PART-I: Finding Purpose in Chaos

A sudden phone call from a reputed private school during the day alerted me. I was told to attend the school as the Principal wanted to see me. I rushed there to check whether “all is well”. Once inside, I went straight to the principal’s cosy office, equipped with latest technological equipments, CCTV cameras and what not. You know, this has become routine: at the end of every examination, they create hue and cry, spill ink on each other; this time, they have torn each other’s shirt pockets.

“So, we are going to suspend the students, and we have identified two students.” I was among the group of parents whose ward’s pockets had been torn in this incident.

Upon further inquiry, I found this was not the first such incident. Students, at the end of term or annual examinations, indulge in such activities. They also damage tables, chairs, doors, windows and tear charts before winter break, and that happens in almost all senior classes.

It is impossible to believe that all students, belonging to disciplined and reputed families, would indulge in such activities. There must be something wrong with the system or schooling. Why would any student damage the same space where he spends best and innocent part of his life? This indirectly means the student wants to convey something, expressing his feelings through anger and frustration.

Evolution of education and our understanding of adolescence

I was both worried and surprised. After hearing this story, two questions popped up in my mind, and I asked the principal: “Sir, can you please explain to me what we understand by an adolescent male child, how we define him, and is silence same as discipline?” Unfortunately, I didn’t get any reasonable reply, which led me to ponder these two questions. While contemplating, I learned that recorded human evolution is more than 8 million years old; civilization began some 6,000 years ago, and formal education as we know it emerged about 200 years ago.

That means if the entire period of human evolution is a thousand-page book, civilization is just a page, and formal education a comma in that entire volume. So if it’s only a comma, then the question arises: have we reached the level where we can label students as good or bad, intelligent or unintelligent, successful or failures? Where does our education system stand in this sequence of events?

This led me to further explore the past, a time without schools. What happened then? People lived and loved, children were born and brought up healthy, able to withstand the vagaries of time and tide, surviving what we fail to do now—without a single vaccination or immunization.

I discovered that period was a golden time. All work was divided: fathers took care of male children, teaching them life skills like food gathering, swimming, catching and growing food, hunting, and caring for families. Females cared for other children, cooked food, and kept their surroundings clean.

As modernization progressed, females assumed all roles. They not only bore children but, from morning till evening, were busy with them—feeding, clothing, sending them to school, teaching them, and sharing their sleeping space. Meanwhile, men became busy with offices, shops, and other activities, reducing their role in upbringing, and eventually absconding from the scene of parenting.

Schools, which are mostly run by female staff members, handle these children during the day, being in their presence. The entire system becomes feminine, and even a slight outburst by a male child is seen as indiscipline and bad behaviour—when viewed through a feminine perspective.

So, the first question: Who is an adolescent male child, and how do we define him?

Let’s define an adolescent male child. Is he characterized only by external secondary sexual characteristics like a deep voice and beard, or is it something beyond that? Let’s delve into the hormonal changes in both males and females up to adolescence.

Key hormonal changes from birth to adolescence in both male and female children

Both boys and girls have the same set of hormones at birth, and at puberty, the same set gives rise to testosterone and estrogen.

At adolescence, boys experience a surge in hormones, which leads to growth and reproductive maturity and same way girls experience surge is estorgen which is responsible for their specific characteristics and emotional as well as behavioural make up.

Key characteristic changes in adolescent males due to the surge in testosterone include:

• Physical, emotional, and behavioural changes, including heightened impulsivity and risk-taking behaviours.
• An increase in approach-related behaviours like sensation-seeking and proactive aggression.
• Stronger sensitivity to immediate rewards: adolescents may favor short-term gains over long-term benefits.
• Mood swings.
• Motivation for social status and competitive behaviors, which can influence both testosterone levels and behavior.
• Increased emotional intensity.
• Vulnerability to peer influence.
• Potential for greater self-confidence, or conversely, low self-esteem in the absence of supportive social structures.

Emotional and cognitive changes females

• Mood fluctuations: The surge of estrogen and other hormones during puberty can lead to mood swings, increased emotional sensitivity, and sometimes heightened risk of depression or irritability.
• Increased emotional intensity: Girls may feel emotions more strongly and have more volatile or intense emotional responses.
• Changes in social behaviour: There can be a greater interest in relationships, self-image, and social status as estrogen influences cognitive and social development, in addition to risk taking behaviours, peer influence etc.

These are some of the changes in adolescent males and females, so it is more than merely external characteristics; it is something deeper that needs recognition and proper channelling.

The question arises: Are teachers in private and government schools trained enough to understand and appropriately deal with these changes, or is there a single solution to all problems—Silence?

 All views are personal with no intention to promote, demote, hurt of abuse any individual, or organisation.

 Tariq Ahmad Wani (JKPS) 2008 batch officer is presently posted as Superintend of Police.