Tumpang Lalu : Student’s Facebook posting: Teachable moment wasted.

I often hear parents complaining about the quality of today’s teachers. They say teachers are not as intelligent as one would expect them to be, or not as caring as one would expect them to be or not as dedicated as one would expect them to be.

I usually defend teachers, mainly because I had some good, inspiring teachers. I tell those who complain that not all teachers are bad and that there are some dedicated people in the profession.

But, I must admit, in the face of more and more complaints, and incidents involving teachers, it is becoming very difficult for me to defend them. And it is becoming tougher to defend our education system, too.

Just tonight, a friend called me to ask what I had to say about the teacher who is said to have circulated a screen-capture image of a student’s Facebook page, leading to threats against the boy.

Frankly, I told him, I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry over what the teacher did, and also over the fact that police are investigating the boy for sedition.

The Form Five student from south Seberang Perai, Penang, had apparently clicked “like” on a “I Love Israel” Facebook page. The student has since told police he had accidentally pressed the “like” button.

Anyway, a teacher at his school allegedly circulated a screen-capture image of the post. Reports say she commented in Malay: “My student likes Israel? How shameful for me.”

The Malay Mail reports that her comment drew calls from other Facebook users to boycott the student. Another teacher is supposed to have written: “Kita bakor je hahaha (We just burn hahaha).

The student lodged a police report as he feared for his safety. He and his family want his name cleared. He has since deactivated his Facebook account.

What is interesting, too, is the reaction of the police. The Malay Mail quoted Penang police chief Datuk Abdul Rahim Hanafi as saying that the boy had been called in for questioning.

Abdul Rahim also said the police had questioned the teacher who had allegedly linked the teen to the “I love Israel” Facebook page.

The state’s top policeman then said: “We are investigating him (the student) under Section 4 (1) (a) of the Sedition Act.”

What can I say?

The boy says he did not knowingly or intentionally press ‘like’. But, the question is this: Is it an offence to ‘like’ such a post? If it is, the police should go on a blitz to educate the public about it.

I am astonished at the reaction of the teachers to this incident. They may have just revealed their true character through their posts.

I think they missed a great opportunity to educate their students. If I had been a teacher, this is what I would have done:

I would have called the student and asked him why he had done what he had done. If he had done it willfully, I would have asked him why he felt that way and engage him in conversation.

If I felt strongly that no Malaysian should ‘like’ Israel, I would have put forward reasoned arguments to convince him. If I did not have reasonable grounds to convince him, and if I knew that it was just an emotional response on my part, I would have advised him to be careful about what he posts as he could get into trouble with some people.

If, as the student says, he had accidentally clicked ‘like’, I would have advised him to go and click ‘unlike’.

I would not have posted a screen-capture image of his post on my Facebook page.

I would have used this incident to have a discussion in class about conflicts and how it affects people. I would have avoided the blame game and encouraged the students to talk about the suffering that ensues from war and why it is important that we live in peace with each other.

I would have guided them to discuss whether it is right to hate an entire race or community just because of the actions of some people of that race or the leadership of that community.

I would then have gone on to get the students to suggest how Malaysians of various races and religions could become closer, and impress on them that each of us has a role to play.

This incident was an excellent teachable moment, and the teachers just wasted it. What a pity.