When moral education is taught by an immoral being

Lokman Mustafa

When a moral education class in primary school becomes a place where a missile — in this case a shoe — is hurled, by none other than its teacher, you know something is horribly wrong.

On July 10, a standard two schoolgirl in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, was taken to a clinic where she received three stitches on her forehead after being hit by a shoe thrown by a male teacher.

In the incident, M Sharmini was playing with a couple of friends at the back of her classroom when the teacher lost his temper and hurled his shoe at the girl.

Sharmini was stunned as the hard object hit her face before her forehead started to bleed profusely.

I am dumbfounded as to why certain people chose teaching as their profession.

Some of the people I know are involved in teaching because they believe they can make a profound impact on the future generations by shaping them into intellectually and socially engaged citizens.

Others, on the other hand, became teachers because they feel teaching is a creative and challenging way to help children see their own potential.

“The teacher paid no attention to my situation and continued teaching. I had to seek help from another teacher who was in another classroom,” eight-year-old Sharmini was reported as saying by Malay daily Sinar Harian.

When met by reporters in Georgetown, Penang, on July 11, Deputy Education Minister II Datuk P Kamalanathan expressed shock on finding out about the incident which took place in Port Dickson.

Kamalanathan was utterly disappointed and promised that the teacher would be transferred to another school as soon as possible.

“The Education Ministry will not tolerate such behaviour. The State Education Department and the District Education Officer will conduct a thorough inquiry and will refer the matter to the disciplinary committee, which will decide the next course of action,” he said.

Well, actually Kamalanathan shouldn’t be shocked by such an incident because earlier this year the Hulu Selangor MP got a first-hand experience of how immoral and unruly some individuals can be.

On Jan 12, Kamalanathan was assaulted as he was attending a programme at a service centre in his constituency.

According to witnesses, Kamalanathan was meeting a group of Hulu Selangor Umno Youth members at about 2.30pm when Muhammad Rizuan Suhaimi, an office bearer of Hulu Selangor Umno Youth, struck his neck while the former was shaking hands with those present.

The programme had to be cancelled due to the untoward incident, believed to be related to the assailant’s request to transfer a relative who is a teacher in Johor to Hulu Selangor.

However, Kamalanathan forgave Muhammad Rizuan, saying the incident was a personal matter and what transpired was an unintentional act of emotion.

“To err is human and I have no reason to continue being upset with this incident,” he said in a statement reported by a news portal on Jan 26.

Back to the incident in Port Dickson, there was absolutely no reason for the teacher to react the way he did to Sharmini’s misbehaviour.

It is understandable for teachers to be upset when their lessons are disrupted by noisy students. But isn’t patience a virtue?

It may be helpful for our teachers to remind themselves of a few quotes as regards the path they have chosen.

“The good teacher makes the poor student good and the good student superior.” — Marva Collins

“What the teacher is, is more important than what he teaches.” — Karl Menninger

“One good teacher in a lifetime may sometimes change a delinquent into a solid citizen.” — Philip Wylie

But always be mindful that:

“Experience is the best teacher.” — Penelope Douglas

So dear sir who’s now left with only one shoe, what experience have you left Sharmini with?

And equally important, what have you yourself learnt from this shameful episode?