6.37 PM Friday, 29 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:56 06:10 12:26 15:53 18:37 19:52
29 March 2024

Modern High parents unite on Facebook

Published
By Shuchita Kapur

After the tragedy of the four year-old pupil of Modern High School, parents are looking at a common platform to pressurise the school in taking adequate steps for the safety of their children.

“Everyday a lot of parents are going to the school in small groups and talking to the administration demanding different actions either section-wise or grade-wise or individually. This will have very little effect and we shall not get what we actually want,” read an e-mail, which parents are sending to each other in order to galvanise support.

“Not only for this issue but even on a regular basis we can discuss other daily issues which might need attention. Thus, we all as parents, need a common platform, where we can discuss these and decide our actions to talk to the school, not in small groups at different times but collectively as one,” it adds further.

The e-mail urges all parents to be a part of this movement. “Kindly join Dubai Modern High School parents group on Facebook so everyone can discuss when and for what to approach the school. Also, request you to kindly forward the same to as many parents as possible so a collective action can be taken,” the e-mail adds.

The parents now want safety steps taken beyond buses. “The issue is not only about the buses. We need a foolproof system even in the campus to avoid such heinous crimes and also some other problems like bullying etc. We cannot just talk about this problem and find a solution and then wait for a different problem of different nature and talk again. It should definitely be one bad incident and the last after which such stringent systems should be put in place that leaves no scope for a mistake.”

Suggesting the measures that should be in place, the e-mail lists of what all the school can do on its part. “[A] 100 per cent point-to-point surveillance is required - be it CCTVS in buses and even in the entire campus and the required number of security persons monitoring it during at school hours.

“A female attendant [is a must] in all buses, till the last stop, irrespective of the CCTV. Most schools in India have a senior school and a junior school and there is a purpose [behind it]. There should be separate wing for kindergarten till grade 5th students (juniors) and a separate wing for grade 6th till 12th (seniors) so that even bullying and abuse amongst senior and junior students [can be] avoided. We can’t wait for a different nature of problem to [happen and] then tackle it in [the] future.”

The e-mail asks for “restricted access for transport staff only till [the] main school building where the children should be handed over.  The transport staff should not be unnecessarily allowed in the main school building, wandering for whatever reasons. The female attendant for the respective bus should escort the counted number of children to the bus and from the point picked to the point dropped.

“Kindly forward the same to any Modern High parent who might be interested in taking one collective stand,” the e-mail puts it.