extracted from asia one
FOR three days, Anita Liew and her parents were distraught and
puzzled because they thought she had been expelled from school -
over a few stray strands of hair.
Her mother, Madam Wong Kan May, 44, was first told that Anita
had been expelled over her "unruly hair" after she had failed to
pin the strands from her ponytail neatly.
She was told to find another school for Anita, who is doing her
N levels this year.
It was only after appealing to meet the principal that she was
told it was a "misunderstanding", and that Anita had only been
disciplined, and not expelled.
The principal apologised and Anita, 15, was then allowed to
continue attending the school, Henderson Secondary.
The three days of uncertainty and missed schooling has upset
Madam Wong. She felt the "worry caused was unnecessary".
Initially, she said she found it "ridiculous" that Anita was
being expelled over her hairstyle.
"My daughter has a good record with the school," she said. "She
is not the rebellious sort."
Anita, a Secondary Four student, told The New Paper that on 9
Feb, the principal had walked into the classroom midway through her
Chinese lesson.
Anita claimed: "The principal asked me, "Why is your hair like
that?", then told me to go down to the foyer. I didn't know what I
did wrong but I was very afraid."
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She claimed there were about 10 other students who were told to
gather there.
Anita claimed the principal then reprimanded her, saying her
hair was "unacceptable" and against the rules.
Her account could not be verified because
the principal could not be reached despite repeated attempts to
seek clarifications.
Humiliating
Said Anita: "It was humiliating and I felt embarrassed because
he shouted at me to "get out" and told me to change school. Then he
told me to go to the office and phone my mother. I thought I had
been expelled."
Madam Wong, a housewife who works part-time selling fish, rushed
down to the school from work when she got the call.
She arrived to see her daughter crying outside the school
office.
"My daughter told me she had been expelled. I was very puzzled,"
said Madam Wong in Mandarin.
She asked to see the principal but was told by a member of the
school staff that the principal was too busy to meet her.
"He told me my daughter had been expelled and that the
principal's decision was final. I did not know what my daughter did
but I thought it must have been a very serious offence," she
said.
"I apologised and asked for a second chance, but he told me,
'No' and that I should arrange for my daughter to be transferred to
another school."
She was later told the reason for the expulsion was her
daughter's hairstyle. Anita has long hair and usually ties it up in
a ponytail when she goes to school, said Madam Wong.
She offered to get Anita's hair cut to comply with the rules,
but she claimed the staff member insisted he could not help.
Madam Wong then left with her daughter.
"(Anita) cried all the way home. I did not know how badly the
incident would affect her as she is very sensitive and timid by
nature," said Madam Wong.
"She is quiet, keeps to herself a lot, and usually doesn't say
much. Teenagers can be unpredictable in their behaviour and I was
worried she might react badly."
Two of her friends, former students who graduated from the
school last year, said they were shocked to hear about the
incident. They had been with her in the school choir.
Durkesh, 16, said he had been a prefect and his impression of
Anita was that she was the quiet and obedient type.
"She talks only to people she knows," he said. "Otherwise she
doesn't say much. I don't think she is the rebellious type."
Nigel Tan, 17, agreed, adding: "I don't think she is a
troublemaker or the defiant type. She comes across as the type who
is easily frightened."
Madam Wong's husband called the school the next day and made an
appointment to meet the principal on 12 Feb.
Said Madam Wong: "During the meeting, we were told it was a
misunderstanding and that our daughter had not been expelled. But
the principal said our daughter had repeatedly broken rules by
keeping her fingernails long and not clipping up her hair.
"If she had not clipped her hair properly, why didn't they tell
her the right way to do it? And if she had done this repeatedly,
why didn't the school inform me earlier?
"Also, my daughter has a bad habit of chewing her fingernails
until they are too short. How is it possible that she could have
kept them too long when she can't even stop biting them?"
Upset
Anita was allowed to return to school on Wednesday, after the
Chinese New Year holiday, but Madam Wong is still upset.
"If my daughter had not been expelled as I was initially told,
why didn't her teacher call when my daughter did not go to school
for the following three days?"
"I think school rules are important and I want my daughter to be
an obedient student and behave correctly.
"But in this case, I don't think it was right that my daughter
was asked to leave without a proper explanation when I made the
effort to go to the school," she said.
Student broke school rule
IN A faxed reply to some of the queries from The New Paper, the
school principal, Mr Simen Lourds, said Anita Liew had not been
expelled.
According to him, Anita had not adhered to the school rule that
"students are advised to wear their hair in a neat and tidy
manner". It is unclear if the punishment is also spelt out in the
rules.
Repeated reminders
He said the girl had been given "repeated reminders".
He added that "her parent was thus requested to accompany her
home to neaten her hair", and that "she was not expelled from
school".
He said "students are taught the importance of proper grooming
and observing the rules as a responsible member of the school
community".
The school subsequently met the student and her parents to
discuss the matter. As the student agreed to comply with the rules
with regard to her hairstyle, she has since returned to the
school.
A Ministry of Education spokesman said it provides schools with
guidelines to manage discipline in schools.
Said the spokesman: "Within these guidelines, each school
formulates its own specific set of rules and measures, taking into
account its student profile and what would
best meet the needs of the students."All schools have their rules
on student behaviour and conduct. These would include rules on
uniforms and hairstyles.
"When students, both male and female, are in uniform, they must
be neat and presentable."
