The decision to register one’s child in a school is not a decision one should take lightly. It is a critical decision. It is important to note that the school is not a substitute for the home. The school will never take over the responsibilities of the home. Therefore the school is complementary and not a substitute. One of the basic needs of a child is that a child needs somewhere to belong, first a home and second a community. The school is in the community. Proximity of a school to the parents’ residence is not strong enough a reason why the child should be registered in a school.

The truth is that our personal commitment to the best interest of our children would be the foundation of every decision we take concerning our children. Taking these decisions may require information. In most cases parents do not go out of their way to acquire the requisite skills. A lot of times we are not even aware that any skill is required. When we get informed that skills are required, we are too busy to learn the skills and when we manage to learn the skills we are not available to use them.

Here is my humble effort in helping parents to understand the basic issues in respect of child protection. Protection begins with caution. Caution begins with the right foundation. The right foundation is tied to the right information. The right information is not cheap. Now, irrespective of our opinion of what is right, once our decisions on any matter are not in conformity with universal principles, which God established to govern the affairs of the world, we are bound to suffer the consequences.

Our best option is not to put our children in an environment, which is not in their best interest. Do you put your child in the lion’s den and begin to pray that God should keep him/her from the lions. Your foundational prayer should be that God should order your steps away from the lion’s den.  In most cases many lions’ dens are painted in sheep and glowing colours. The colours do not change the inhabitants and their nature of preying. In fact the goal of the colour is to lure the unwary in. There are also many lions’ den with great names and profiles. Their great name and profiles do not change their practices. News of the World existed for 168 years. It was one time the biggest selling English language newspaper in the world, and at closure still had one of the highest English language circulations. Jerry Sandusky, recently sentenced to jail for sexually molesting children under his care including his adopted son, founded The Second Mile, a non-profit charity serving Pennsylvania underprivileged and at-risk youth in 1977. His empire of deception only crumbled in 2012. Long years of existence and results do not necessarily equal best practices. Best practice in any endeavour is a culture, which is created and sustained by 2 factors. The first is the commitment of its promoters and the second, is the informed vigilance of the clients.

Join me tomorrow as I begin to show you from experience, the factors to look out for before you register your child in a school. Stay INSPIRED.