THE ENEMY WITHIN OUR SCHOOLS

Jan 23, 2015 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

Guyanese simply outdo themselves. Take this guy who reportedly went into a school to try to rob the children of their cellular phones. Which person you know goes into a school to commit a robbery? A school is simply not the place for a robbery. There is no escaping from schoolchildren, as many a crook in Guyana has painfully found out.
The most foolish thing a crook could do is to commit a robbery around 3 o’clock in the afternoon when school is out. Once the robbery is spotted by schoolchildren, the fate of the crook is sealed. He can run all he wants. The children are going to run after him. You cannot outrun a bunch of schoolchildren. They are not going to stop until they have you cornered.
Have you ever seen a robber being pursued by schoolchildren? There is no escape from them. They will chase after you in droves and the faster you run, the faster they will follow. They do not tire. So, do not believe that your supposed superior fitness will prevail.
A robber can hide all he wants. He can dart in and out of alleyways. That is not going to save him from the schoolchildren. They will see wherever he goes. You cannot get past them and you cannot hide from them. There is no way out.
So tell me, why would anyone decide of all places to go and rob schoolchildren in their classroom? Makes no sense to me! That is the easiest way to end up in jail.
Recently, there was a report about an alleged impersonator going into a school and demanding the cellular phones of the first- formers. How much more dumb can anyone be than to attempt something like this? This guy, if it is true, needs to be in a special classroom. He needs an education, because it is basic common sense that you cannot escape a group of schoolchildren.
The reports in the media suggested that the incident was bound to raise questions about security at that particular school. Does it?
Years ago there was a problem when a gang went into a school to beat up on one child. That is something that needs to be guarded against in the future. There is equally a need to guard against mentally-ill persons going into schools and harming children. But any petty robber who believes he can go into a classroom and rob a group of children is looking to end up in jail. He will not succeed. Lone robbers going into schools to rob children are looking for trouble.
The real worry should not be about these lone rangers. The real worry should be about bullies in school taking away the possessions of younger children. The real worry is about gangs being formed in schools. The real worry is about children taking weapons into schools. The real worry is about the deviants who are in school and want to attack teachers. This is the real worry.
There was a time back in the day when a teacher would enter the classroom and ask everyone to stand up. The teacher would then go through each child’s pockets, bag and desk looking for items that were prohibited by the school’s rules.
In those days you may have found a boy with a penknife and that would be taken away and the boy’s parents called. This was as bad as it got. For the girls, there may have been the occasional item that was not really supposed to be had by schoolgirls. Their parents would be sent for also, to find out if they knew what was going on with the child.
Guyana needs to return to the days when teachers could assert their authority in searching the possessions of children to ensure that no penknives, ice picks or other dangerous items are taken to school.
These days the teachers are spending too much time worrying about children carrying portable game consoles and other electronic devices to school. They are being forced to enforce rules about cellular phone use, and therefore what is happening is the spot checks that should be conducted for things such as alcohol, dangerous instruments and weapons are being neglected.
This past week’s incident should not lead to an obsession with turning school into a drill camp. It should not also lead to an obsession with security. What is needed is for teachers to be given the support to keep the children in line.
Our schools are pretty safe from outsiders. It is those within that are the source of worry.

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THE ENEMY WITHIN OUR SCHOOLS

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