Students in Rwanda have a highly
developed sense of smell, body odor recognition notwithstanding. They can identify
fear, weakness and uncertainty as best as any predator in nature, and as such
they will attack ruthlessly and without mercy. To combat this, a teacher needs
his/her arsenal of punishments to be fully stocked and ready for use.
I take a more preventative approach in
my punishments to deter future or ongoing problems. During any quiz there is
absolutely no talking without permission (raising hands to ask me a question).
Talking in any fashion, even asking another student for a pen, is an automatic
zero for all parties involved, no second
chances as they frequently request. Harsh but effective. When I write a
quiz on the board I have students stand up, turn around, and sit down facing
the opposite wall. If they turn around to glance at the board they receive an
automatic zero.
Students are generally free to come and
go as they please though. English class is treated more of as an elective and
as such I don’t have interest in teaching those without genuine desire in
learning and participating. Because Rwandans love hierarchies, students always
ask for permission to leave for the toilet (they’ll either ask for permission or say they want to make a short call). When they ask for
just permission I like to ask them
for what? to go to the bar? to sleep? to make some food? This always
embarrasses them for some reason and they’ll fess up in specifics - to urinate,
to defecate, and once…to shit.
I don’t really punish students outside
of failing them. The occasional embarrassment, kicking them out of class or me
walking out of class (though this is probably more a reward, which I’m happy
they haven’t developed a Pavlovian response to), is the most I do. School
policies on punishment are quite extensive though. All of these result in the
loss of marks on their overall grades. Some have additional punishments, noted
by the + bullet point under them. My favorites are italicized.
§
Noise
in the classroom, in dormitory, in church
§
Not
wearing the school uniform – in the classroom, worship, church
§
Unauthorized
out goings of the class
+
Manual
work
§
Unauthorized
out goings of the boarding school
+
Temporary
chasing (week-end) of 7 days or
+
Exclusion
from the boarding system
+
Definitive
chasing according to the case
§
Unjustified
lateness in classroom, dormitory
+
Manual
work
§
Impoliteness,
disobedience towards a teacher, an authority
+
Definite
chasing according to the case
§
Drunkenness,
smoking tobacco
+
Definite
chasing according to the case
§
Stealing
equipment of the school or belonging to a comrade
+
Temporally
chasing (week-end) of 7 days
+
Definitive
chasing according to the case
+
Reimbursement
§
Putting
the school equipment outside of the classroom
§
Chasing
with or without a document during a quiz or exams
+
Obtain
of zero (0)
§
Refusing
or being late to do a punishment
+
Maintaining
the punishment
§
Fighting
with another person (a pupil or stranger)
+
Definitive
chasing according to the case
§
Changing the
body
skin or hair
§
Wearing
hats or fancy jewelry at school
+
Confiscation of
the jewel
§
Talking to
strange people without permission
+
Temporary
chasing (week-end) of 3 days
§
Scandalous and
secret frequenting between a girl and a boy
+
Temporal chasing (week-end) of 7
days
§
Unauthorized
presence in the dormitory
+
Manual
work
§
Boycott
of cleaning activities
+
Maintaining
the activity
§
Doing
incomplete cleaning activities
+
Redoing
those activities
§
Eating
unauthorized food and outside of the refectory
+
Temporal
chasing (week-end) of 5 days
+
Confiscation
of the foodstuffs
§
Abusing
or blaming a cook, a pupil, an authority
+
Temporary
chasing (week-end) of 3 days
§
Unauthorized
presence in the kitchen
+
Manual
work
§
The
one who is caught having a mobile phone will be chased
§
Refusing
to take notes of any course
+
Manual
work
§
Urinating
in the school’s compounds
+
Manual
work
§
Bringing
a mirror, combs, body lotion and bottles water in the classroom
§
Absence
in the classroom, in dormitory, and in refectory
§
Charring food and eating with
hands in the refectory
+
Manual
work
N.B. – Failure
in quarterly discipline: Exclusion from the boarding system
Failure
in annual discipline: Definitive chasing
Officially there is no physical punishment
allowed in Rwanda. In practice though, it varies from school to school. At my
school students are beaten with a wispy branch a few times while they are
kneeling. I don’t think it’s truly that
painful and is more symbolic; it’s like receiving a harsh spanking when a
child. It stings sure, but ultimately it’s not so bad. These things happen
today in the States, so it’s not just a Rwand-emic problem. The difference is
that when I lived in Tennessee I had to get a waiver signed by my parents
saying it is or is not ok for the Vice Principal to beat me with a wooden
paddle with holes. Those waivers don’t exist here.
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