Back to School: Ainan's welcome.

Yesterday, Ainan went back to school, after resting a few days at home, owing to his broken arm. His welcome was instructive for what it said about the nature of the various people.

His school friends were very curious about his arm. He was assailed by questions all around of what had happened to him. All were keen to know every detail. That is a natural reaction - and one that showed that, in their childish way, they cared about Ainan and what had obviously befallen him.

The reactions of his teachers were altogether different but even more revealing. Not ONE teacher in his school enquired after his arm. Not ONE showed any interest in learning what had happened to him, or how he was. Incredibly, they had another concern: his hair. Three teachers, on different occasions, approached him, not with the intent to sympathize or enquire after his health - but to order him to do one thing: "Cut your hair, it is too long!", they said, as if each was reading from the same script. Perhaps they were, the script called MOE "teacher" training 101, "How to oppress the little people and make a big deal out of nothing, on a daily basis."

My wife and I were both somewhat surprised at the priorities of the teachers concerned. Part of the teacher's role in life - and an important part - is the physical and emotional well-being of their student charges. A teacher who had those priorities right would, in every instance, first enquire about Ainan's broken arm. They would not ever consider the state of his hair. It amazes me, in particular, that the concern for the hair should have been the common concern of all three teachers who spoke to him - and that not one did the human thing of enquiring after his arm. Their behaviour proves that these teachers do not understand what their priority as teachers should be: the well-being of their students.

For a hot country, Singapore can be remarkably cold at times.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

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