Ethics, fundamentalist teachers, and just punishments - Page 2 - Ajarn Forum

WhatsGrammar? · 9th May 2008, 12:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by naboo

From what I can gather, you had a student choking the chicken, bashing the bishop, whatever, over some website in your classroom and all you wanted to do was give him a lecture and make a joke of it? Correct me if I'm wrong on this, but if that was the case, the punishment needed to be a lot more harsh than you intended and good on the other teacher!

Huh? Did the OP say that this is what the student was doing?

Reading between the lines I would have to hazard an EDUCATED guess and say that the student ignored specific instructions on what to peruse or work on and was doing HIS OWN THING. Looking at other sites or playing games maybe.

As for the OP apologising, I would forget that IMHO. Its done with now.......let it go and continue.

jonny danger · 9th May 2008, 13:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by robitusson

If the system is such that white skin and being a "Farang" are more important than being a trained, professional teacher, then whatever baggage people bring to the classroom is only to be expected, and the responsibility rests with the school admin.

You might think the responcibility rests with them but they don't. To them it's something closer to bad luck.

Chan Gibbon · 9th May 2008, 14:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by naboo

From what I can gather, you had a student choking the chicken, bashing the bishop, whatever, over some website in your classroom and all you wanted to do was give him a lecture and make a joke of it? Correct me if I'm wrong on this, but if that was the case, the punishment needed to be a lot more harsh than you intended and good on the other teacher!

Ha! No, nothing like that! Jesus! He was just checking out his favourite metal site and chatting on MSN messenger directly after having been told not to do either.

Quote:

Originally Posted by naboo

I hate it, but unfortunately there's no law to keep nutters, sorry, religious folk out of the classroom influencing kids.

Hehe. We're not all nutters, mate, but I hear what you're saying.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Umbuku

About that punishment you received last month. I'm sorry about that. I didn't know the homeroom teacher would take it further

Seems straightforward enough!! I'm thinking of roping a Thai/English speaking teacher into this so that I know I've got my point across.

Quote:

Originally Posted by WhatsGrammar?

As for the OP apologising, I would forget that IMHO. Its done with now.......let it go and continue.

Duly noted, I've been thinking that he might feel slightly weirded out if approached about this a few weeks later! Not always easy to know when you've made a mountain out of a mole hill. Today I shall make my mind up.

russellsimpson · 9th May 2008, 14:28

Quote:

If so, how does one go about doing so? People very frequently run into their past teachers a few years down the line; if I can, I'd rather like this child to remember that he was given due care and consideration.

What would you be apologizing for?

Personally I'd let it go.

Shit happens in life, so the kid's getting an early lesson that shit happens. No real harm done IMO. Good luck.

Guy Mandude · 9th May 2008, 14:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chan Gibbon

If one is aware that a child has suffered a punishment that far exceeded what he/she deserved at the time, should one not apoligise? If so, how does one go about doing so? People very frequently run into their past teachers a few years down the line; if I can, I'd rather like this child to remember that he was given due care and consideration.

Don't think so much. You are new to Thailand, aren't you?

WilliamBlake · 9th May 2008, 14:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by chuck_s

I ended up calling a sadist.

Who ya gonna call?

(I can't hear you!)

Chan Gibbon · 9th May 2008, 15:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guy Mandude

Don't think so much. You are new to Thailand, aren't you?

At just under three months of living here, I'm afraid so.

Guy Mandude · 9th May 2008, 15:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chan Gibbon

At just under three months of living here, I'm afraid so.

Thai teachers deal with student discipline issues differently than you or I.

Chan Gibbon · 9th May 2008, 15:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guy Mandude

Thai teachers deal with student discipline issues differently than you or I.

True. That doesn't always make them right though. The students are overworked as it is; they're given most of their lessons in both English and Thai. With harsh punishments for minor misdemeanors on top, I doubt that there are that many students capable of avoiding punishment at some point, regardless of their culture (which, when dealing with rich families, seems hardly different from that of the UK, at times).

Guy Mandude · 9th May 2008, 16:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chan Gibbon

True. That doesn't always make them right though.

If a Thai teacher disciplines a Thai student in Thailand, they're right (automatically).

Chan Gibbon · 9th May 2008, 20:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guy Mandude

If a Thai teacher disciplines a Thai student in Thailand, they're right (automatically).

With respect, I disagree.

When we were beaten in Portugal by Portuguese teachers, the teachers were frequently wrong to do so (Professor Amando developed a bit of a nasty taste for it, too...), (... on a sidenote: my mother was a teacher there so I never got touched! Funny that!). When my older English friends talk about the days when they were beaten in England with canes, that was very frequently wrong (I know one old man who still finds his unprosperous roots hard to talk about). And I believe that the same goes for Thai students in relation to their teachers - no teacher should be deemed infallible.

If punishments are too severe and too frequently dealt then an adult might crush a child's spirit (and I don't mean this in a religious sense). I did once know a child who stopped drawing pictures (and he was a rather good artist, too) due to having been cruelly ridiculed in class. I was there when it happened. It was Dona Fatima from the Porches School of the Algarve, Portugal, who had long had the reputation for being a bully. None of us have forgotten her.

I have been legally accepted into Thailand for work and I have been legally accepted by Thai employers to fulfill my role as a teacher. I realise that Thai teachers are usually given precedent when it comes to discipline, but when it's my classroom, shouldn't it be my rules?!

I don't mean for any of this to sound rhetorical. This is merely my present standpoint.

Hamster · 9th May 2008, 21:20

You work for an employer - the school. You work under their rules first and foremost. As a teacher you will generally be given wide latitude in classroom management techniques and teaching methodologies, but you are not free to contradict the rules of your employer.

Guy Mandude · 9th May 2008, 22:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chan Gibbon

I have been legally accepted into Thailand for work and I have been legally accepted by Thai employers to fulfill my role as a teacher. I realise that Thai teachers are usually given precedent when it comes to discipline, but when it's my classroom, shouldn't it be my rules?!

What's this legally mumbo jumbo? You're a bit full of yourself and your alleged position in society. After the honeymoon period wears off, you may need to make adjustments to your standpoint. Respectfully proposed, of course.

Bandini · 9th May 2008, 23:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guy Mandude

What's this legally mumbo jumbo? You're a bit full of yourself and your alleged position in society. After the honeymoon period wears off, you may need to make adjustments to your standpoint. Respectfully proposed, of course.

How does "legally" rate as mumbo jumbo?

All he's saying is that he's gone through the proper channels and done all the paper work.