CAIRO - “We want Miss Maysra to go”, “We don't want the headmistress to stay any longer.” These were the words on banners borne aloft by primary stage pupils at a language school Zeitoun, northern Cairo. “Schoolchildren have been joining in the post-revolution dialogue in Egypt. They think it's high time people, especially teachers, were paid according to their performance,” said Amira Maged, 34, a mother of three of the children at the school. Whether the way they protested was suitable or not, the children were determined that certain teachers should change their attitude or be fired. “One of their demands was having one of their teachers fired, because she treated them badly if they didn't take private lessons with her,” Amira added. The education system looks set to witness a post-revolution revolution, as the first revolution has had a remarkable impact on Egyptian children and their behaviour. “The impact of the revolution has definitely had an effect on children; my 12-year-old son now describes me as a dictator,” Amira told the Egyptian Mail. According to Dr Medhat, a domestic counsellor, Egyptian families should begin again on a new, blank page with their children, encouraging more dialogue and discussing every issue with their sons and daughters. “The old traditional way of bringing up our children is no longer suitable. We must put the axe to the root of the problem and no longer force our children to suppress their feelings and opinions,” he stresses. “My daughter has become more bold and her ability to criticise everything around her has noticeably grown,” says a housewife called Azza Nagati, adding that her daughter now insists that all her needs be fulfilled. “Children nowadays notice everything, including the consequences of the revolution, especially the bad economic impact it has had on many families. “My daughter used to say ‘yes' to every decision taken by me and her father; this is no longer the case as she's now started to debate every decision with me,” adds Azza. Many schoolchildren and undergraduates have been talking about the revolution after a long mid-term vacation during in which they watched the crisis unfold on TV, blow by blow. Dr Abdel-Hadi believes that children who have been suppressed for a long time should be allowed to exploit the changes around them to have their voices heard. Amira's children are clearly doing so already.
