Punishments

The debates over punishments in school is nothing new. It dates back to a time when no one could even tell. It is the practice that could bring two close parties into irreconcilable arguments due to the fact that different parties own different creeds to an extent in which punishments can be considered as acceptable or appropriate.

As for me, I am not a proponent of punishments as too often, I find punishments fail its own objective. Once, I resorted to punishments when my students failed to complete my homework. Throughout my working experience, I had asked my students to individually sing an English song, made them do push ups and even sent them out with the uncompleted task.

If the objective of my punishment was to publicly humiliate my students for not doing their homework, I scored quite well but that was not it. My punishment aimed at making my students' regret of not doing the assigned task kicked in and that they will try harder, next time, to do as I expect them to do.

However, having observed my students' attitude towards punishment, I am certain that punishments fail to threaten my students as instead of leaving them feeling regretful after being punished, I find my students enjoy being punished as being punished means they are the lesson's celebrities due to the fact that a certain amount of time and attention are spent only on how to deal with them. 

In brief, punishments fail to work in my case, so they are in other cases I have witnessed.

Yet a punishment scene witnessed earlier this week shocked me. The punishment was peculiar but has wonderfully answered the question that has been lingering in my head for few years now which is: 

'How punishments can be positive but could bring such an impact in a student's life?'

Since teachers were very disappointed with students' attendance at school break extra classes, all teachers agreed that students who failed to make it to the extra classes should be punished. Many agreed on 'mandi' (bathing) punishment so an ustaz (for the boys) and ustazah (for the girls) had to take the responsibility. Names were called. Students were asked to gather at the assembly point. 

Students patiently lined up and took turn to be bathed by the appointed ustaz and ustazah. Everything looked normal to me until the first student was called.

The ustaz carefully scooped into a pail full with Air Yasin, whispered the student's name, recited some du'a on their crown or 'ubun-ubun' (the du'a varies depending on the students) before pouring the water on the student's head and later wiped it all through the student's face. 

Queued whilst waiting to be punished.

Not a sass.

The punishment, too, was taken to threaten students but it was not the kind of punishment that leaves students with a sense of hatred, malaise and depression. Rather, it is a punishment that is filled with bless, hope and du'a. Indeed, it is not a teacher's punishments that work at soften one's heart to change but the teacher's love through a sincere du'a.

If you, teachers, have to resort to punishments as I might do sometimes, let's do it in a way that is filled with bless, hope and du'a and not merely do it for the sake to make even. I also do not know how we could come up with that kind of punishment but I do believe that if we pray hard enough, God will show us the way and help us through.