For some parents, their job is more important than their children. They are often busy at work so their children take a back seat.

Some parents think the lack of care can be compensated by providing children with material possessions. They don't understand how important parental care is.

There are consequences to this. If children are not happy at home, they will not have a close relationship with their families. They will become rebellious. They may do things to get their parents' attention, such as abuse drugs or commit crimes. Also, they may lack self-esteem.

Parents and children should talk more. Maybe they can set aside one day a week for a family day.

Queenie Tsoi, St Paul's Secondary School

Guidelines needed on punishment

I am writing to express my views on a news report about a British classroom turning into a 'battlefield' and a teacher seriously hurting a student.

The biggest problem is that parents are too busy to care for their children. Parents put great expectations on teachers to educate their children.

Another problem is that students are very active nowadays. They like to show how fearless they are. As the article mentioned, one way they do this is to test teachers' patience.

Most Hong Kong teachers ignore verbal abuse because they feel it is not serious. But this may make students think it is acceptable behaviour.

Some teachers may overreact in such a situation, like the British teacher mentioned in the article, who beat up a naughty student.

The question is, what should teachers do and what can they do?

The government should give clear guidelines to teachers, stating what action is proper and legal.

Teachers should not be afraid of losing their jobs for trying to do the right thing.

Gabrielle Chan, Tak Nga Secondary School

Little interest in global news

A survey by the Chinese YMCA of Hong Kong showed that almost 70 per cent of local secondary school students have no interest in international news.

They know about environmental protection, but not other important issues such as world peace.

This is because students focus too much on their academic results and don't want to waste time learning about things they feel do not relate to them.

This is a serious problem. Schools could encourage students to be more concerned about the rest of the world.

Teacher can use news as teaching materials. They can cut articles out of English newspapers and discuss them in class.

This would introduce students to global issues and also help them learn new vocabulary. It would kill two birds with one stone.

With teachers' help, the situation could be improved and students could learn more about the world.

Evita Shei, Leung Shek Chee College

World Cup means summer madness

This is a crazy summer, and events happening between June 11 and July 12 will become legendary.

Every four years, the World Cup football tournament comes around.

Fortunately, we football fans have lots of matches to enjoy, even when there is no World Cup.

There is the English Premier League, Italian Serie A, La Liga, the European Champions League, etc. The World Cup, however, is the kind of event that makes for a great summer.

One ball, 22 men and all with one aim. Thirty-two countries are trying their best to strive for honour and make history.

There is a winner and a loser in each match, but fans are always the winners - they can watch incredible matches, famous stars and dazzling skills. It's just like an elaborate dinner - all we need to do is sit down and enjoy. It is sensational. Enjoy the ride.

Kevin Wong