The recent news of Valpoi students stealing phones from vehicles is a serious wake-up call not only for schools, but the society in general, including parents and the parent-teacher associations.
Seventeen boys of Std 9 stealing around 40 mobile phones and cash from two-wheelers of visitors at waterfalls in and around Pali-Sattari is a cause for concern especially in times where the current generation is increasingly lured into a fast-moving world of technology.
That’s not the end of the story. It’s appalling, to say the least, to find that parents have circulated pictures of these students on social media throwing ridicule.
In a generation where cell phones and gizmos are launched at a breathtaking pace, virtually hijacking young minds, students and their addiction to cell phones need a wider debate. So also parents, who are placed at the very core of this issue need to be on board and cannot be isolated from any corrective solutions that are worked on. This brings to the fore the moot question: who is responsible for a situation like this where students resort to stealing cell phones? The fact that the cell phone trend catches the fancy of students very early is well-known.
This is an age where personality is defined by the kind of cell phone one is using. And students who are known to take up early lessons on handsets at home are sometimes inclined to either beg-borrow-or-steal to satiate their appetite for these gadgets.
Former CEO of Microsoft, Bill Gates and ex-CEO of Apple Steve Jobs raised their children tech-free. Gates didn’t allow his children a cell phone till they turned 14, while Jobs didn’t allow his daughter to use the iPad.
Research has found that a student’s risk for depression jumps 27% when he or she frequently uses social media. And when kids use their phones for at least three hours a day, they are more likely to undergo a change in behaviour. In Goa, there are often parents who take pride in their children showing an early inclination to learn the finer nuances of technology.
The cell phone no longer remains just a communication tool, but is a multi-utility platform of limitless possibilities with mobile applications and social media communication.
The Valpoi students picked up the skills of opening up tool-boxes and seat locks of bikes through the internet. This should not come as a surprise, since the internet allows easy access to solutions, from breaking locks to hacking cell phones and computers and even assembling an explosive device.
Upbringing can’t be the sole factor responsible. Schools and PTAs have an equally important role to play. It is here where young minds are moulded. Time and again, need for full-fledged trained counsellors have been highlighted to understand the mindsets and issues faced by students. There is an immediate need to even counsel parents. Government should take counselling very seriously and make it mandatory for all schools.
