins relates a story about 'Bruk-up', the political activist. He claims that there was a time when it was the principal, pastor and policeman who were well-respected in the community. It was one of these persons who could recommend you to advance educationally and to gain employment. Then things changed and 'Bruk-up' was the person with political connections and the contractor who determined if you got roadwork. The rise of the political activist led to the downfall of the professionals and the teaching profession, that historically did not pay well, has lost its one fringe benefit of respect. This blatant challenge to authority figure needs an unequivocal statement at this week's JTA conference.
In addition, there are some other factors that are eroding the dignity of the teaching profession, specifically, the poor performance of students in external examinations and the hackneyed excuses offered by the leaders within the teaching profession to explain the reality. The excuse of blaming the students is inadequate. A secondary level educational system that has children for five years and has so many institutions failing to get the students to pass at least four subjects, is very weak. In England some persons are berating the educational system because so many pupils are obtaining 'As' in their A-Levels!
SCHOOL ASSESSMENT
The leadership of schools needs to assess students and design programmes to help student in five years to perform at a minimum standard after seven years. In addition, instead of the teachers criticising the methodology used by educators in assessing schools, the JTA needs to provide information based on its assessment of the educational system. At its annual conference it should provide statistical information on the number of schools without roofs and adequate sanitary conditions. How many schools have laboratory facilitates? What is the pupil/teacher ratio and what should it be? What is the average attendance of students and teachers? How many teachers have improved on their qualifications in the last year? What is the turnover rate of teachers? What is the disciplinary record like? Is the teacher's salary a liveable one? Are teachers and schools achieving their targets and what are the weaknesses and strengths of the system?
All the best to the JTA at its annual conference and may respect and honour be restored to the teaching profession.
Devon Dick is pastor of the Boulevard Baptist Church and author of From Rebellion to Riot: the Church in Nation Building.
