Are Our Schools Safe ?

The shootout at  the Sandy Hook School in Connecticut is spine chilling .Being on the other side of the globe one cant even imagine what must have happened in the school .A brilliant young boy, Lanza shot his way in through a locked glass door at the front of the school.He was wearing black military-style gear, including a vest and mask.He  must have walked in with frenzy in his eyes .His target was a sitting rabbit –small children aged between 6 to 10 years .His target was not just to kill and snuff life out –it was to maim and inflict as many wounds as possible .He shot at those lovely children many times and repeatedly-one of them 11 times !! .He also shot dead  the Principal ,and teachers of the school, who had reputations of being child friendly .And he finally shot himself dead .The school had been converted into a massacre ground  .And the target were people who were unarmed and who are perhaps the most docile segment of society–teachers and small children .Why did it happen ?

It is a very complex question to answer .In no way it seems that the young man who was trigger happy had chosen the school deliberately because he had a grievance against it .But there was a school involved and there were schools involved previously also.It  brought to the fore not just the venue ,but also what we teach in shools and how they are managed  .And if we don’t watch out there will be schools targeted in the future as well .

Unfortunately schools have become soft  targets.And this is because of the lopsided priorities we as a society place on schools .Everybody thinks it is their birthright to control schools because they  know more about it than the teachers and the school administration .And that’s because everyone thinks he or she must be more competent than the teachers because they (the teachers ),teach what everyone has learnt , if they went beyond the 12^th Class .So you can teach Physics in school because you passed out from school with Physics as one of your subjects !!And  if you know A,B,C,D,you can teach it –because you know it !!Absolutely ridiculous .Just because you know something does not mean you can teach it .And that is also the reason why some teachers are  better than others-they can teach what they know better than others- not because they know more but because they can TEACH better .I wish society realized this faster than what they do now .There is no mystique about teaching –like law or medicine or engineering .There should be –because teaching is perhaps more difficult than anything else .It pains me when I see parents come to schools and shout down teachers and Principals .It is just a stage before you shoot them down !!When I was the Principal at Jaipur ,there was a criminal and bootlegger who barged into my office along with his henchmen who carried weapons and caught me by my collar and opened his mouth and let out garbage that would make even a very abusive man appear as if he was praying .And he had the support of some powerful people .Can schools be safe when we have parental and social attitude of this kind ?The answer is no.The teachers are the heroes and heroines of any society .And it was a teacher who herded all the small children into a place and told them to be quiet “Be quiet children” she said .And when one of the lovely kids asked her “Why Maam?”, she replied “Because there are some bad people outside.”And when she saw fear in eyes of the kids when they heard the deathly rattle of gunfire she was quick to rise to the occasion “Don’t worry ,very soon the good guys will be coming .Then you can all talk and laugh .But ssshhh……quiet now my little angels”.!! Victoria Soto, a first-grade teacher at Sandy Hook elementary school has been hailed a hero after  hiding her pupils in cabinets, saving all of their lives. The 27-year-old then faced the shooter, Adam Lanza, and told him all of her pupils were in the gym. Lanza turned the gun on the teacher and shot her dead Imagine what the guy who caught and abused me (he was from Bikaner),in full public view would have done in a similar situation .He would have deserted the scene and ran –that’s what rats do when they see danger .No parent has the right to feel that their child is safe in a place where the person who is looking after the child is not treated like a demi God .We must never forget this lesson from the shootout .Schools are like temples -though i admit that all priests may not be the ideal priests .

The future appears grim as long as schools are promoted and funded by the noveau riche .It is no secret that many schools have sprung up in India which belong to property dealers who have huge amounts of money that can be siphoned off to educational sector because one gets  tax rebates.Since schools guarantee good connections in political circles and since there is always a mismatch between supply and demand  ,schools seldom run into losses .And most importantly schools are not prone to  cycles of recession and depression.

A logical corollary of all this is the fact that schools are  in a tight  grip of these “property wheeler dealers”.And they are often linked with people who have a criminal background . The land –politician-educational mafia is a strong one .Recently the owner of one of Delhis most high profile schools was shot dead because of a rivalry.Weak principals just become tools in the hands of these “disguished and distinguished ”  educational “samaaj sewak” criminals .And strong Principals are a anti theisis to the vision with which they create schools .More often than not ,uneducated wives of these property dealers/politicians , become the face of the school  and  run into confrontation with decent yet strong Principals who have to exit .

Unless educationists own schools and run them freely –the future of education is doomed in India .But educationists don’t have that kind of money .However ,I would hasten to add here that not all schools are like the ones I have described above .I have been fortunate to work in schools like DPS Jaipur and DPS Ahmedabad which are top class schools with very visionary managements .But then schools like these are in a hopeless minority .

What Principals must ensure and implement are security safeguards .If someone has to enter a school and has to pass through a system of frisking –then he/she must do .Even if you are a Sharukh Khan .If Airports can ensure that –so must schools .Principals must not stoop to conquer –they must stand up and realize that they are the custodians not so much of their own future –but of the children under their control and guidance .They must make sure that the bad elements don’t get into and start dominating the school culture .Drugs and arms must never be allowed into schools (a few years back a student brought a weapon and shot  dead another student in Gurgaon).Their job is like that of a soldier –their first duty is to defend the small kids .Their weapons are not those of a soldier ,but their weapons must be a strong mind that is wise ,and and which is fearless .

Given the background of the state of schooling –are children safe in India ?Yes –in the good ones ,they are safe .They are safe in schools like ours where we have safety measures  ,with a number of closed circuit T.V.cameras in place .They are safe in schools like ours where every visitor is screened and we have disaster management drills in place .They are safe in schools like ours which are run by educationists whose motive is to give opportunity to children to grasp the technology and knowledge which is waiting to be eaten into .

But I am not too sure about many other schools .I hope they wake up .Because we don’t want lovely 6 year olds going prematurely to paradise .They have a right to at least outlive us .