Teacher-student conflicts must be resolved in school

| FEBRUARY 04, 2023, 12:44 AM IST

In a far-reaching observation, the High Court of Bombay at Goa has set aside a conviction by a Children’s Court of a school teacher accused of “beating” a student in school. While the prosecution failed to establish the case, the court observed that “scolding a school student for committing mistakes and even giving some punishment to maintain discipline would not constitute an offence”. The court held that the teacher is bound to act according to the situation and sometimes be a bit harsh to inculcate good habits.

The observations are crucial in an era of increasing scepticism and distrust between teachers and parents. The evolving overprotective nature of parents and the growing level of intolerance by teachers against the academic challenges at hand, coupled with the constant pursuit of excellence, has brought about a paradigm shift in mindsets and temperament. Moreover, the after-effects of the system are showing.

The court observations put forth a simple reality that a certain level of discipline is required to be enforced by teachers. However, this should not be construed as a licence to go to any extremes in enforcing discipline. There is an extensive line between a teacher “being a bit harsh for the sake of discipline” and “being intolerant”. There is an issue in the second case, and this is where the problem starts.

A negative teacher-student relationship is unhealthy for the academic environment because it scars the student’s psychological and mental health and affects educational outcomes. In classrooms, it generates a conflict-inducing attitude. A school student in today’s era will always complain every time there is punishment in class, no matter the reasoning, and it will always be taken home. This kick-starts the whole conflict issue.

While shaping young minds is a challenge for teachers, their behavioural patterns depend on a host of factors, including family and social issues, irrespective of the training. Teachers can have psychological issues that could trigger a temperamental surge resulting in spontaneous rudeness, incivility, discrimination and even extreme intolerance towards students.

On the flip side, the over-protective halo over the child that is seen in recent times forces the teacher to find a delicate balance between disciplining and “over-stepping”. And overuse of the stick/ruler against the child could find the teacher summoned by the police and the court. The intent and intensity of what is called discipline are always questionable. The term discipline becomes very subjective.

When teachers are under constant scrutiny, there is also an increasing distrust building up. Therefore, the teaching community cannot see the High Court’s observation as a reprieve; instead, they must view it positively to address the growing classroom hostility constructively.

The school’s management must step in and establish an in-house redressal mechanism with structured counselling so that factors that negatively impact the morale of teachers and students can be addressed immediately. The conflict-inducing attitude must not be allowed to escalate and vitiate the classroom environment and mar careers. Institutions should strive to strike a fair balance between teaching and the psychological well-being of students.

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