Question

what are the Ways to Integrate a Child's right in the Classroom? the following need to be explained.

1. The articles that can be used

2. How it helps a child's right

Answer 1

Children can be subjected to neglect, abuse, violence and exploitation anywhere. There is some abuse that may happen inside the school premises, while a lot of it is what children suffer at home and in non-school environments. A child in your class may be a victim of violence/abuse/exploitation that happens outside the school. You cannot ignore it. Rather you must help the child. This too is possible only if you are able to identify that there is a problem and you spend time to understand it and explore possible solutions.

Always remember that your duty to protect children does not come to an end once you are out of the school premises. The life of a child who is out of the school system can be changed with your positive intervention. You just have to prepare yourself for it and know more about their problems as well as what you can do to help.

Once you are mentally prepared and equipped to tackle the problem you will be able to do many things you have never dreamt you are capable of doing.

• Understand children’s rights as human rights and create such awareness in the community as well.
• Make children feel it is worthwhile attending your class.
• Be open to learning.
• Be a Friend, Philosopher and Guide to the child.
• Make the classes interesting and informative. Avoid one-way communication and give opportunities to children to come up with their doubts and queries.
• Learn to recognise and identify abuse, neglect, learning disorders and other not so visible disabilities.
• Create a relationship where children can express their views, concerns, anguish, fear etc. Try to engage with children in informal discussions.
• Be a good listener. Share and discuss various issues and problems which children are facing either in school or at home.
• Encourage children’s participation in matters that affect their lives.
• Build children’s capacities to participate effectively.
• Organise meetings of children with school authorities.
• Discuss child rights issues with the parents in the PTA meetings.
• Say NO to corporal punishment. Use positive reinforcement techniques like dialogue and counselling to discipline children.
• Say NO to discrimination. Take active steps to reach out to children from minority and other discriminated groups.
• Stop negative stereotyping and discrimination against working children, street children, child victims of sexual abuse, trafficking, domestic violence or drug abuse and children in conflict with law, to name a few categories of those who need protection.
• Stop use of child labour in your home and workplace.
• Be democratic but not unstructured.
• Ensure children are protected within the school as well as in the community, even if it requires calling the police and taking/facilitating legal action.
• Encourage them to put forward their views before the adults and the community.
• Involve children in organising events. Give them responsibilities and at the same time give them the required guidance.
• Take children to nearby places for picnics and pleasure trips.
• Engage children in discussions/debates/quiz and other recreational activities.
• Encourage education and participation of girls through creative measures within the classroom.
• Follow-up on girls who drop out or attend irregularly to ensure it does not continue.
• All teachers can help in creating and strengthening a protective environment around children.
• Your observations are important, as they alone will help you to assess the growth and progress of a child in your class. If you see a problem, your next step should be to explore what could be the possible reason.
• Next question to yourself should be whether the child is under any pressures from family, relatives or friends.
• Spend some time with the child privately, without being imposing, humiliating and creating an embarrassing situation for the child.
• Help the child express her/his problem either through drawing and painting or by writing a story or simply talking to you or the school counsellor/social worker or to a friend in the class.

Ten messages about children with disabilities

1. Prevent negative stereotypical attitudes about children with disabilities by avoiding negative words, such as “disabled,” “crippled,” “handicapped,” instead of “a child with a physical or movement disability”; “wheelchair bound” for “a child who uses wheelchair”, “deaf and dumb” instead of “a child with hearing and speech disability”, or “retarded” for “a child with mental disability.”
2. Depict children with disabilities with equal status as those without disabilities. For example, a student with a disability can tutor a younger child without a disability. Children with disabilities should interact with non-disabled children in as many ways as possible.
3. Allow children with disabilities to speak for themselves and express their thoughts and feelings. Involve children with and without disabilities in the same projects and encourage their mutual participation.
4. Observe children and identify disabilities. Early detection of disabilities has become part of early-childhood education. The earlier a disability is detected in a child, the more effective the intervention and the less severe the disability.
5. Refer the child whose disability is identified, for developmental screening and early intervention.
6. Adapt the lessons, learning materials and classroom to the needs of children with disabilities. Use means such as large print, seating the child in the front of the class, and making the classroom accessible for the child with a movement disability. Integrate positive ideas about disabilities into classwork, children’s play and other activities.
7. Sensitise parents, families, and caregivers about the special needs of children with disabilities. Speak to parents in meetings as well as on a one-to-one basis.
8. Teach frustrated parents simple ways to deal with and manage their child’s needs and help them to have patience to prevent abuse of the disabled child.
9. Guide siblings and other family members in lessening the pain and frustration of parents of children with disabilities, by being helpful.
10. Actively involve parents of young children with disabilities as full team members in planning school and after school activities.

Source: UNICEF, Teacher’s Talking about Learning (http://www.unicef.org/teachers)

Constructive Disciplinary Practices

• Respect the child’s dignity.
• Develop pro-social behavior, self-discipline, and character.
• Maximise the child’s active participation.
• Respect the child’s developmental needs and quality of life.
• Respect the child’s motivational characteristics and life views.
• Assure fairness and transformative justice.
• Promote solidarity.