In 2001, corporal punishment was officially abandoned in Cassville, USA, but it is making a comeback. In the announcement of the Missouri academy, it is written that the physical punishment will be “within reason” : it’s about hitting the buttocks with a kind of wooden board. Corporal punishment is defined by “the use of physical force as a method of correcting a student’s behavior”. The goal ? Maintain order and discipline in the schools of the academy.
If parents allow their child to be beaten for discipline, they should still be notified before this happens. Not everyone can punish the student: one person is specifically in charge. She does this in front of an academy employee as a witness. It is indicated that no blow can be struck in the face. A precision on the other hand – a little curious given the method: the punishment must not lead to physical injury.
Measurement does not come out of nowhere. The academy sent out an anonymous form to parents, students and staff in May asking them to discuss their concerns. And, obviously, student discipline was high on the list, hence this proposal, which did not cause a scandal in Cassville. NBC’s Today program cites, for example, a father of two daughters, ages 6 and 8, for whom children today do not understand that their actions have consequences. He therefore chose to accept that his daughters be punished at school, if necessary. A mother, she has nothing against the idea of a spanking but it is not up to the school staff to do it. But high school students have created a association to denounce an abusive and archaic policy.
SAAP members protesting this morning. Corporal Punishment will be stopped. pic.twitter.com/vAHiSeJjQn
— Students Against Abusive Policies (@SAAP_Cassville) August 29, 2022
In 1977, the Supreme Court ruled that corporal punishment did not violate the constitution, knowing that the 8th Amendment prohibits punishments “cruel”. Nineteen states in the country, especially in the conservative south, still allow children to be educated in this way in the school setting. 70,000 children were physically punished in US public schools in the 2017-2018 school year. And these figures do not take into account private schools!
Most studies on the subject point to the ineffectiveness of the method, which rather undermines self-confidence and does not help to get better grades. Above all, this type of discipline tends to penalize black or disabled children more than others. In Georgia, a black student is 50% more likely to be physically punished at school than a white student.