Teachers 'steal' to teach students a lesson
Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) is one of Singapore's top schools. Image source: AsiaOne
Students at a top institution in Singapore had a rude shock when they came back to class to find some of their personal belongings missing.
The 'theft' was apparently the work of teachers, who sought to teach careless students "a lesson they'll never forget", for leaving their valuables around unattended.
Teachers at Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) would take items such as wallets and other valuables left behind in classrooms, and inform students on their whereabouts at the end of the day.
One student who wrote in to STOMP, a citizen journalism website, claims they were made to write apology letters before they could claim the "missing" items.
The student also questioned if the move was necessary.
"I have seen the panic and despair of my friends and classmates when they had discovered that they lost their belongings. One of my friends lost his wallet, with cash, his EZ-link card and even his IC inside.
"Before we knew that the school had taken them, we even suggested to him that he make a police report. This is the severity of such an action," the Hwa Chong student wrote in an email.
The student added: "Furthermore, some of us are required to move from class to class between lessons. This would mean that locking of the classrooms is impractical as a solution to this. Furthermore if a thief is really that determined to break into the class, he can climb through the windows or break them.
"Must we all then, get metal chains to chain all of our belongings by our side wherever we go anywhere in school?
"I don't see why the students, being potential victims of theft, should be punished for being just that."
Source: AsiaOne
Published July 30 2010
Comments (8)
getting robbed and rapped in malaysia doesnt get your money or virginity back just by writing apology letters.
and which country doesnt flood?!
at least sg solved the problem in less than a day (which no longer posed a problem in the following days of heavy rain) and omg. you could actually think of flooding of mrt stations! maybe worry about the corruption that can give away the whole msia before the flood can get into sg's mrt stations！hahahaha!
haha.