Stop extremism. Teach Afghan kids to embrace peace

There are many factors that contribute to Afghanistan's culture of violence and one of the least understood, yet significant causes is the behavior of school teachers.  For generations, the overwhelming majority of Afghan teachers, poorly educated and not trained in more modern methods, practice corporal punishment in the classroom - hitting, abusing and intimidating school children.  Such acts are not confined to male teachers as beatings of girls by women are almost as commonplace.  Most remarkably, these horrible practices are generally supported by parents who believe that children need to be harshly disciplined in order to learn respect for elders and behave responsibly in class.  After all, that is how they were brought up.

In schools throughout Afghanistan these practices are ingrained in the culture and have a huge, unintended influence on Afghan youth.  Many children who suffer abuse by teachers; especially at an early age, become bullies or join gangs, taking out their hurt and anger on other children, while giving them a false sense of status as kids to be feared and respected.  Others will become more vulnerable to extremist viewpoints and groups as they grow older, motivated not so much by radical Islam, but revenge on how they were treated by their teachers.

When HTAC begins working with a new school, we typically find that anywhere between 85% to 90% of male and female teachers use aggressive tactics in their classrooms.  Through intensive training and on-going coaching, we are able to shift the attitudes and behaviors of most of these same teachers to where almost 90% abandon corporal punishment within a 2-3 year period.

Mr. Abdul Rauf, a teacher in Afghanistan's Farah Province, describes his own transformation after completing HTAC's teacher training course.  "When I was recruited to be a teacher in my village, I resorted to the same aggressive methods of corporal  punishment I had experienced myself as a student since I knew of no alternative.  In my case, our teacher used wooden sticks or shook us to make us sit still and listen.  ILater, I was fortunate to participate in the new teacher training initiative and it has changed my entire perspective on the art of teaching and learning.  I have gained skills in active learning and motivation; that it is far better and more productive to listen and encourage students than to beat or disregard them.  It's better to spend time engaging students in exercises to help them learn the subject at hand and better prepare them for their exams.  Since returning to my school and resuming teaching, many of my students have expressed their gratitude in how I've changed.  They enjoy coming to class and are not afraid to ask questions.  Most gratifying is hearing that they never forget the lessons they are learning and applying in class."

With your support, HTAC can continue reaching out to teachers like Mr. Rauf, who will in turn, positively influence thousands of Afghan students in his lifetime and help keep them from becoming aggressive and radicalized as adults.