Prohibit The Break – A Good Punishment At School?
In many schools, it is common to punish children by banning the break or reducing how much break they get. They may be punished for misconduct, for not doing their homework, for talking during the lesson, or for forgetting the subject book at home.
Rest is the right of all children and it is also a necessity for their physical and emotional health. Still, it is still common to withdraw the break as punishment.
Here we review some facts to understand why children should not be banned from having a break.
The break: A child’s right
Article 24 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours.” This includes children who of course also have the right to rest and a reasonable restriction on study time.
Children between 6 and 12 years go to school for about 5 hours. There are also many who stay longer on leisure or other leisure activities, so their time in school can be up to 9 hours. It’s a long and often hectic day…
All children have the right to a moment of leisure and play , just as we at work have the right to take a break. This right is reflected in Article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It states: “States Parties recognize the right of children to rest and leisure, to play and recreation adapted to their age.”
Punishing children by taking a break is an abuse of power by the teacher or the school. The break does not belong to the teacher but is the children’s right.
The benefits of breaks for children
The break offers children many mental, physical, emotional and social benefits and is crucial for children’s development and health. The playtime helps them develop their social skills, learn to share and wait their turn, communicate and solve problems. It is also good for getting rid of tension and stress.
The break is also important from a strictly academic point of view. To learn better, children need a break to process the information. It is as necessary as a math or language lesson.
The break is also crucial for wasting energy and participating in physical activity. It contributes positively to improving school performance and children’s behavior. In addition, a moment of leisure and relaxation is especially useful for children with behavioral or learning difficulties, such as those suffering from ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
Why is it wrong to pull in the break?
Rest is a fundamental part of children’s development. It is an important part of the social interaction that children must have at school. It is an opportunity to rest from academic requirements and a space for recreation, creative development, participation and physical activity.
For children, play is something important that can not be banned or removed. Schools should not use threats to withdraw the break as a form of punishment. They need to find other ways to improve student behavior.
Parents must demand that their children’s rights be respected and ask the school not to punish them by banning breaks. The school must use pedagogical and non-coercive measures to correct any behavioral problems in children. It is important to look for other solutions that do not deprive them of the right to rest.
By removing the break, children also learn that they have to submit to unfair situations without being able to say what they think of them. They learn that their needs do not matter and that they can not change anything they do not consider fair.
