As usual, views expressed are my own and are expressed with the knowledge that when I point a finger, three fingers point back at me.

A classmate of my son got expelled from the Acceleration program few days ago. He is probably one of the brightest boys I have ever met. He was expelled because he never did his homework and the school has ‘three strikes and you are out’ policy. Actually, because he is exceptionally brilliant, the school gave him more than three strikes as we are already in term 2 and he has never once submitted/completed any of his homework.

The first week, his mother said, he is just new in to the program, it is the first week of high school and he is just getting used to it.

Second week, she said, they had a storm ( we all did) and a tree fell down near their home. Not on their house, few houses down the street.

Third week, he had an eye test with drops on Sunday and he couldn’t do his home work. ( Home work is given on Every Tuesday and is due on Monday the following week)

Each week, there was an excuse..

I think it was Amma who told me this story. A mother approached her son’s class teacher and told her “Teacher, I know my son is a bit naughty, but I would appreciate it very much, if you could cane the child sitting next to him and not my son even if he is the one that needs the punishment., that way my son will get scared and doesn’t need to get caned and feel the pain”

I am heart broken not because the boy wouldn’t achieve greatness, or got kicked out of the program, but because the one person who should teach him responsibility actually failed him.