Dogs do some amazing things! At different times and in different places we have seen dogs patiently, gently, graciously, quietly, faithfully, compellingly serve their human owners in extraordinary ways, from being their eyes or their ears; we have come across dogs sniff out drugs and danger and diseases. In the recent America’s Got Talent series, the hugely popular dance duo of Roni and her dog Rhythm have completely captured the hearts and dazzled the minds not only of the judges or the audiences but the world through the internet, with Rhythm living up to her name entirely with her movements in sync with her partner and in time to the music. Such training is incredible! And none of it is done with the dog on a leash!
Here in Zimbabwe, not many people see their dogs in such a way! Here they are for the most part, simply guard dogs; their job is to scare people from entering a property, and on the whole, there is no great need to train them to do so. The only exercise such dogs get is running along the fence, back and forward if anyone walks past, accompanying it with loud barking. Many do not even have a fence to run along but are contained within a small barren cage. Some might be fortunate to be taken out for a walk, usually by the gardener, on a leash, at a slow pace. However, if ever the gate is left slightly open, they will run free and explore the world outside, suspicious of anyone who approaches and desperate to enjoy the newness around them. They long for freedom and the wild!
Almost daily, social media groups alert others on the group that some dogs are loose on the road and are taken to nearby vets to be claimed later, it is hoped. Charitable organisations are left to look after dogs that are lost, abandoned or ignored. And we are left wondering the words of the 2000 BaHa hit song, “Who Let the Dogs Out?” Who, indeed? However, here is the thing: dogs should and need to be let out – and off the leash.
The fact is though that we will only let them out on a leash, to begin with. And initially they will pull strongly on the leash, wanting to go their own way. The role of the owner or, let us be more hopeful and call that person, their trainer, is to reach the point where he can take the dog off the leash, confident in the knowledge that the dog will return when called, confident that the dog will not attack or scare humans nearby, confident that the dog will listen, understand and cooperate. We want the dogs to enjoy their freedom, to exercise not only their limbs but also all their senses, sniffing out so many things with their extraordinary sense of smell, exploring, questioning, seeking.
The point of these articles is not, of course, to discuss the various abilities and attributes of dogs; we are dealing after all with education. The point is though that just as dogs are meant to be let off the leash, so too are we meant to unleash our children and to unleash their potential. Too often the education we afford them is one on the leash; we hold them back; we hold on tight, even more so when they strain on the leash. We pride ourselves on the fact that we have them under control but they are not really under control – they are simply under control within the limited space we provide them. And they will run away as soon as they can because they are not receiving any reason to stay.
We need to unleash our children; we need to let them off the leash of the curriculum. When we do unleash them, we will see them achieving their individual potential. They can surely do far more than we allow them to do. They need to explore all the messages that are out there and we need to enable them to make their own mark on society. As with Pavlov’s famous dog, we train them simply to respond conditionally. Do they come to school because they are excited to do so?
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We must create an environment where they want to return for more, where they delight in working together, where they can exercise their abilities and pleasures. We need to expand their horizons, beyond the ‘yard’ in which we are keeping them. We need to allow them to explore, to seek, to look, to question, all for themselves. Above all, perhaps, they need to find life’s real rhythm - to dance through life, with such delight and freedom and expression that they find it against their instincts to want to stop. How patiently, gently, graciously, quietly, faithfully, uniquely, compellingly do our children come to serve each other and this nation? They have talent – let us unleash them!