Putting down a student in front of the class, giving punishments if children take more than seven minutes bathing and slapping students’ faces – these prove to be things that occur regularly at many schools nowadays.

Teachers need to encourage students instead of frightening them

Both Le Thuy Hoa and Pham Thanh Tam, Headmaster of Hong Duc High School, affirmed that they do not allow teachers to beat students at their schools and that teachers are disciplined if they do this. However, both Hoa and Tam admitted that violence still occurs.

KA, a 10^th class student at Thanh Binh School, related that if students have not learned their lessons or speak to each other during lessons, they are told to go up to the stage in front of the class and beaten with a rod. Sometimes, teachers ask students to slap their own faces. If they don’t comply, teachers themselves will slap students’ faces.

Students feel ashamed when they are punished, but they have to do what they are told to do, or they will be more seriously disciplined for crossing teachers.

A male 10^th class student at Nguyen Chi Thanh High School in Tan Binh district in HCM City related that when he was a secondary school student, he was slapped in the face and had to get down on his knees in class. He said that the punishments seem ‘gentler’ in 10^th class: He said now he only has to sweep the school’s playing field or pick up leaves.

According to Dr Nguyen Huu Nguyen from the HCM City Research and Development Institute, child violence in school nowadays is not as cruel as it was during feudal times. However, compared to other civilised societies, child violence nowadays in Vietnam bears some characteristics of the cruelty of feudal times.

Frightening children is a form of violence

Associate Prof Dr Tran Tuan Lo, Dean of the Psychology faculty at Van Hien People Founded University, said that he opposes the principle “Spare the rod and spoil the child”, which has been a popular saying for ages.

Lo said that any behaviour of adults like wrinkling their brows or doing something else to frighten children is also child violence.

Vo Thi Tuong Vy, Lecturer of the Pedagogical Psychology faculty under the HCM City University of Education, said that these abusive teachers can badly affect children’s psychology and thoughts. Parents’ words like ‘You stupid fool’ can lead to children losing confidence in themselves, parents and teachers.

Vy emphasised that when criticising, teachers’ words need to be constructive and encouraging.

VietNamNet/PL TP HCM