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Should punishments be abolished in Kenyan high schools?

  

Date Posted: 5/21/2015 3:59:30 AM

Posted By: Edwin Gichimu  Membership Level: Silver  Total Points: 396


I remember when I was in high school during night preps. The teacher on duty would usually walk along the verandas peeping through the windows of each and every class. The teachers were always looking for students, who were sleeping, noise making or doing anything nonconstructive apart from reading. Those caught would be given simple punishments like washing verandas or kneeling until sleep time.

At times I would be caught either making noise or playing drought or cards in class. I was never caught sleeping, till now sleeping is not my thing and so I would never sleep in class. It came to a time when if a day was gone without getting punished I would see that day as an odd one because getting punished had gotten into me like a routine. I had already adapted to these punishments especially those involving washing veranda, kneeling, laps around the field or even press ups. The only punishment I feared and I could never adapt to was canning.

Before I came to write this article I thought of how many students were like me and when I shared my experience with some friends I noted a similarity in the fear and hatred of canning. What does that mean? It means that canning is the only punished that has proven to be working in the course of instilling discipline to students.

It came to my mind to share my thoughts since from time in memorial I know that no one ever liked canning and that’s why even the Bible advises “sparing the rod spoils the child.” No normal human being can adapt to canning. This is because it’s painful and if there was anything that one can do to avoid canning they would rather do it even if it means change of behavior.

Therefore I would

recommend that punishment be scrapped out and only leave one punishment that is canning. For those few who will adapt to canning or are insensitive to canning alternative serious punishments to be used for example digging 6 by 6 holes, uprooting stumps and slashing long fields but easier punishments should not be used.



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