Schools must incorporate best policies, practices to elevate learning experiences
Children spend a large part of their waking hours in the classroom, and eventually, the school becomes a second home and a safe haven. But what can one do when this safe space turns out to be uncertain?
As per a survey presented by INCIDIN Bangladesh in collaboration with the Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF), 86.1 per cent of children experienced emotional abuse at educational institutes, while 82 per cent were subjected to physical violence. The survey findings have sparked questions about the rights of students and young children. When violence is part of the educational environment, all students are affected in one way or the other. Even if a student is not a victim of violence in school, there is a very high chance that he or she will be affected by witnessing violent acts throughout the educational years.
UNICEF has reported that 1.2 billion children live in countries with complex emergencies, with 34 million children currently displaced by natural disasters, putting them at risk of violence, exploitation and abuse. Adding to this, one in 10 children is in child labour, with 79 million in hazardous work. Violence against children has become significant, with 1 billion children experiencing physical, emotional, or sexual violence every year.
The scale of the data and statistics is shocking, and so is the specific situation of safeguarding in schools. According to the Center for Global Development, 19 to 47 countries globally do not have a code of conduct for teachers. The lack of proper rules and regulations allows criminals to commit such heinous acts and breaks children’s trust in adults and law enforcement. The scenario is quite similar in the case of Bangladesh, as very few numbers of schools maintain appropriate child protection policies.
In order to mitigate the risks of abuse in the current education environment across all private and public schools nationwide, the British Council recently organised the Bangladesh Safeguarding Summit, where schools like Haileybury Bhaluka came together to embrace the latest international safeguarding standards. Haileybury Bhaluka played an important role in the summit as the only school in the country awarded the ‘Centre for Safeguarding Excellence’ by The Safeguarding Alliance. With the launch of B-SAFE (Bangladesh Safeguarding Alliance for Educators), the summit focused on enabling all schools to share best policies and practices safeguarding current and future students.
Schools that are safe and secure promote the protection of all students from all kinds of violence and harassment, as well as a healthy environment and robust curriculum. Very often, school safety is linked to the improvement of student and school outcomes. A safe and caring school environment is one in which students feel positively connected to others, respected, and valued. To create such an environment, all schools in Bangladesh need to stage workshops and training events and support the certification of school teachers and other staff members.
In this increasingly volatile world, safeguarding the students is non-negotiable. Schools must build secure and nurturing environments that protect the future generation.