A Teacher’s Duty Doesn’t End at the School Gate

There is something about teaching; it’s more of a calling that goes beyond textbooks. Aside from imparting knowledge from textbooks to the students, teachers shape characters; they instill morals in the lives of these pupils and many more.

However, there is a question of if the teacher's role in the lives of the students should end inside the school environment. Take for instance a teacher who sees his or her pupil behaving badly outside the school environment,is it proper for such a teacher to instill discipline since he is no longer within the jurisdiction? Without beating about the bush, the answer is a big yes.

I will approach my yes as a parent. I have seen many of the impacts of teachers in the lives of my kids—impacts beyond textbooks that cut across their moral behaviors. I don't know about now, but I grew up to realize that NOT only biological parents of a child train the child but also the community. An adult doesn't pass by and close their eyes to the ill behavior of a child simply because he isn't the biological parent.

Personally, I feel bad seeing a child behave badly out there without stepping in, even if it's through a wise word of correction. It doesn't matter if I am your teacher in school or not. It also doesn't matter the location; we are talking about character here, and children exhibit character everywhere. Thus, it makes sense that they are being disciplined as they unfold their ill characters.

I understand that once a child is no longer within the school environment, the teacher is no longer protected by the school authority, so stepping in during an issue outside school may look tricky but still doable. Some parents might even take legal action against such a teacher; in fact, most parents do that a lot even within the school. Once they hear that a teacher disciplined their children, they will begin to make trouble, not to mention disciplining a child of such a parent outside school.

I must express that in all manner of discipline, there should be carefulness; otherwise, the society will easily misunderstand you and your good intentions. You will be judged negative too. They can even tag it as abuse or harassment.

However, as much as teachers shouldn't ignore disciplining a child outside the school environment, all these cautions shouldn't be neglected. I remember the day my kids' lesson teacher overlooked my son's ill behavior during their home lesson session. She watched my son do something bad, and the teacher did nothing because they were outside school. She said she doesn't know how I will react seeing her discipline my son at home, not in school. I told her she can't be available when such a thing happens without discipline. I wasn't happy with the teacher, but I understood her point of view, and we resolved the issue immediately .

Overall, I will love a teacher who will politely draw my attention to my child's misconduct. Just know when to act and apply wisdom when faced with disciplining a child anywhere, either at school or outside school, and everyone will be alright.

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