Changing the unchanged

Yesterday morning I attended a Behaviour Management class. It’s all about how teachers manage the behaviour of their pupils more effectively.

It makes me flashbacked to my school days memories, when my behaviour, sort of gave my teachers bit of headache. I was not totally rebellious, but I’ve had those moments when I had been called by the senior teacher or discipline master. I escaped from class, didn’t attend a class test, made noise during assembly when the principal gave his speech, asked for 20 cents when my teacher asked me to read a passage in history class and other silly-funny stuffs.

One event I could not forget was during a history test in my secondary 3, when the teacher asked us to write an essay about Sarajevo Incident. What I wrote was “I am sorry sir. I don’t know anything about Sarajevo Incident. I was not born when the incident happened”. Now, after more than 20 years, I still could not stop thinking (and smiling at the same time), why am I pulling that silly stunt. Well, I had to stand in front of the classroom the entire period, and got a zero-mark for that creative answer. I know it’s nothing to be proud of… well… I guess when you’re young, happy-go-lucky and free-spirited kind of girl, you just feel like doing ‘crazy-fun’ things in life.

But one day, I was called to the principal’s office after one incident. I thought he’s going to scold me or punish me, well… then it turned out to be more like a heart-to-heart talk session. He acted more like a fatherly figure than a principal, who genuinely asked me what actually I really wanted to do in life. Not even the discipline master treated me with such kindness. He’s really a great leader, it’s no doubt, currently, he’s one of the prominent figures who held a high position in Brunei. I believed that, the less-than 30-minutes session was the turning point that made me what I am today.

So, if I was asked does managing student behaviour really important? From past experience, I would say yes. It’s not only a matter of the children’s behaviour within the classroom walls but it’s the tale of their life that goes after that which makes a difference.

“Many aspire to change the world but few realize that everyone accomplishes that goal. Each day you live you are changing something. Rather than simply changing the world, one should aspire to make a positive change with each action they commit” - Anon