The Invisible Pupil

Achelois:

One girl in my new group of students wears the niqaab. Unfortunately she continues to wear it in my class. She wore it on the first day and I asked her after class to remove it because it didn’t make any sense for her to wear it in my presence.

It doesn't make much sense to wear it. Period.

I have realised that the past week I didn’t pay attention to her. Slowly I began to ignore her existence. It was not because I hold any grudges; that is not the case. But I became lazy. She requires a little more effort from me. I need to listen more carefully. I need to notice more carefully whether she is following me. I have to get closer to her when she is involved in group work. So I asked a few male colleagues if  my experience was different from theirs and almost all of them said that they unconsciously begin to ignore students who veil themselves. Perhaps that is the purpose of niqaab; to become invisible?

It's tough to ignore a person; much easier with a garbage bag.

Read the rest as photography gets into the mix.

Comments

[Carol]

Interesting because I have read other comments elsewhere that said, in the US at least, any sort of hijab draws attention to the wearer and she will be stared at. To claim it is for modesty is silly because all it does is make a girl conspicuous. I know I stare because I am always trying to remember the three reasons I thought of once for wearing hijab in a free society, and none of them was really religious.