The Compassion of Kent Ridege Sec School
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While I DO NOT condone with the possession of, and viewing of pornography by students in or out of school, I also DO NOT condone with the way in which the school treated these students. They are NOT TERRORISTS! They are merely young and curious.
No matter what wrong a student, or a group of students have committed, they are still humans. Which means they should be treated with some basic degree of human rights; such as their need to eat, drink, or relief themselves. According to the news, they were treated like some prisoners or like illegal immigrants rounded up and made to squat under the hot sun without food, or water, and basically denied human needs.
What is this school trying to show? I truly hope, the parent of the sick child take apprpriate legal action against this particular school, and make them pay for the medical costs!
I know, that it is a serious breach of any school's regulation to be in possession of pornographic materials, and appropriate punishment and penalties must be metted out to the offender. But the school in question, should also be mindful that they are handling young humanbeings, that needs to be treated with some basic rights. Handing the 14 year old boy to the Police, only ruins his future. Does the 14 year old boy learn COMPASSION like this??
In today's internet age and time, pornography is easily accessible by anyone young or old. So please, don't so closed-minded. Don't go to the extent of "capital punishment" for the possession of pornography like drug possession in Singapore. Total restriction only further sweetens the forbidden fruit, but by this I do not mean pornography is acceptable materials for the young.
You want to go global? Then we have to be flexible in these sort of things that comes with going GLOBAL! -
i do not quite agree with the going global part, but i am VERY against the way the students were treated.
Denied basic human needs. What pricks. -
Part of Civil Education gone wrong ?
Or perhaps the kids were putting into practise some of De Bono's Thinking Principles ?
It is amazing the panic that some adults get into when kids are 'caught' with pornographic materials.
It is about time that adults be given special training, if they have to deal with kids who are reaching puberty.
Scare the daylights out of these kids now, and in the long run they will get psychological hang-ups - that will eventually put more pressure on the desired birth rate the Government demand from Singaporeans. -
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The school authority's reaction was over-the-top, unnecessary and ham-fisted. No doubt it is a serious offence, but the punishment must fit the crime, and this is definitely a case of over-reaction if there ever was one.
Confiscate the material, warn them, inform the parents, suspend them. By all means! But having them wait for 7 hours without food and drink and even calling the police? Talk about using the sledgehammer on a fly.
I hope the principal concerned is happy, now that the school is all over the news. -
All that for a bit of pornography? Jesus, somebody needs to get a grip.
Atobe may have a point. I had a classmate who got his MA at Cambridge in 1967, and he's been collecting degrees ever since. A bit of a brainiac, that one - he already had full professorships in computer science and transport engineering by the time I met him in my undergrad Psych class.
But I digress. He told me with no little amusement of how, during his undergrad days at Cambridge, the chancellor arrived one morning to find his Mini perched atop a tower 7 floors high, with the closest building at least 30 metres away. As it turns out, the culprit took the car apart and used an ingenious combination of ropes and pulleys to get all the parts to the top of the tower and reassemble the car up there.
The student first got a reprimand and a suspension for a semster - then he got a scholarship.
Back when I was in secondary school, I had a classmate who was geting his jollies writing viruses, and when we did Computer Science in JC, hacking into everybody else's student accounts. Today he's finishing his Computer Science PhD at NUS.
For myself, I loved playing mind games in school. In JC I set up the funniest sting operation against a clown who thought he was a big-time gangster. Today I'm a psychologist!
I'm not saying that this kid who got the pronography is particularly bright, nor am I condoning his actions per se. However, as we discussed in the "talents leaving Singapore" thread, this is exactly how Singaporeans are perpetuating the yes-sir-no-sir-three-bags-full mentality that drives the brain drain. -
did the paper report the school name?
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Not the New Paper, but it was plastered all over the TV news.Originally posted by xian89:did the paper report the school name? -
icic... mi no time to read news, only time to come in hereOriginally posted by Viper52:Not the New Paper, but it was plastered all over the TV news.
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It was indeed poorly handled by the school administration, notably their principal who gave a feeble excuse like "it was an oversight on our part" or somthing like that.
And how is it she can claim that the sch admin had no knowledge of the hospitalised student's medical condition after the whole incident was played out? Clearly a breakdown in communication within the sch admin which underlines the lack of interest in any child's welfare.
While i agree strong punishment shd be mete out to guilty parties, settling the issue as a sch rather than inviting the police would have proven a more diplomatic solution. How on earth are those kids going to get a clean slate to start fresh? They will forever be smeared with the stain of a "criminal act", shunned by fellow students, former friends and teachers, blacklisted from the off.
Whatever happened to common sense, composure and 2nd chances? Apparently, our society still has not learnt to forgive and forget, and changes aren't happening soon enuff. -
Wow, it suddenly dawned on you that this is the system of Singapore that so many are quite disgrunted with is it not?Originally posted by BillyBong:Whatever happened to common sense, composure and 2nd chances? Apparently, our society still has not learnt to forgive and forget, and changes aren't happening soon enuff. -
Read the newpaper dated 11 feb 2004. The police are still deciding whether to charge that kid.
If they charge him, would it seem like a big hoo-ha?
If they dun charge him, it would seem kinda lenient and there maybe more cases sprouting out down the line.
And when the newpaper approached other schools to ask what stances would be taken should something similar occur, seems like none would want to bring the police into the matter. Of course they wouldn't dare admit they do the same after they seen what has happened. -
wow.Originally posted by Gedanken:All that for a bit of pornography? Jesus, somebody needs to get a grip.
Atobe may have a point. I had a classmate who got his MA at Cambridge in 1967, and he's been collecting degrees ever since. A bit of a brainiac, that one - he already had full professorships in computer science and transport engineering by the time I met him in my undergrad Psych class.
But I digress. He told me with no little amusement of how, during his undergrad days at Cambridge, the chancellor arrived one morning to find his Mini perched atop a tower 7 floors high, with the closest building at least 30 metres away. As it turns out, the culprit took the car apart and used an ingenious combination of ropes and pulleys to get all the parts to the top of the tower and reassemble the car up there.
The student first got a reprimand and a suspension for a semster - then he got a scholarship.
Back when I was in secondary school, I had a classmate who was geting his jollies writing viruses, and when we did Computer Science in JC, hacking into everybody else's student accounts. Today he's finishing his Computer Science PhD at NUS.
For myself, I loved playing mind games in school. In JC I set up the funniest sting operation against a clown who thought he was a big-time gangster. Today I'm a psychologist!
I'm not saying that this kid who got the pronography is particularly bright, nor am I condoning his actions per se. However, as we discussed in the "talents leaving Singapore" thread, this is exactly how Singaporeans are perpetuating the yes-sir-no-sir-three-bags-full mentality that drives the brain drain.
sting op? interested to hear about it! -
That's a long and very involved story. To cut a long story short, I was looking to leave the scene and it made a great swansong!
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must say lah!Originally posted by Gedanken:That's a long and very involved story. To cut a long story short, I was looking to leave the scene and it made a great swansong! -
I feel sadden, and very sorry for the kid who now has a Police Record for an ignorant mistake. I feel equally sad and sorry for the boy who landed in hospital because of the Principal's "oversight".
This Principal, Ms Chamb, still stubbornly stands by her reasoning that it is good and logical to involve the Police. Then I say, parents should never send their children to this school, where students' mistakes are dealt with in the court of law. Who wants their child to have a police file even before coming out to work?
And even if Ms Chamb does not resign, she will have to live with the repercusions of her narrow-hearted actions.
Personally I believe that in life, what goes around, truly does comes around. And she, will reap what she is sowing. One who administers bitter and strong medicine, will one day receive the same.
I stand my ground, that ruining a young boy's future over possession of porno CDs, is indeed very narrow hearted. She probably be better off working in the Police Force. Not in a school.
Someone, please relocate her.
A school is a place of chance for a better life, not a place where a decent life is easily dashed. -
Heard on CNA that the boy was detained for 7 hours without any food and drink.
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the school made them do self reflection in the sch compound, but overlooked giving them meal breaks.Originally posted by Temujin:Heard on CNA that the boy was detained for 7 hours without any food and drink. -
Being a tad sarcastic now eh T-rex?Originally posted by SingaporeTyrannosaur:Wow, it suddenly dawned on you that this is the system of Singapore that so many are quite disgrunted with is it not?
It's plainly obvious to all but the blind. Yet it is these blind "wise" men who lead the education charge and such an incident needs to be highlighted b4 they come to their "faultless" sense that the system needs changes. -
I personally feel tat they r making a big fuss out of a minor matter. Pornography is so common everywhere. We keep on complaining abt pornography but we r one of the country that frequent visit porno websites.... So how to explain tat??
