Discipline Should Guide a Child, Not Break Their Confidence

I am extremely concerned about the way minor incidents involving my son are being escalated. He was accused of “backchatting,” yet when I asked the teacher exactly what he had said, I was told his response was simply, “Okay.” I understand he should follow instructions promptly, but calling that backchatting feels disproportionate.

On another occasion, he was removed from class for asking another learner for a pen, resulting in him missing the lesson. The following day, another issue was escalated because he brought flavoured still water to school, including a reflection form. As the parent who provides what he takes to school, surely I should simply have been informed that flavoured water is not permitted.

These incidents occurred across consecutive days and involved different teachers. I support discipline and will correct my child when necessary, but discipline must be reasonable and educational, not punitive over every minor mistake. Constantly labelling and escalating small incidents risks damaging a child’s confidence and making school feel like a place of punishment rather than learning.

As a mother of boys, I am increasingly concerned about how boys with strong personalities are managed. I have raised my concerns with the school in writing and, at the time of this review, have not received a response.