By Abdul Rahman Marshoud
Al-Watan
IT has been reported that a previous official in the Education Department received a proposal made by one of his subordinates that we stop distributing new textbooks in the beginning of every year and pay the money to students instead in order to avoid its complications and wastage of money.
After hearing the proposal, the official replied: “How can we guarantee that students purchase new books with the money they received from school. A student may use the old books of his brother and put the money in his saving box.”
I don’t know whether the story was true or not but it symbolizes the mind-blogging way of managing resources. Those who spend carefully and use the product they purchased for a long time deserve praise for keeping the extra money in their saving boxes.
I recalled this story when I read the report about suspension of a school manager when he joined the celebration of students in tearing their old books after final exam to mark the beginning of their long summer vacation.
My friend Dr. Abdullah Al-Khateeb commented when he saw the video clip of the incident: “Why the school textbook failed to save itself from this absurdity?” I also wanted to ask the same question.
We know that when people realize that there is nobody to monitor their activities nothing will prevent them from violating laws and regulations except when they recognize the thing’s material value or believe its value is beyond imagination.
It is hard to imagine that a child would tear his bag into pieces or destroy the logo of his favorite sports club. He will not damage the bag because he knows that it was purchased by his father. He also realizes the emotional value of the club’s logo.
Why the school textbook fails to protect itself from harm?
Price can be considered as a means of protection as suggested in the beginning of this article or any other thought that balances the idea of free education, which has been the basis of our educational movement, and the respect for textbook as a morally valuable object.
But the real gamble should be on establishing a strong relationship between the student and his book, through the creation of a sentimental value that protects them both. It’s unfortunate that a student fails to protect his book. It means he does not know its value. We should find the reason why this emotional bond between a student and his book was missing over the past years.
For a child the logo of a sports club represents a very important thing. It symbolizes the “passion” he feels for those who offer him moments of pleasure. It also symbolizes the “belonging” that binds him with thousands who share the same way of thinking. The beauty of this relationship lies in the fact that it is largely free of the power of authorities. On the other hand, it depends primarily on the concept of role model.
Grown up people make mistakes when they think that most children have a marginal relationships with their sports clubs compared to their ties with their study material. We have to admit this is wrong perception of our children.
It’s the person who marginalizes things needs justification, while these children do not justify their respect for their clubs’ symbols. We should not just condone this childish behavior without trying to understand it.
The school is still a disgusting place for most of our students, which we can ascertain through a comprehensive and objective survey. But why this is happening?
Perhaps the key lies in the concepts of “passion” and “belonging”, as they are often lacking in the student’s relationship with his school. Perhaps this is because it is a relationship based primarily on power, and they don’t see there any models.
By nature the human child seeks freedom of choice, which is not threatened by the concept of imitation, as threatened by the concept of authoritarianism. So a single rational presentation of a stand in front of the child without any comment is enough for him follow than dozens of commands and advises.
This leads us to the question what the school and book symbolize for our children and what they symbolize for us as parents? Are we still looking at them as a fait accompli imposed on us as we need to depend on them to ensure a better future for our children?
Are we just pretending our respect toward them without having any sincere feelings in our minds? Are we honest in our approach toward knowledge and its sources?
Whatever be the answer, the behavior of our children would be its focus. Children know what they should do about things by watching our attitude toward them, rather than hearing our talk.
