Hi, I'm Michael from the Philippines 15 years-old, username Parallel . This is my first formal article, after three days of researching, thinking, and writing in a scratch paper finally I finished it. 😄 I hope you will like it.
In the medieval age, chivalric codes have put society into peaceful harmony. However, as time passes and the code of conduct is forgotten, that is the day when Alonso Quixano left his village, under the name of "Don Quixote de la Mancha," to set on an adventure of bringing justice, undoing the wrongs, and reviving chivalry in the world.
Living in a contemporary world, the code of respect is no longer the privilege of many, rather a demand of any domi- nance to put everything under subordination. Policies. nowadays, are being imposed like fear of getting punished.
Case:
On August 17 Last year, Bicol Central Academy(BCA), a private school at Libmanan, Camarines Sur, had an event that required the senior high students to be in their business attire. As per instructed of the 'no-bag policy,' there were still belongings from students which were then confiscated and worst, torched down in the school quadrangle.
As seen on a viral video on social media, BCA school administrator Alexander James Jaucian was the one who initiated the bag burning. He even called out the students "stupid" for not following instructions.
This sparked an outrage from the netizens. Some Bicol youth groups even denounced the administration of the private school with a signature campaign of Manifesto of Unity.
Moreover, the case of BCA is just one of the manifestations of unkind culture in the education system of our country. It just shows that there's a poor observance of the Republic Act No. 7610 or "Special Protection of Child Against Abuse Exploitation and Discrimination Act."
Regardless of the Child Protection Policy, according to a study on violence against children in the Philippines conducted by the Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC) and the United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), 14.3 per cent of physical violence usually happened at school, while eight in 10 children and young people have experienced some form
"The truth is, young people may sometimes act as irrational. But what matters the most is that adults and authorities do not turn to irrational means when correcting their manners.
of violence in their lifetime at home.
Corporal punishment has become a method of discipline throughout generations. In contrast to Pavlov's Classical Conditioning, it signals to the child that a way to correct misbehavior is to inflict physical and non- physical forms of punishment.
According to UNICEF, corporal punishment is a common phenomenon in the daily life of South Asian children, for it is necessary to their upbringing to facilitate learning, and to instill the discipline.
However for what's deemed to be the purpose might be the root source of certain abuse. According to Dr. Donald Greydanus a Michigan State University professor of Pediatrics and Human Development, corporal punishment may lead to cases of mental illness. Such punishment also affects the academic performance of a child. increasing the tendency of school avoidance. school drop-out, and other evidence of negative high risk adolescent behavior.
As Dr. Greydanus stated, it encourages children to resort to violence, as they see their authority figures doing it. Thus, it just creates a vicious cycle of abuse.
Indeed, there's always a consequence in every choice we make. The students of Bicol Central Academy clearly violated a school policy, but then again, the incident could have ended calmly, if the school officials just evoked rationalization over pride.
If only the private school provided the students the right due process, for one of the stu- dents explained that many of them needed to bring bags as they did not live near the cam- pus, had classes in the afternoon, and also needed a wardrobe change.
No-bag policy is not really a new practice after all. In fact, the University of Arizona has re- instituted this policy since January 2018 as a safety measure that prevents theft and reduces the risk of accidental or intentional harm to students and visitors of the campus.
For safety measures, it is a must to uphold protocols inside a campus. But to prohibit com- mon tools for necessities, a policy shouldn't disrupt any law that protects the rights of the people. Hence, there are still alternatives to maintain the safekeeping like maximizing the civil security or simply by bag checking.
Besides, any kind of corporal punishment is violence against children. As human beings, children should also be respected, as they also deserve the right to dignity and bodily integrity.
Instead of punishing their behavior, why don't we show them the right way? By teaching them how to think, instead of what to think.
The truth is, young people may sometimes act as irrational. But what matters the most is that adults and authorities do not turn to irrational means when correcting their manners.
When everything is going wrong and corrupted, the hope lies on the youth as future change agents like Don Quixote. For that, it's the role of the school to nurture and equip them with the most powerful weapon o change the world: education.
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Wow! What a work. You're just 15 years old and you wrote such kind of article? 😳🤓😮 I really amazed by your efforts and work. Continue writing @Parallel this kind of article and efforts must be rewarded by Read.Cash and up voters. 😮 Just wow for a Filipino 15 years-old.