In Kenya, students are setting their schools on fire.
I am not joking, nor am I exaggerating. Look at this article
if you don’t believe me.
When I first heard the sisters say that a school was set on
fire, my initial reaction was shock. When they told me the students were doing it, I was baffled. I tried to picture students
at any school I attended setting the place on fire and found myself stumped.
I’ve heard of walkouts or sit-ins, but even then it was generally peaceful and
didn’t last for very long before administrators at least pretended to address
the issue. And yet, here in Kenya, teenagers have set buildings on fire.
Almost every evening as sit around the table at dinner, the
sisters bring news of yet another school that has gone up in flames as the term
draws to a close. The possible reasons why students have decided to set fire to
their schools seem endless. The government has recently changed the length of
terms and breaks and some people have said that the students are setting the
fires in protest because of that. Others say that the students don’t like the
exam schedule changing. The one that Sr. Pat is most convinced of concerns the
cheating cartels. In Kenya, there apparently is an organized group of people
that sell the answers for the national exam to students. Something went wrong
this year and the cartels have not delivered the exam answers yet, possibly
leading the students to set fires to their schools in panic in an attempt to
get the national exams rescheduled for them.
On the evening news, I watched as a panel discussed why
students felt setting their schools on fire was not only a acceptable reaction,
but an appropriate one. What is the root cause of the students’ behavior? This
was the question they wrestled with. Is it because the parents don’t teach
their children right from wrong? Is it because school administrators and those
meant to hear student complaints are never there? Or is it because the news
constantly bashed the new term schedules?
And as one sister put it at dinner, ‘This is why the
preventive system is so important.’
The preventive system is the creation of Saint John Bosco,
the founder of the Salesian order, and focuses on preventing youth from falling
into bad or dangerous behavior. Don Bosco’s preventive system relies on three
things: reason, religion, and loving-kindness. They all interact together, and
to leave one out is to incorrectly implement the system.
First, interactions with youth must be driven by
loving-kindness. And not the distant kind of love. The kind of love that means
you listen to them, you are present with them, you set boundaries when they
need them, and you show them the love that drives your actions in everything
you do. It is not enough to love them; you must show them that you love them.
Second, you must appeal to their sense of reason. This means
explaining why things are supposed to be a certain way, why they are being
disciplined, why this assignment is necessary. It means listening in turn to
their explanations and discussing things with them when clarification is needed
or when they don’t understand.
Third, and the final step, is religion. Obviously, the
Salesian order is a congregation of the Catholic Church. Therefore, teaching
and introducing the youth to the Catholic faith and accompanying them on their
faith journey are huge parts of the Salesian charism (charism meaning their
vocation). Religion is the driving force for every action the Salesians do,
even it is the last step in the preventive system.
What does this mean in context of the school burnings in
Kenya? Well, the fact is that the perpetrators are students. The youth of the
schools. They are the ones going out and buying gasoline, bringing it back to
their schools, and lighting it up after they’ve spread it across their campus.
Many of the schools in Kenya are boarding schools as well, meaning that the
possibility of someone getting hurt is very present. So the ultimate problem
rests with the students that feel setting schools on fire is acceptable.
The sisters say that it is important to reach the kids
before they get to that point. Instill a sense of right and wrong. Cheating
already needs to be seen as unacceptable and teachers need to be aware of their
students’ patterns of behavior. But the sisters also say that it is important
for the children to feel that they can go to the school administrators or
teachers and have their complaints not only heard, but considered seriously.
They need to feel that the people in charge of the school are present with
them, not just lining their pockets and going about their business. If the
students feel that no one cares, then why should they care?
The importance of the preventive system is much clearer here
in Kenya than it was in the United States. In the US, teachers might want to
prevent fighting or other forms of violence. In Kenya, they want to prevent
that, plus arson.
Anyway, now all you readers can say you are (somewhat)
educated on Don Bosco’s preventive system! So let’s end this post with a few
stories (on the lighter side).
Interesting Stories of the Week:
- So I know you all were probably very entertained by my plumbing story last time, so I thought I would give you an update! They fixed everything and I do have hot water now! On the downside…
 |
| …one of the plumbers stepped through my ceiling. |
So now I
have a hole – to add character!
- I taught my first full week of catechism this week! I have no idea what I’m doing! It’s going great! (And I’m constantly terrified I might accidentally commit blasphemy!)
- Also, I don’t know what I was expecting when I came to Kenya, but I have this bush right outside my house and everyday a new flower has bloomed. They don’t all bloom at the same time though. One blooms and then another and so on. Regardless, they are beautiful.
Kiswahili phrase of the day:
- Napenda kula kuku – I like to eat chicken
(Don’t ask)
