UK Schools Ban Kids From Making Best Friends

Honestly, I'm surprised at what is happening at schools in the UK lately. After hearing about and starting a thread about the recent banning of triangular flapjacks at a UK school www.abovetopsecret.com...), I thought nothing would surprise me.

I live in the US, and schools here have certainly been engaging in some ridiculous activity; the suspension of a boy for chewing his pop tart into the shape of a gun comes to mind.

But NOW we have THIS from, apparently many, schools in the UK...and it appears to be spreading:

UK schools ban children from making best friends

Teachers in some UK schools are banning children from making best friends, The Sun reported earlier this week, in order to spare them the pain of losing a friend after a falling-out.

Instead, children are encouraged to play in large groups. "Educational psychologist Gaynor Sbuttoni said the policy has been used at schools in Kingston, South West London, and Surrey," the Sun's Harry Hawkins reported.

"I have noticed that teachers tell children they shouldn't have a best friend and that everyone should play together," she said. "They are doing it because they want to save the child the pain of splitting up from their best friend. But it is natural for some children to want a best friend. If they break up, they have to feel the pain because they're learning to deal with it," Sbuttoni added. "I don't think it is widespread but it is clearly happening.

It seems bizarre," said Russell Hobby, of the National Association of Head Teachers, who confirmed the bans.

www.examiner.com...

Really, it looks like these school administrators and teachers are going power-mad in their control over kids.
Am I alone in thinking this? This just seems crazy to me.

reply to post by IAMTAT


[size=12]WHAT??????

I really hope this is not true! If it is, I hope my friends in the UK rise up and stop it! Politically Correctness, is a plague designed to make human emotions and feelings a criminal act!

Banning best friends is like keeping true lovers apart. Impossible.

Maybe these teachers need to revisit their childhoods for a minute or two and just remember the best times were those with best friends.

Peace

reply to post by seeker1963

It is apparently a reality. I can't believe there isn't some outrage over there. I KNOW there would be if it happened on this side of the Atlantic.

More links on this:
www.thesun.co.uk...
www.foxnews.com...

Since when do Schools dictate who we make friends with, everyone needs a best friend, its the power hunger of those teachers and I believe its all personally motivated because they did not have a best friend in school, More and more you are seeing these type of moves by schools around the world, it a personally choice freedom to choose who your friends are. Schools need to keep their nosies out of personal issues unless it means harm to another.

reply to post by IAMTAT


In all honesty, after hearing my kids arguing with their mates over their 'best friend' I wish the term had never existed! Why can't kids just have friends?

I'm sick of hearing my girl say stuff like "I'm not allowed to have any other friends"....etc Apparently having someone that you thought was your best friend putting all over facebook that actually X is her best friend, it is the end of the world... ( ooh... I could make a doom thread about it)

This is probably why most of us either couldn't care less or actually disagree with the term which actually promotes insecurity.

TBH there are just far too many other and bigger things to be bothered about.

Just my opinion

reply to post by IAMTAT
Really what it boils down to isn't preventing the kids from pain if best friends "break up" but to force the children to be friends with everyone, even kids they don't like, so that none of the little buggers feel "left out". They are programming them at an early age to do what is considered best for the "collective" rather than what is in their own personal best interests. Let the brain washing begin!

reply to post by Threegirls

Understood, but do you, as a parent, really think that deciding who should and should not be your child's friend should be up your school? Isn't this a parent's responsibility?

reply to post by IAMTAT


I don't really see it like that. It's not saying that they can not be friends but that for the sake of tact and courtesy it's nicer not to tell everyone who your favourite is.

I didn't even know they could control that, I thought you making a best friend was part of your own free will. It's part of life to fall out with best friends, but they're your best friends, you always make back up. Encouraging kids to play in groups, fine, but not when this is the reason for it. But everyone has a best friend, the one person you can share everything with and completely trust. Why is that such a bad thing?

Hmm... no, best friends are completely natural, especially for introverts. I bet some introverts are seriously pissed off over there.

Originally posted by darkbake
Hmm... no, best friends are completely natural, especially for introverts. I bet some introverts are seriously pissed off over there.

Yes, Adam Lanza was an introvert.

Mind Control!! Plain and simple.

Every facet of the human experience is becoming increasingly controlled, manipulated, and modified by external forces. Every new story like this further confirms what I suspect many (who do not operate in hive thought) have felt for a long time.

Sad. Just very sad.

I'm not sure we're been told the true depth of this bizarre plot. Surely they didn't just come to this conclusion on the sole basis of kids getting upset by fall-outs.

I'll be keeping an eye on this one for sure. One can only imagine how they would implement this kind of control.

And i thought my education was #ed..This takes it to a whole new level

What is a best friend?

I mean usually having a best friend doesn't segregate you from the rest of your peer's or make you not bother with other people...it just means there is another individual you lean toward's and have some kind of infinity with. Nothing that these school's are suggesting will stop children from having a best friend.....

I have children and I have always considered that having best friend's is an important part of emotional development for children and encourage's stability and security.

I fear for our children in school's when the teacher's and governor's who over see our children's education are devoid of logic and have little or no common sense

Originally posted by Logos23
What is a best friend?

I mean usually having a best friend doesn't segregate you from the rest of your peer's or make you not bother with other people...it just means there is another individual you lean toward's and have some kind of infinity with.

Exactly The schools which implement this would just be causing the exact problem the seek to avoid.

A true friend helps you get over hard times, they're your rock. You could be with a thousand strangers and still feel comfortable with just your one best friend.

This idea is just insane. How the # do they have a job, I don't get it.

reply to post by Logos23

I see you're from the UK...Apparently, schools in the UK feel they know better than you do regarding who your children should have as a friend. I would be angry as hell if they tried to control my sons in such a manner. Who do they think they are?

I am afraid that in the future there will be no more free thought, free association, free will, or freedom of choice.

We are being groomed toward a collective (hive) form of thought where humanity will be nothing more than drones.

It's an isolated occurrence and won't spread because it's just plain stupid.

I'm sure I could trawl through the American rags, (The Sun is a disgrace of a 'newspaper' and is only good for horse racing, Striker and Page 3), and come up with some equally ridiculous article on PC driven schooling and try to portray it as representative of the US school system as a whole.

The Sun has it's own agenda which it pursue's with vigour at every opportunity.

This is not representative of 99% of schools in the UK and as such your thread title is misleading.