Ryan Hadeed
On April 20, 1999, an event transpired in the American heartland that shook the nation to its core. Two high school students, armed with guns and homemade explosives, murdered 12 of their peers, one teacher, and injured 21 additional people.
It was a carefully planned and executed attack that, according to their own journals, was months in the making. On that day the word "Columbine," in reference to the school's name, became a morbid addition to the American vernacular. Even worse is the fact that it has been used too many times, describing the more than 40 mass shootings that have occurred since then.
No longer do parents only have to worry about their children succeeding academically and socially. Now there's the fear of something terrible happening to them while at school, resulting in calls to mobile phones that go unanswered.
That same fear almost materialised here two weeks ago, when a local student allegedly planned to "pull a Columbine" at the Chaguanas North Secondary School. Apparently, the quick action by the security forces and the school administration averted a potential disaster from emerging.
This, however, is just the newest chapter in the continuing saga about the deterioration of our education system. It's an unfortunate truth that while schools are not places of violence, violent acts do take place.
For the last couple of years, thanks to the prevalence of camera-equipped mobile phones, we've been treated to almost monthly episodes of student "rumbles" breaking out both in and outside of the classroom. The Ministry of Education has been hard-pressed in finding a solution to provide and maintain an environment of safety and security. But even then, some schools have long ceased to be institutions of learning, and are instead little more than glorified day-care centres.
So once again we are faced with the question of, "Where do we begin?" Echoing the prime ministers who went before him, Dr Rowley recently stated that consultations must be held with the relevant stakeholders for the purpose of updating our British-inherited model. Whether or not action will finally follow the "ole talk" is left to be seen.
But if year after year our largest budgetary allocation goes towards the education sector and things haven't been getting better, then either not enough is being done or we are doing something very wrong. The answer, in this case, may very well be both: more needs to be done and the focus needs to be expanded.
Even if our schools had the best of everything–adequate resources, more teachers, and state-of-the-art equipment, all would be for naught if the life of a student, before and after the bell rings, is not addressed as well. For the battle over our nation's youth can't only be waged in the classroom, but also in the home.
Some members of the public took umbrage to the Dr Rowley's labelling of some of our nation's children as "monsters." And though some may argue that, "A rose by any other name, would smell just as sweet," if there are indeed monsters in our midst, then we all need to be concerned about the conditions that nurture them.
The blame for troubled youth always starts with the parents, and Trinbagonians are quick to suggest that such is the outcome when not enough "cut-a---" is applied. I personally don't have an issue with the use of corporal punishment; it was a commodity that was never in short supply when I was growing up. I would even say that my parents were practising "communists" when it came to the distribution of licks, as there was an equal share for one and all.
Putting aside the humour of those admittedly painful moments, what I remember the most from my childhood is the quality time I spent with my parents and the interest they took in my life and education. My mother would sit with my siblings and I while we did our homework, and once completed our father would look it over.
We ate dinner together as a family and conversed with each other. We watched the nightly news and were encouraged to share our opinions about events taking place in the world around us. They knew who our friends were and the families they came from. And yes there was discipline, but it was always deserved and always fair.
Now in the average household where one or both parents work, the priority might be to keep their young ones fed, clothed and housed as opposed to making sure that they "feel good about themselves." But some of the most important things that we need, especially in our youth, cost nothing but "time." And it's something where a little can go a long way.
Yes, it takes a village to raise a child, but charity must begin at home if we are to curtail the creation of such "monsters." It's one of the ways to ensure that nowhere in T&T ever becomes a Columbine.