Instilling discipline in adolescents requires tact and emotional intelligence. When signs of waywardness emerge, it is even more crucial for teachers to apply corrective measures with care—lest their actions lead to counterproductive outcomes.
Last week, St. Louis Senior High School in Kumasi was in the news for the wrong reasons. Two female students were discovered hiding in the boot of a car in an attempt to escape campus. Their plan was foiled by vigilant teachers and a security officer at the school.
However, the teachers lost moral ground when they went too far in handling the girls’ misconduct. Some teachers could be heard in the background of a video suggesting that the girls be paraded before the entire school during assembly—a punishment that borders on public humiliation. Whether this suggestion was carried out or not, we cannot confirm. But if that was bad, what followed was worse: the images and videos of the incident were shared on social media.
What positive outcome did the teachers hope to achieve from such an action?
This was a cruel and irresponsible act—utterly unbecoming of educators whose duty it is to mould children into responsible and confident adults. Sharing the video as a form of amusement or discipline is indefensible. It must be condemned in no uncertain terms.
Through this editorial, we call on the relevant authorities to investigate the circumstances under which the video of the students in the car boot found its way onto social media. Had these students been their own daughters, would the teachers have acted the same way?
The speed at which such sensitive content spreads on social media is deeply worrying. One can only imagine the pain and distress the parents and guardians of the affected students are experiencing.
Instead of focusing on counselling and guiding the students toward better behaviour, these teachers chose the path of public shaming—risking long-term emotional damage to the very people they are supposed to protect.
Parents and guardians of the affected students have every right to demand accountability. While the students’ actions were clearly wrong, the teachers’ response was, arguably, far more damaging.
