Flog or Not to Flog : A function of the learners' socioeconomic background

                                                                   Flog or Not to Flog

A function of the learners' socioeconomic background

I particularly find this subject very interesting because it is one that provokes so many emotions, for me, one of these emotions includes confusion.

In Nigeria for example, there are three divides, let's call them body of thoughts for lack of a better word.

The first believe that children if left to their devices, will over time become wayward and disrespectful if not cautioned properly and that cautioning involves using the cane and in the Bible parlance "the rod".

The second group believes that children are innately wise and can find their own ways through life with as little as a guide and all that needs to be done is find ways to reinforce behaviors both positive and negative, these reinforcement mostly should not be about the cane.

Pupils of Emmanuel Anglican primary school 1 Italupe, Ijebu-ode

Then there are people who are in the middle, they believe that children need other means of caution rather than just the cane but they do not "spare the rod" they use the cane every now and then.

I have worked in a private school where teachers weren't allowed to flog the pupils, but I noticed that at that point I had learners who were coming from affluent families and at most middle-class homes and mostly have their basic needs met, I noticed that I never had the need to use a cane, ever! but as I go down the socio-economic ladder I have noticed that the urge to look for a cane becomes more and more tempting.

I guess that's something we'll need to dig deeper about.

After teaching in the high-brow school, I taught part-time in another private school but this time the pupils were mostly from poor backgrounds. When I came in, I was the only teacher who didn't use the cane and most of the other teachers advise me to at least hold the cane but at first, I didn't see the need until when I'll shout my voice off before they get to listen because they are just ignoring the fact that there's a teacher in class, some pupils will just try to say something funny when you're teaching or try to walk out without permission keep speaking when you're trying to say something. After a few weeks of almost losing my voice, my calm and my patience I looked for a good cane that followed me to class every day.

Now working in an under-served community where the economic situation is at ground level and most of the learners who attend the school are only attending school because it is a free public school without which they'll most likely not have a chance at education at all.

As a Teach for Nigeria fellow, the rule is for us not to flog but I promise you, for all the fellows I have had conversations with, it only took them a few months before they had to find a cane. Here, I found it almost impossible to not use a cane. Personally, it's so bad that there are weeks I decide from home that I'll go back to not flogging, and then when I get to school I try to put certain measures in place, I try to reward and punish in other ways but at the end of the day, I end up being frustrated, wasting precious learning time and letting some children get away with some awful behavior because I didn't have enough time to punish them and still have a full productive class.

Pupils watching learning using a piece of technology

The government teachers in the school do not hesitate to use the cane, in fact, I'll say they use it pretty well. One thing I have noticed is that when they are around, the children don't make noise, they put themselves together, they don't walk out without permission, they are usually in their best behavior but when there's a fellow in class it's almost like the opposite, they'll yell, shout, stand up, sit down, walk around in class when you're in front teaching, even when you warn them many times and even punish them.

Though we use the cane, we try to use it in moderation because we love the fact that the children can come to us freely with their issues and confide in us and see us as friendly enough to interact the way they should. But sometimes I envy the government teachers and the kind of respect they command from the children though sometimes it’s more of fear than respect but you should see a class with a government teacher in it...you could hear when a pin drops, you know why? They know they'll cry if they as much as move in a certain way when class is going on.

In my class, I have to call their names, when I see their attention is dwindling, I try to use videos to keep them alert and interested, sometimes I use my phone or tablet to get them excited and calm but it still doesn't take long before they are back to default setting of noise making and then I start to struggle to shout above their noises or use call and responses. After losing my voice many times, I decided to find a cane, as soon as I did, I didn't even have to use it as much as I expected but I had peace and calm in the class.

Sometimes I ask myself if the children have been mentally positioned to respond to the cane than anything else, that again is something to ponder about.

There's so much to write about as regards this topic so I guess, we'll write more as we gain more clarity, until then, it's time for work, drop a comment, I need to know what you think about the subject, bye!