Why I’m taking school TV out of the staffroom
Other teachers agreed, saying a TV would help the teachers learn new things while keeping us informed on current affairs.
About two years ago, during our Prize Giving Day, we invited our MP as the chief guest. After the event, he bought two crates of soda for teachers. Although we were just 16 – including other school workers – when the MP joined us to talk to us and asked for a soda, there wasn’t even one remaining to be given to him. To my shock and awe, some teachers had gulped down up to four sodas.
I would have mentioned them here but I do not have irrefutable evidence to prosecute my case and, as you know, the burden of proof would fall on me.
Anyway, the MP asked what he could buy us.
“TV,” was the answer that Kuya gave.
Other teachers agreed, saying a TV would help the teachers learn new things while keeping us informed on current affairs. Three months later, after a million reminders from me, he delivered the TV.
We were all excited and for the first few days, it was in the staffroom throughout. But I started noticing some things. Some teachers were always on TV, watching programmes that I found neither educational nor entertaining. I did not care about that, what concerned me was seeing teachers miss lessons as they watched TV. As such, we resolved that TV would only be watched in the morning, lunchtime or evening, or when there was an important matter showing — as long as one did not miss classes.
Staff meeting
But this again, was breached. As such, I took the TV to my office. A few weeks later, my son Sospeter broke our TV at home. So, one night, I took the school TV to my house.
No one noticed until early this year when Madam Ruth visited Fiolina. I noted she was interested in the TV and even inspected it. The next few days, several other teachers visited as well, their eyes on the TV.
I was not surprised when in the next staff meeting, Kuya asked me to explain where the TV was.
“This is an election year and we should stay updated,” he said.
I told them the TV was safe, but led by Saphire, they demanded to see it. I returned it one night.
At the height of the campaign season, we agreed that one could only watch when they did not have class, which was difficult to police. I was also a victim, so I could not complain.
When we opened school the other week, the TV was still in the classroom. There wasn’t much to watch in the initial days, but a few days later, a titanic battle started at the Supreme Court.
“This looks like ICC,” said Sapphire one day. “I see they are talking of a pre-trial conference; I wonder who is on trial,” he said.
He added: “This thing is serious. Someone will be jailed.”
On Monday, I spent the morning at home following Supreme Court proceedings. I arrived at school at around 11am and to my shock I found all the teachers glued to the TV.
“What kind of teachers are we?” I asked. “How can we be in the staffroom watching TV instead of being in class? What example are we showing the children?”
I ordered all those who had lessons to go to class. All left except Kuya and Sapphire, who did not have a lesson at the time.
On Tuesday, I also spent the better part of the morning following proceedings from home. I wrote on the staffroom WhatsApp group that I was at the sub-county SCC offices handling school matters.
I left for school later on, arriving at the time a certain lawyer was sweating so profusely.
As I always did, I asked all teachers who had lessons to leave. Kuya did not leave, and when I asked him, as he had a lesson, he said he had covered his lessons during morning preps and that he would be in class during lunchtime and evening preps.
Supreme Court
“I may not miss anything at the Supreme Court, but my students will also not miss anything,” he said.
I asked some teachers to be in class early the next day for preps before Kuya arrived. He was furious on the WhatsApp group when he arrived for preps only to find that all his classes had teachers.
“It is so unfair for me to book a class for preps only to find some of you here already in class. Good luck!” he said.
But when I arrived at 11am and found him watching TV, he said he had given pupils assignments to be done during his lessons. “Do not worry, everything is under control,” he said. Other teachers beat him for lunchtime preps.
“The reason TVs are showing this live is because it is a matter of great national importance,” Kuya said. “We all voted in an election that didn’t seem to have gone right, so we all need to know what exactly happened.”
He went on: “Judges, lawyers and journalists are there throughout the day. Who are we not to follow?”
I reminded him all those he had mentioned were doing their jobs. But he insisted that he could not miss any session and was ready to come to school on Saturday to cover for any missed lesson.
“What example are we showing to the young ones?” I asked him.
“Even children know this election was stolen and they understand,” he said.
On Thursday, I issued him and Sapphire a verbal warning while on Friday I gave them written warning letters, copied to TSC. The two literally spent the week in the staffroom, glued to the TV.
Today, I plan to take the TV out of the staffroom until political temperatures go down. I know there will be a lot of noise, but I have to do what is right for the school. Teachers must go back to class, just like lawyers and judges are in court!
