A cheeky 11-year-old girl in the UK accused her teacher of “a war crime” under Geneva Conventions for punishing the whole class for the actions of a few in a school feedback form that has gone viral online.
Ava Bell was asked to fill out a form for school with questions for students about their teachers. One asked how teachers can do better.
Her father, Gavin Bell, who is based in Glasgow and is also known as author Mason Cross, revealed on Twitter that in the feedback form she criticised the policy of punishing a whole class for one person’s bad behaviour -- by citing the Geneva Conventions.
Asked what her teacher could do better, Bell wrote, “Not use collective punishment as it is not fair on the many people who did nothing and under the 1949 Genva [sic] Conventions it is a war crime.”
“Not sure if I should ground her or buy her ice cream,” Gavin tweeted.
The picture showing the suggestion, handwritten in pencil, has been “liked” more than 500,000 times on Twitter.
{{/usCountry}}The picture showing the suggestion, handwritten in pencil, has been “liked” more than 500,000 times on Twitter.
{{/usCountry}}“I should clarify that she thinks her teacher is awesome. It’s just this aspect of the educational justice system she has an issue with,” Gavin said.
He told the BBC that he came across the form at a parents’ evening, where folders of the children’s work are displayed for their guardians to read.
He said it was entirely characteristic, “She will never let an argument go at home!”
Various fellow parents joked that the young Bell was precocious, and this could be just the start for her.
A more cynical observer also accused writer Gavin of making it up.
The father replied, “Dude, if I’d made it up I would have got her to fix the spelling of ‘Geneva.’“
The Geneva Conventions comprise four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish the standards of international law for humanitarian treatment in war.