Do our children need A/c buses & A/c schools?

Matri 2010-10-11 10:25:52

Now that fresh school admission season is around, I thought it pertinent to share my views on this topic.....

School advertisements all around us boast of A/c buses & A/c classrooms and what not. No doubt many parents fall for these 'facilities"(luxuries)which they want their children to "enjoy".But I request you to stop & think - what message are we giving to our children by opting for these kind of luxuries?Do we realize the health hazards involved?

Going to school meant a max 20 -minute ride on a bicycle with friends,school bag strapped on the rear seat. If it rained we would put on a raincoat, if it was really hot , a cap was all that protected us. Did any one of us mind? or feel deprived? Not at all. Did we grow up any worse for the physical exercise? On the contrary - I should say most of us have grown strong and are naturally able to adapt to the hot country that our India is.

Then why, I pray,are we doing this to our children?Are we trying to get them to believe that India is not really a hot country, that they need not get used to the environment here ?Are we trying to show our love & affection by sending them in A/c buses to A/c schools?These questions need mulling over.

It is a well known fact that occupants of A/c buildings report more symptoms than those in buildings with natural ventilation. It is clear that A/c systems disseminate comtaminants into the indoor air and increase transmission of infectious respiratory ailments that make the kids feel miserable.

In the corporate world, as working parents, we cannot avoid air conditioning , but why subject our children to these conditions? Children will pay for the present comfort( and the hole in the ozone layer) with increased skin cancers & suppressed immune systems.We must allow our kids to get used to the normal temperatures outside.

To conclude - Do not encourage or opt for schools that are air-conditioned - for your child's own good.

Let your children have exposure to their natural environment. Choose schools that let the kids play in open & natural surroundings.

Help your children grow healthy and strong - normally.

hiradhu 2010-10-11 10:40:39

Well said.

I really feel sorry for present day kids..I dont think they will ever go to school in a cycle even if the parents wish..Look at the traffic conditions in Bangalore, no parents will be dared to send even grown up kids in cycle.

Even I was looking for such a down to earth school where the kids play with simple things like a exam pad as cricket bat... lot of open space etc..etc.. hmm no..

I wish India turns back to simple living..back to past..back to older India..

mickey 2010-10-11 11:29:54

Very well said and written Matri. I agree with you 100 %.

Many parents provide these simple luxuries just to see that their kids are comfortable enough and don't face any hardships what they have gone through in childhood.

I agree with Hiradu too. Traffic conditions have become worst in every part of India and parents dread to send their children on cycles. Many good schools lack open space and playgounds too !!

I have opted for a school where my child is not confined to AC classrooms and travels by a regular bus. If all of us make this effort, definitely the schools which charge exorbitant amount in the name of AC campus and Buses will come down.

Regards,
Mickey

Matri 2010-10-11 14:56:50

Hiradhu,

Thank you.

The image of the exam board as cricket bat is so wonderful! Just like the paper boats and paper rockets!! Yes , The old India was so much simpler.

Matri 2010-10-11 15:02:12

Mickey,

Thanks so much.

"Many good schools lack open space and playgounds too !!" This sentence of yours held my attention....

Unfortunately, at an age when kids need to be physically the most active, the very place where they spend the full day provides them no opportunities to play.

Then how do we call it a" good school"?

I am so glad that you have shunned the luxury schools.

Regards,

Matri

Former member 2010-11-06 18:09:32

True and hope all parents who think this is the call of time to send children to POSH schools get up from their dreams and equip children with the reality adaptation.

The day you come out of school and college, no guarantee that the children will be put in a/c cabin. moreever, if that happens in place like India in next 20 years that all houses and offices are A/c, theer will be no environment to live 40 yrs of average healthy life.

Schooling is an experience which carves a mind, you need more indentations to have a solid base for the craft, which you get ONLY in core education system in outer world, not is 4 a/c walls of schools.

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