10
-NiE ,
24 MAY 2017
ADVANCED
Fairness and justice NiE Activity 1 Critical thinking ● Identify ● Reason
● Measure ● Organise
Critical thinking ● Imagine ● Brainstorm
● Connect ● Invent
Problem solving ● Question ● Recreate ● Research ● Present
Communicating ● Oral
● Aural
Free the children WHERE do you think your clothes are made? Who stitches the football you kick about? If you read the labels, you will notice that many items are made in countries with questionable labour laws like Pakistan, India, Brazil, Mexico or China. Thankfully in a country like ours, child labour is outlawed. But in the early 1700s and 1800s, children were viewed as miniature adults and hence were subjected to work. When machinery replaced hand labour for making items, lots of factories in the United States employed children who were cheaper to hire than adults. Unfortunately, there are still countries in this world that do not have laws that protect children. These children may not have rights to an education. Read the story Kids fuel Myanmar economy that appeared in The Star on March 23, 2017.
Kids fuel Myanmar economy
Thousands of children put to work to support nation’s growth Hmawbi (Myanmar): Fourteen-year-old San Min Hteik had worked at the steel factory for less than a week when his hand got caught in a machine, a casualty of the economic boom driving more children into Myanmar’s factories. Two of his fingers were lost after the rod-cutter sliced them down to the bone and weeks later doctors are still unsure whether they will be able to save the others. He is one of thousands of young factory workers fuelling Myanmar’s rapid growth as foreign investors pile into the country after the end of half a century of military-governed isolation. With one in five children aged between 10 and 17 in work, impoverished Myanmar is one of the worst countries in the world for child labour. Many support their families sweeping shop floors, serving in tea shops or working as domestic helpers. Others labour in the increasing number of foreign-owned factories that have made Myanmar one of the fastest-expanding economies in the region, with growth expected to average about seven per cent in the coming years. “I cannot do what I want to do, so I feel depressed,” said Min Hteik, staring at his bandaged hand at his home here outside the commercial capital of Yangon.
Child labour exists for many reasons, chief of which is economic gain. In groups of three, take about 10 minutes to come up with a list of reasons why children might be forced to work. (Hints: poverty, lack of decent jobs for adults, gender inequality, etc.). Next, discuss these questions before your teacher moderates the activity.
1. 2. 3. 4.
● Identify ● Reason
● Measure ● Organise
Creative thinking ● Imagine ● Brainstorm
● Connect
Problem solving ● Question ● Recreate ● Research ● Present
Communicating ● Written
“I want my family to have a decent standard of living. I want my family to be able to eat enough ... to be able to wear the same clothes as other people.” He was paid 2.5 million kyat (RM8,000) by the Chinese-owned 999 iron processing plant in the Myaung Dagar industrial zone as a settlement for his injury. His mother Tin Tin Htay said they took the money to pay for his medical bills and to make sure his two siblings could stay in school. “When we were given the cash, I felt sad, as if we were buying my son’s hand with this money,” she said. — AFP
Casualty of progress: Min Hteik’s injured hand will prevent him from working to support his family.—AFP
Do any of the reasons given on the left justify child labour?
5.
Should children work to help feed their families?
6.
If a parent is disabled or incapable of providing food for the family, should the child forego school and work instead?
7.
Are there any jobs that children, under any circumstance, should not be permitted to do? Make a list.
NiE Activity 2 Critical thinking
Conditions at factories were filthy and damp. Children became ill and had no time for school. Due to poverty, parents often turned their children in to factory owners. They worked long hours for very little money. Many people like teachers and labour groups protested the injustice they saw by marching the streets to protest in 1908. Even writer Charles Dickens wrote about such evils in his classic tale, Oliver Twist. Gradually, factory conditions got better and laws protecting children and their rights came into place.
n in unfair situatio Describe an ld ou ity. What sh your commun er tt le a e t it? Writ be done abou s. ew vi ur yo airing to the Editor in The n io ct se s w Vie Refer to the e. id gu a as ar St
What actions do you think the rest of the world can do to eliminate child labour? Who is responsible for taking action? How can you play a role in reducing the amount of child labour worldwide?
le Examp