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Disadvantages of corporal punishment
Advantages and disadvantages of corporal punishment in schools
Advantages and disadvantages of corporal punishment in schools
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It is early Tuesday morning, and I am involved in my usual early-morning routine: waking up the kids, getting them to wash up and dressed, making breakfast and ensuring they eat it rather than decorate the kitchen with it, and getting them out the door and onto a school bus, while managing - in-between all these activities - to prepare myself for a day at work. This ultimate exercise in multitasking, so familiar to practically all mothers, must be conducted in a limited span of time, where an unexpected delay at any juncture may cause the entire system to fall apart into little pieces. In this situation, when a child is acting out in an unreasonable manner - determined, of course, by a reasonable parent - a quick and decisive punishment might be needed.
Despite various claims by psychologists and sociologists concerning the emotional trauma that physical punishment can cause children in their adulthood, or even teenage years, in my personal experience - shared and agreed upon with my peers - a quick smack on the bottom not only produces the best results in terms of achieving obedience, but also does not carry noticeable emotional scarring that may negatively influence the child's life in the future. This quick spanking does not mean that I love my kids any less or that I would not sacrifice everything I have, including myself, to ensure their well being and happiness. Which brings me to the main point of my argument: spanking can be a viable and effective form of discipline when applied as a measure of
last resort, while being balanced out with love and care under all other regular circumstances.
Even among the opponents of physical punishment, the understanding exists that it is impossible to go through life withou...
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...panking does not turn from an occasional, extreme form of discipline of last resort into a methodical, deliberate system of physical and emotional abuse.
WORKS CITED
Chisholm, Patricia. "Punishment gets a scolding: But anti-spank crusaders collide with critics." Maclean's 112 (1999): D20.
Dodson, Fitzhugh. How To Parent. Seattle, WA: Signet, 1978.
Holt, John. "Disciplining children." Patterns for College Writing. Eds. Kirszner, Laurie & Stephen Mandell. 6th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1975: 304-309.
Miller, Alice. "Against spanking." Tikkun 15 (March/April 2000): 17-19.
Peck, Scott, M. The Road Less Traveled. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1978.
Pomeranz, Virginia E. and Dodi Schultz. "The First Five Years." Student's Book of College English. Eds. Skwire, David and Frances Chitwood. 4th ed. New York: MacMillan Publishing Company, 1986: 194-196.
Luscombe shifts from the use of pathos to logos, by discussing the negative effects of spanking. “Kids who are spanked frequently have lower IQs, are more aggressive, and are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol.” Describing the characteristics of children who are spanked helps reason with the parents reading. Parents want their children to succeed in life, and most will do anything they can to make that happen. So if statistics show that spanking kids as a form a discipline can cause lower IQ’s, this is going to further convince them not to spank, making her argument successful so far. Luscombe then discusses how infants who are spanked “had higher spikes in the stress hormone cortisol when faced with a new experience.” Incorporating studies about how, not only toddlers and older children are spanked, but also babies adds more concern from the audience, further reasoning with them through these
Every schoolteacher, parent or person standing in the place of a parent is justified in using force by way of correction toward a pupil or child, as the case may be, who is under his care, if the force does not exceed what is reasonable under the circumstances. R.S., c. C-34, s. 43. “ (Barnett, 2008
Harvard Medical School . "The Spanking Debate." Harvard Mental Health Letter (2002): 1-3. Academic Search Premier. Web. 23 April 2011.
Spanking doesn’t allow children to learn the reasons why to act appropriately. When parents use physical punishment, such as spanking, to discipline their children, they do so in order to improve their child’s behavior. According to a report composed by a lead researcher in the field of pediatrics, spanking does not teach children the reason for why they are being punished or why their behavior was wrong. Spanking teaches children to act in a desired way only because of fear of being punished. Being a victim of spanking, I only feared the idea of being spanked, and that is why I changed my behavior for the time being. I did not actually understand the reasoning for why I was being punished. Spanked children do not understand the positive and important reasons for acting properly.
Spanking, a fictitious form of child abuse, is an appropriate action toward unruly children. It is a popular practice used to instill discipline and values in children, and is more effective than talking to or yelling at the child or placing the child in “time out” sessions. In the long run, spanking causes no damage to the child’s mental or physical health. Instead, it creates a basis for good behavior.
Critics of spanking need to understand that spanking and abuse are not the same. Spanking is a quick squat on the buttock that causes temporary pain. Child abuse is physical injury such as beating, kicking, or punching a child with cruel intent. Psychiatrist William Glasser makes a distinction between the two. Glasser explains, “Discipline is directed at the objectionable behavior, and the child will accept its consequences without resentment.” By contrast, he defined punishment as, “A response that is directed at the individual” (qtd. in Dobson 96). Spanking allows room for forgiveness and reconciliation. Abuse comes from a place of hostility. It is harsh and leaves little room for forgiveness or reconciliation. Yes, spanking may cause brief discomfort, but it is not the same as beating, punching, or kicking a child.
Holden (2002) reviewed Gershoff’s (2002) meta-analyses of eighty-eight (88) studies and noted that there were both positive and negative outcomes associated with the punishment of spanking. According to Gershoff’s (2002) analysis, the one positive outcome was immediate compliance by the child (Holden, 2002). This result was found to be consistent in five (5) studies. Immediate compliance was defined as the child complying to the parents directive within five (5) seconds. In stark contrast, there were four (4) negative outcomes. The analysis showed a negative effect on the quality of the parent child relationship, the child’s mental health, the child’s perception of being a victim of physical child abuse, and also impacted aggression in adulthood (Holden, 2002).
"There is a great difference between spanking a child and abusing a child. One is an act of love; the other is an act of hostility" -- James Dobson, MD
The general acceptance, and sometimes support, of corporal punishment as a method of discipline is an aspect of the American culture (Barnett, Miller-Perrin, Perrin 61).
...their child while obviously angered, that emotion is likely to be very noticeable to the child. Unfortunately, that anger is all too likely to become attached to the punishment, resulting in the unwanted link of: mad parent = pain. A serene, calm parent is very much less likely to turn out to be an active part of the negative memory. Obviously, this is completely up to the judgment of the parent, but I have a tendency to concur that not only is spanking less likely to be abused if lightly applied, but also it maintains a better influence when it is applied. I would declare only when there clearly doesn't seem to be any other way of getting through to the child. Spanking is unquestionably not the only effective punishment, and perhaps not even the best, nevertheless I consider it to be effective, when applied carefully, in relation with other teaching mechanisms.
Stevens, Rebecca. "Spanking Law." Web log post. Kidjacked.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2014. .
Swat! The entire store tries not to stare at the overwhelmed mother spanking her three-year-old whaling son. As if the screaming tantrum wasn't enough of a side show at the supermarket. This method, or technique perhaps, has been around for decades, even centuries. Generations have sat on grandpa’s lap and listened to the stories of picking their own switch or getting the belt after pulling off a devilish trick. So why then has it become a major controversy in the past few decades? The newest claim is that spanking and other forms of physical punishment can lead to increased aggression, antisocial behavior, physical injury and mental health problems for children. Brendan L. Smith uses many case studies and psychologists findings in his article “The Case Against Spanking” to suggest that parents refrain from physically punishing their children due to lasting harmful effects.
Some people believe that teachers’ using physical punishment is the most effective way to educate students. It is largely because they believe it brings a very quick r...
Smith, Anne B. "The State of Research on the Effects of Physical Punishment." Ministry of Social Development. Ministry of Social Development, 27 Mar. 2006. Web. 11 May 2014. .
DeFrancis, B. (1994). The Art of Discipline. Never hit a child. Retrieved June 9, 2002 from the World Wide Web: http://www.neverhitachild.org/artodis1/