If there is a global list of ‘bullies’, Malaysian students may top it 08/06/2014 By V Shuman QUICK TAKE: It’s no secret that Malaysian students are not among the best when it comes to studies and general problem solving skills as recent global statistics have shown. However, our children could well top the list as “bullies” if recent videos of students beating up fellow students making their rounds online are any indication. Recently, a video depicting a secondary schoolgirl being beaten up by a number of her classmates went viral. The video was believed to have been taken at a school in Kota Samarahan, Sarawak. It showed a group of girls loitering near a staircase, taking selfies, before one of the girls was suddenly attacked by the others. The victim was kicked, her headscarf forcefully removed, pulled by the hair and dragged, all captured in the 77-second clip. Last year, there was another video showing a secondary schoolboy being beaten up by several classmates. There are several similar videos which had made the rounds in the Internet in the past few years. Remember, these are just some of the highlighted ones. Many other youngsters could also have suffered in silence at the hands of bullies. The latest incident made Deputy Education Minister Datuk P Kamalanthan vow to stop the recurrence of such cases. What is driving our youngsters to such acts of violence? What is more disturbing than the youngsters’ tendency to violence to the extent of beating up one of their own, is the fact that they find it “fun” to capture their unruly activities on the cameras or their mobile phones. This is made possible by the cheap availability of mobile phones with camera and video recording features on the market, and the “generous” pocket money given to children by parents today. What about the schools? Are they aware of such acts taking place under their roof? If yes, what is stopping them from taking action against these rogue youngsters? What about discipline teachers allocated to each school? Are they powerless to act against these students? Reports state that the schools involved in some of the highlighted cases did not report the incidents to the authorities out of fear of damage to their reputation. As it stands, our youngsters fare poorly compared to their counterparts in Asian countries. It was reported recently that Malaysia ended up in the bottom quarter among 44 countries in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) test on problem solving skills, conducted in 2012. The results indicated that only one out of 100 Malaysian students aged 15 is able to solve the most complex ones, compared with one in five in Singapore, South Korea and Japan. This is no good news as it indicates the path the young of the nation is headed too. The flaws in the country’s education system have been revealed and it is up to the ministry to buck up to ready the younger generation to take over tomorrow’s leadership. Parents should also play a role in combatting this bullying menace. Always be in the know of the company your kids are keeping. Constantly keep yourselves updated with your children’s performance and behaviour in class, with the school management. Ignoring these may come at the expense of your child becoming either a bully or a victim. Surely no parents want neither.
Posted on: Mon, 09 Jun 2014 15:06:52 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015