My daughter subscribed my number onto her P7 class WhatsApp group. While I had resisted initially, I later accepted and it was the best move I ever made last year. This helped me get to understand how the “children” of nowadays think, behave and what they aspire for.
When the PLE results came out, the aura of expectation was very high and one could see it in the kind of messages they shared. That is when the reality begun sinking in. Many were sad that they had not gotten the kind of points they expected. I could literally see them downcast and engaging in pity parties. Unfortunately, I couldn’t engage them since they would mistake me for my daughter.
However, what hurt me was when they begun sharing about how their parents were treating them. It was such a sad state of affairs. Below are snapshots of the conversations they were having:
This exchange clearly shows the maturity of our children at 12 years. You can evidently see the emotional torture they are being put through and the fact that they know and expect to be treated better.
If you are a parent disappointed with your child’s performance, step back and stop the condemnation. You might be causing irreparable damage to their self esteem and sense of worth. It is not always that you get the best out of people through an abusive approach. The kind of exposure kids have these days demands that we change tact in the way we deal with them. You can still pass on your message about the poor performance in a loving and non disrespectful way.
Besides, who said that failure to get a first grade means that one is stupid? Such a mindset is so crappy and arises out of ignorance in the development process of a human being. Einstein suffered rejection at some points in his life and got denied entry into some academic institutions, however, today we celebrate him for the mind boggling achievements he made in the scientific world. Why then would you want to believe that the ratings of UNEB determine what your child’s academic abilities are? Style up, you should be knowing better, unless of course your self worth is determined by such deliverables.
Let me also ask, Daddy, Mummy, did you get Agg 4 at PLE? If you didn’t, aren’t you a success in your own right? In this article I wrote a while back, I shared reasons why you shouldn’t look at your child as a failure. Maybe you need to read through for a better perspective.
Use this opportunity to celebrate your child, understand them and get them to aspire for greatness through hard work.
Focus on Understanding and Promoting your child’s strengths irrespective of what the Uganda National Examinations Board says.
James Wire is a Business and Technology Consultant based in Kampala, Uganda.
Follow @wirejames on Twitter / Email – lunghabo [at] gmail [dot] com
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