Opinion : Should teachers set a good example to children?

My good self is often amazed at the bad manners and attitude problems exhibited by so many youngsters these days.

Indeed it seems that a good number of school age children have a mind of their own and show very little respect for anyone but themselves.

It puzzles me as to where the bad influence is coming from that’s corrupting the children of today. However after reading a news story that appeared in the national press recently yours truly is left wondering if the problems are being created by the schools and some of the teachers.

Did you see the article that appeared on a national news site entitled ‘Man jailed for hitting Woking teacher with car‘ which contained a video of an incident where a teacher is carried along on the bonnet of a car. The video, available on the Surrey Police YouTube channel, is shown below.

In my opinion the title for the news item is rather misleading as the car didn’t actually ‘hit’ the teacher, amazingly it appears that the teacher voluntarily got onto the bonnet of the vehicle.

Take a look at the video and you will see the teacher standing in the middle of the entrance road to a school without any high visibility clothing. Surely it’s a bad example in terms of health and safety to try to direct traffic in a dark woolly cardigan?

The teacher directs the motorist to go away, but stands in such a position that the driver has to go backwards (possibly into oncoming traffic). Again very dangerous.

The teacher stands in front of the car preventing the driver from moving forward then sits on the bonnet. By sitting on the bonnet the driver is unable to move the car backwards or forwards. Surely this defeats the fact that the teacher wanted the car to go away?

In my opinion it’s outrageous that a teacher sits on the bonnet of a car and prevents it from moving. Do you agree that up to this point the teacher is 100% in the wrong?

Then the motorist loses it and drives off with the teacher on the bonnet of the car. Look at the video and you will clearly see the teacher sat on the bonnet by his own volition and was merely carried along by the car indeed the car did not technically ‘hit’ him.

Sadly the driver of the car was jailed for ten months for this incident because he drove off with the teacher on the bonnet.

Is it right what the teacher did on the lead up to the point where the car drive off?

There were possible breaches of health and safety (no high visibility or official clothing), the obstruction of a motor vehicle by standing in the middle of the road and then there was the sitting on the bonnet of the car thus preventing the vehicle from moving. I pity the poor driver but do not support what they did by driving off.

The news article tells us what happened to the poor driver but what action was taken against the teacher for creating the situation?

Children watching the video will assume that it’s acceptable to stand in front of cars and sit on the bonnet of a vehicle on the road. Surely this is a dreadful example to set?

I’m beginning to see where the children of today get their bad manners and lack of respect for others and why they like taking part in dangerous activities.

What do you think?

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