Motivated by Fear

My sons' headmistress (HM) has recently implemented a new rule- carry a book to assembly or get the cane. So I have asked my sons to bring their Kuntums and read those instead. Have you seen the school textbooks lately? Not fun to read- the images and words are ever so crowded, especially for the BM textbook for Year 1 and 2. I prefer reading schoolbooks of my era- they were designed with learning in mind, I thought. But then, I digress.

While I appreciate the HM"s enthusiasm, I am a tad concerned when reading (and maybe learning) is associated with fear. I remember a dear friend of my dad's, the late Pak Kasim, he had the most beautiful handwriting that I've ever seen. He shared that he had his knuckles rapped by his schoolteachers every time he didn't write well. On one hand, a beautiful handwriting was the result of repeated punishment but on the flipside, Pak Kasim didn't like writing & (I assume) he associated writing with pain.

Back in my sons' school, I see the lot of children carrying a schoolbook each. Some do read it while some were just lugging around extra baggage. I can't help but to hope and remain positive that my children won't be too affected by this rule. I would like them to enjoy reading (& exploration of knowledge) as a habit, not because they'll get caned otherwise.