With Prof. Andrews Sesuraj
In the previous issue of The Learned Talk, Prof Andrew Sesuraj elucidated upon the various forms of abuse and how to identify it. This concluding part of the interview with him speaks of how teachers should be sensitised and trained to treat children who are being abused.
How can a teacher approach a child who may be facing abuse and support them if it is so? What are the actions they can take to help the child?
There is the Right To Privacy. According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) it is stated that a child has the right to communicate only with those the child wants to. The most vital thing to establish this is by instilling confidence and trust in the teacher–student relationship beyond the classroom walls. A teacher should not approach such a child with stereotype responses but try to break down the borders by ensuring the child does not feel any guilt due to any incident which may revictimise the child. It is the responsibility of the teacher to make the child understand that they believe the child as they are and what they say. Again this is not a mandated responsibility, but a moral one because what a teacher does in a classroom influences the future of the child.
I trained the police department in various locations in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and as a part of my sessions I would usually ask various questions, most of them like who is the richest person in the world, who do you think is the most beautiful person in the world. Not many will know or answer these questions but there is always one question to which even a 55-year- old officer would respond and that is “What was the name of your fourth class teacher?“ They might have not seen again their teacher who taught them 45 years ago but they will be able to clearly recall them at that very moment. Beyond teaching numbers and letters, it is very important to build the confidence and personality of the children and that is the most important duty of teachers to our society, nation and generation. According to the Child Protection Act, once we create a generation which can open up, chances of abuse will come down. The main reason for a child not reporting any abuse is due to the fear of re-victimisation and denial of opportunities in life (such as being forced to drop out of school). So many times the child doesn’t reveal the abuse or the abuser and in this way the perpetrators win. The biggest weapon for such wrong-doers is the vulnerability of the child and hence they would continue to do so.
Teach them to say No
We must teach the child the power of the word ‘no’. While raising a child we always try to discipline them, force them to accept what the elders say, to act upon their words and never to go against them, not to criticise or complain about them and not to interfere in what the do. This gives ample scope for any wrong-doing to a child as, first, the child may not be aware that he/she is being abused and second, will be not allowed to talk/complain about elder. A classic example is the case of Anoushka, the daughter of Pandit Ravishankar, who opened up about the abuse she faced as a child, by a man her parents trusted.
When a child is not able to open up with his/her parents, it becomes a bigger violence and crime and this inevitably affects the child’s growth. We must teach a child to ‘never say yes when you want to say no’. And parents must ‘listen to the voice of the children’ without undermining a child’s capabilities and emotions.
I have been a social worker and trainer for the past 20 years and I have been a teacher at the college for the past six years. What I would say is my success is my ability to learn from children. That helped me to address various state- and country-level programmes and my openness and initiative I always get a response from children wherever I go. We must create a learning environment to give and gain openness and this can be done only by a teacher.
Teach them what matters
This is a changing paradigm, because when we talk of the concept of education it is not only about knowledge, it must be KSA – Knowledge, Skill and Attitude. However, due to the marks-oriented style of education the Government of India is forced to initiate something called Skill India due to lack of skill even after completing engineering or Ph.D.
When the proper skills and attitudes are not groomed, it’s a failure of education. This has made way for the rise of developed crimes and economic threats. We must teach children the life values and lessons without any stereotypes because each of us comes from a different ethos and because of generational change.
Schools must give physical and virtual support. That is, emotional support such as the teacher’s presence, openness, ability to communicate in a suitable way. Also, actions speak louder than words so a teacher’s behaviour matters. Schools must widen the platform for children to open up. Like when the school hosts any event, they can ask the children to speak out or express their feelings by writing or through art rather than doing the usual things like music and dance.
The school must provide a a suitable atmosphere to grow and to create a humane society rather than just a knowledge society. It can help to protect women, elders and the environment.
What are the skills teachers can develop to handle children being abused?
Once when I was training for school teachers one teacher said when a child failed in an exam, the management would ask him, the student was in your care for 200 days, if you had prepared him even for half a mark each day he would’ve scored well, what were you doing as a teacher?’
Today teachers are under great pressure from all sides. On one side, the parents are asking the child to prepare for NEET, FITJEE and the competitive world of such exams. On another, society is asking the teachers to prepare chil- dren to be better persons, not hit or scold a child… many times teachers are failing in main- taining a balance between these requirements.
It is the management’s role to take the necessary steps in supporting the teachers to overcome such issues. If something is wrong, a teacher must turn to the management and not against a child or a parent. This must be understood by the teachers and the school heads.
Apart from this we must create small systems like complaint or suggestions boxes for students; teachers can be made available at one particular time everyday in the school premises for the children to approach them for any purpose. And such time should be facilitated by the school as well under the term of ‘mentoring’ and not ‘counselling’ because counselling is a skill which can be done only by a professional. It should not be branded as anything else as it may single students out for discrimination by the other children. School managements should celebrate and promote teachers who make extra efforts to boost their morale and efficiency. This will motivate other teachers too.
What kind of abuse can a child face inside the classroom from other children or teachers? How can this be addressed?
Bullying is the major abuse that can happen within a classroom and among peers. It is something that does not get manifested because the children instantly change their behaviour once a teacher enters the class. Teachers must be aware of the things that happen within the classroom in their absence. Even in higher classes bullying happens. Teachers must be trained and ready to handle this. They should spread awareness of it and warn the students it will not be tolerated. It can manifest in various ways. A child who does well can bully an average or below average-scoring child, on the basis of social status, etc. A socially advantaged child has the duty to prevent it from happening to less advantaged children in the class.
It is important to treat all the children as equal and not make any biased comments. Neglect is a form of abuse and here in a classroom many a times a child might be neglected by their teachers.
I hope that many of us teachers would be able to relate to this: When we ask a question or ask a student to volunteer from the class, many a times we would choose those who can do it rather than give equal opportunity. A student may be really eager to participate but a teacher might choose only one or a few. This is a form of abuse as well. Avoiding or ignoring the interest of a particular child amongst his/her peers is a common event, but it is important to know that this is a form of abuse that the teacher can dish out to a child. It is important that the teacher is aware of their actions and words in the classroom.
A teacher makes only one lesson plan for the entire class. What’s needed is many, to fit the learning ability of each child as this ability differs from one to another. If a teacher can identify children with learning difficulties and formulate these plans at the beginning of the academic year, it would be more fruitful.
All that I have said is additional and not mandatory responsibility. But teaching is a vocation and not just a job, and this additional responsibility is indeed both the challenge and the blessing of a teacher.
