'The customer is always right.' That is the maxim by which the service industry lives and dies. This is especially true for the food industry, which simultaneously sells a product and service.
As an educationist, I have spent over a decade and a half in the field with "old-fashioned" ways of dealing with students. I am unable to reconcile with the new reality of "spare the rod and spoil the child." Having studied at a missionary school, I found this reality particularly hard to digest.
Today, private institutions are operated like commercial entities where the client — the student — is always right. This is because the client is supplying the money to pay salaries and other expenses, in turn, run the institution - preferably at a profit. How do you ensure that this stream of income continues? By ensuring the institution meets and, if possible, exceeds all expectations of the client or the parent body.
The individuals at the frontlines of this industrial complex are the teachers. Or to give them a fancier name which accurately describes their revised roles: facilitators. They are expected to invest all their physical, emotional and mental energies into keeping the children happy. The new motto for teachers is: "Please students at any cost, as they are our clients." This means teachers who must refrain from rebuking or criticising them while extending a free hand. What that bodes for the future generations is anybody's guess.
Teachers have to bend over backwards to please students, or risk losing their jobs, especially if the parent body is influential, extremely wealthy or well-connected or all of the above
The parenting body, by and large — barring a few exceptions — takes the path of least resistance and makes every effort to please their children. The easiest thing in the world is to keep plying young children with whatever they ask for; in short, spare the rod and spoil the child. Keep indulging the children rather than spending quality time with them or disciplining them — which takes time, energy and effort — give in to their every wish so that the storm can be averted for as long as possible and harmony prevails on the domestic front. Of course, this is extremely short-sighted, with the potential to have far-reaching consequences.
Money makes the mare go. Never has this been truer than it is today. Moral values and family ethics, once a source of great pride and honour for people from this part of the world, are rapidly being eschewed in favour of commercialism and rampant consumerism. Today, the money and financial assets an individual owns determines their respect and standing in society.
The stagflation and crippling taxes have completely eroded the purchasing power of consumers. Penny counters now demand a return on investment rate on every expenditure. Since private institutions charge astronomical sums, satisfying the consumer that this sum is worth the education being imparted becomes increasingly difficult. "High-end" or "elite" schools, obviously, have to go the extra mile to justify their fees (a tiny fraction of which trickles down to the teachers), and so the frontline workers have to bend over backwards to please them, or they risk losing their jobs, especially if the parent body is influential, extremely wealthy or well-connected or all of the above.
This leads to high turnover a fact that is generally known and acknowledged is that teachers in this country are underpaid and overworked. However, supply exceeds demand. Inexperienced teachers who are just starting in their careers, who are less likely to ask for more and are over-eager to please because they want the experience, can easily be found. Do not be surprised if you are replaced by somebody cheaper, younger and extremely inexperienced, regardless of the years invested in that institution. Experience today counts for very little in this field, and the absence of regulatory bodies to keep checks and balances on the operational management of schools means they are not accountable to anyone.
Maybe the mess this country finds itself in is largely due to its flawed education system. When children are not held accountable for their actions because of their money, power and connections, then what will they learn?
Where does this leave frontline workers? With minimum pay, long hours, and very little job security, to be hired and fired on the whims of the institution or the parent body, to be more exact. The only way to ensure job security is to keep pleasing the children and the parents so they have no regrets or feel less guilty about parting with hefty sums every month in the name of education. In fact, it is a win-win situation all the way.
What can be the long-term impact of rising commercialism in education? What values are our future generations growing up with? Will they ever learn accountability? Maybe the mess this country finds itself in is largely due to its flawed education system. When children are not held accountable for their actions because of their money, power and connections, then what will they learn? Will they continue to evade responsibility and expect someone else to pick up the pieces? After all, if we were not held accountable for our actions, we would pretty much do as we please.
Teachers have a very important responsibility in society because they are raising and moulding the future generations of this country. Our future is in their hands, literally and figuratively. If private education becomes a business, as it undoubtedly has in this country, if we are willing to compromise on the integrity and respectability of the teaching profession for a few extra bucks, then all I can say is that this country deserves the fate it meets.
We have to take ownership, and inculcate a sense of responsibility in our future generations. Let us not blindly ape the West and hope to retain the family values and ethics that the Eastern Culture is known for. There is a quote that translates as: The key to failure is trying to please everyone. Recognise, respect and value the sanctity and godliness of the teaching profession if you want to forge ahead and make a difference. Beware of sacrificing it at the altar of consumerism, or be ready for the consequences.