Silencing the mother is silencing the child

It has always been believed that women are only capable of receiving, repeating and reproducing knowledge that comes from external authorities.
This has always implied that women are incapable of producing their own ideas and implementing them. This explains why, for a long time, women have not recognised that they are capable of creating knowledge themselves.

One of us had the opportunity to attend a parents’ meeting at a certain school. The main purpose of the meeting was to select a new School Board among the parents and dissolve the outgoing one. What happened there was a true and painful reflection of gender discrimination. After a good one and a half hours, the meeting was adjourned, without fulfilling its purpose. The main concern (although not being the main reason why the new board was not elected) was that the people who attended comprised of too many women.

 “We rebuke the school’s act of calling a meeting midweek. Most parents are at work, which is why this meeting is comprised mainly of women. How can we select a school board from a group of women? We all know women cannot speak out, and electing them to be part of the school board is impossible. My suggestion is that the school calls a meeting on the weekend, so that most parents can attend.”
This is a direct quote from one of the men who were most vocal. This statement, among many, was met by cheering from both men and women.

Outstanding

Now, the implications of the man’s statement can be many, but the most outstanding are thus: first of all, by saying ‘most parents are not here/only women attended this meeting’ it is clear to tell that women are not regarded as ‘parents’ or rather they are not parents enough, according to these men. Another point is that women are incapable of serving in the school board, and the reason being – simply because they are women. The group’s mentality was reflected in the fact that the outgoing board was comprised mostly of men, with an exception of one woman. As if the outrageous comments were not enough, the rage was fuelled by the realisation that the team that came from the Ministry of Education to represent the regional inspector in the election process were only women. The comments about that were beyond sexist.

A woman who stood up to submit her comments was not only booed but humiliated as well. This only left one wondering, if the parents are not allowed to speak, how will the children ever be heard? If the parents that entrust a school with their children are silenced by the authorities of the school, then what environment is being created for the children?

Society forgets one thing, that a mother is the first teacher of the child. If anyone knows how to deal well with children, how best to teach them life facts, it’s a woman. The mother teaches the child how to walk, talk, eat, everything. Everyone is a prime product of their mother’s teachings, one way or the other. Mothers understand that childhood is an important time, and teachers really need to understand children in order to be effective. Silencing the mother is silencing the child, and that undermines the fruitful efforts of the mother in raising her children.

If parents are to entrust teachers with their children, then teachers must be willing to work hand in hand with them, and recognise the mothers as the natural educators of children. Children need a home-like environment in order to grow, learn and develop. The mentality that women cannot be leaders is outrageous on its own, robbing them of the voice to speak about how their children should be taught is beyond the word.

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