Education or Subjugation? - A report on violence against children in schools 144 pages, pdf  Download Back

EDUCATION OR SUBJUGATION?
A report on violence against children in schools

 

Publisher: Kosovar Stability Initiative (IKS), Kosovo

Date: November 2013

Volume: 144 pages, pdf


Description

More than 344,000 people have watched a video posted on YouTube in 2011, in which a Prishtina primary school teacher was filmed hitting his pupils in class. The light-heartedness with which the violence was taken by the victims and the reaction of their laughing, rather than fearful, peers showed that this sort of behaviour in Kosovo’s schools is the norm rather than the exception. Worse, while the video went viral, the reason for this was that most saw it as a fun film to share with friends, not one which elicited anger or disapproval. Likewise it sparked no debate in the media nor comment from anyone in government or from the educational establishment.
Iniciativa Kosovare për Stabilitet (IKS) has undertaken this research in order to assess how safe children actually are on school premises, identify areas where legislation and guidance is lacking and recommend feasible policy options. Our interviews with children, parents and teachers reveal that they have difficulties defining exactly what constitutes violence. One parent, when asked to do so said, “a slap, kick, or scolding words are not violence.” All the parties involved felt that violence perpetrated in school by teachers was a form of legitimate corporal punishment. The majority of parents approve of this. None of the parties considered that non-physical, psychological antagonism counted as violence. Teachers regularly use derogatory language when addressing children and insult them. Whereas teachers may need to raise their voices to keep order, it appears that teachers shout at children in order to intimidate and humiliate them in front of their peers.