Education should be a discipline that is given in the best way possible. Many factors have a role to play for this to happen, and one of them is a favourable learning environment. Sadly not all have access to such, students especially ‘freshmen’ are at times faced with an intimidating atmosphere ranging from a peculiar environment, bullying among other daunting circumstances. But what can be done to address such? Tristan Enrique Muvunyi a high school graduate, emphasises the need for an understanding and lenient administration. He believes schools should provide a friendly environment for children to socialise and learn to live with others from different backgrounds. “I think that all schools operate in line with their administration, therefore, since students enroll in those particular schools with different backgrounds, the school system should be in position to help all students in the most proficient way,” Muvunyi says. Edna Asiimwe Mugunga, a senior five student at Lycee de Kigali, thinks that regardless of the principles of the institution the school should not contradict with the students’ beliefs. “The fact that all students come from different paths of life, it is possible that they could not all be believing in similar things, thus the school should be in position to allow students exercise their different beliefs, which I think would even give a better yield in terms of school’s general performance.” Educationists encourage schools to have a variety of facilities to be able to accommodate all the basic needs that may be required in school. They also highlight that apart from ensuring that students work hard to achieve their academic goals, teachers should also encourage students to engage in extra-curricular activities. John Bosco Otim a teacher at Nu-Vision high school explains the role of a student feeling included in a school and how this can be relevant to the institution. “For any school’s development, I believe that students play the biggest role for without their commitment and dedication a school can hardly develop; therefore students should be given a platform that makes them feel free to seek assistance from their teachers and other leaders at school.” Otim says students should be able to identify some of the school principals who don’t treat them well. He also points out that students themselves should create a friendly environment for their fellows. “Students should exercise unity amongst themselves whereby they learn new things through networking. It is through this unity and co-operation that school will be a home away from home,” he adds. He also encourages parents to first learn about the structures of certain schools before they enroll their students. All schools have different styles of operation; this is why parents need to first understand what they want for their children because it is a few schools that will compromise their standards for all students, he adds. Eugenie Mukeshimana a university graduate believes that students should have the love for what they are doing because this way they will master the art of manoeuvring the hardships they encounter. “The best way of enjoying a school is to love learning; I believe that this will boost their confidence hence fighting their low self-esteem.” editor@newtimesrwanda.com
