Corporal Punishment Essay, Research Paper

The use of corporal punishment in educational settings has become very rare during recent decades and is forbidden in the school systems of nearly all modern nations. Corporal Punishment still exists in 23 states of the United States, parts of Canada and parts of Australia. In these places, the educator has the right to inflict corporal punishment on his pupils. This practice has gained a lot of attention during the past few years and there have been many studies done on this topic. Also, a common problem with corporal punishment in schools is that sometimes the teacher takes advantage of his position and this correctional activity turns into abuse. Alvin “Boom Boom” Jackson, a former N.Y. Jet, was sued for allegedly abusing a 13-year-old boy at The Classical School for Brilliant Students in Richmond, Virginia, which calls itself a last resort for students with academic and behavior problems. Jackson has said he paddled the boy for fighting with his son and for not working in class. The boy’s parents had produced pictures showing large and dark bruises on their son’s buttocks. When Jackson saw the pictures, he said he didn’t inflict such punishment. A Harris County grand jury declined to indict the former professional football player because even if Jackson had inflicted the bruises it wouldn’t be child abuse because Texas law permits corporal punishment in schools. In Arkansas, Phenia Smith sued Superintendent John Hickman for abusing her son. Edmond Smith, Phenia’s son, claimed that Superintendent John Hickman hit him on the head, hip, elbows and the buttocks on Dec.16, 1994. Hickman supposedly paddled Edmond because of excessive swearing. Some of the students who witnessed the paddling said that Hickman hit the boy between 13 and 20 times. A jury agreed with Mr. Hickman’s attorney that the paddling was reasonable due to the student’s behavior.

. I feel that corporal punishment is wrong and that the practice should not be continued. It can hurt a child physically and emotionally. A severe blow to the buttocks, especially with an instrument such as a piece of wood, could cause bleeding in the muscles that surround the sciatic nerve and possibly injure it and cause damage to the involved leg. Besides the physical damage, there is a lot of emotional damage. Some researchers claim that an act of violence by an adult toward a child, no matter how short or how mild, leaves a permanent emotional scar. To be spanked is a very degrading and humiliating ordeal. It can make a child feel less of himself and it could lead to crime, violence and drugs. It could also lead to other abuse because the child will feel that an adult has complete authority over his or her body. As you can see, Corporal punishment can be very dangerous to the physical and emotional well being of people.