'Ahmedabad toddlers unsafe in schools'

Till femme fatale ayahs like Komal Makwana or maniac school peons like Deepak Thakur are not stopped from handling our innocent kids on school campuses in the garb of staff, schools will not be safe for our kids. Be it Manali of Tulip school in Bopal or Subham of Shaishya Kids Campus, a playschool in Makarba area, educationists in city Speak Up about how schools should ensure their kids stay safe in school.

“It is very unfortunate to know that such incidents can also happen in a school. Staff should be well versed with code of conduct in the school. The teachers should maintain continuous communication with children. From the maids to drivers to other staff members – we ensure that they are well-informed and provided with formal training about their behaviour with kids.”- Manjula Pooja Shroff, Delhi Public School“A culture that promotes a safe environment should be developed in the schools. There should be transparency and kids must be surrounded by adults who are within the reach of the kids. In terms of the structure of a school, there should be greater visibility with bigger spaces and glass walls. The safety of the kids is a daily investment. The parent-child relationship must also be strong.”- Kiran Sethi, Riverside School  “We are well aware of the background of the staff members working with us. The school campus is small and the classes are mostly made of glass walls. Therefore, transparency is maintained. We continuously interact with the children so that they can tell us in case they are facing anything unusual. The problem is basically the ignorance of what a child wants to say, considering the fact that he/she doesn’t understand things too well.”- Anju Mousafir, Mahatma Gandhi International School“Vigilance should be a priority in schools. The children are supposed to be made aware that if anything unusual happens with them, they should immediately inform about it. In our school, the staff has been with us for a very long time and so we are well aware about who they are, where they belong and their mentality. We train the teachers and maids to consider the children like their own.”- Shobha Tyagi, Maharaja Agrasen School“In our school, we ensure that teachers always accompany the tiny tots everywhere. Even when the children go to the washroom or outside the classroom during break, the teachers are aware of their whereabouts. Actually, it is difficult to imagine such an untoward incident in a school, but human nature is unpredictable. I believe transparency and communication should be maintained well amongst all.”- Nashy Chauhan, Anand Niketan“Apparently, the level of morality in people has gone down drastically. It is a pan-India phenomenon. the content shown on television has an indirect effect of titillation. Also, the culprits in such cases are let off very easily. Strict preventive measures need to be taken by the authorities concerned. The system of education and parenting has failed in the society. Sexual perversion has taken place and we are all equally responsible for such a cascading effect. Parents should be extra careful.” - TJ Purani, CN Vidyalaya