Here are some words of caution for parents who have children in schools that use violent punishment, also known as paddling. They should anticipate insincerity on the part of educators and administrators who do not normally invite dialogue with the public on this topic. When embroiled in discussions of “discipline,” school officials tend to trot out those stock, well-rehearsed, and familiar responses meant to entertain critics and calm parents.

MYTH: Corporal punishment is used only after all other means have failed and is governed by strict guidelines.

FACT – The number of students beaten will always be grossly underestimated because school administrators are smart enough to AVOID saying things that might alarm the public or draw attention. Also, what does ‘strict guidelines’ mean? Most of the time, violent punishments are used as a first response for trivial offenses. Guidelines, when they exist, exist more on paper than in practice. As a general rule, confidence in fear, force, and violence in educational settings is inversely proportional to the level of competence of the educators involved. The least competent tend to be the most violent. They are also the most resistant to reform and the most rejecting other methods of correcting unacceptable behavior.

MYTH – The right of teachers to resort to corporal punishment should be upheld because certain students cannot be controlled by any other means.

FACT – Violent punishment causes far more misbehavior than it corrects, if it corrects it at all. The more some children are subjected to the violence of the educator, the more they misbehave. The very act of physical punishment destroys trust and generates hostility towards the institution that is supposed to be serving them. As for the children who outwardly conform out of fear of punishment, they receive an education primarily in one thematic area: abuse of power. Some of them will put that lesson into practice at the first opportunity.

MYTH – Children who are well behaved have nothing to worry about.

FACT – Wherever students are allowed to be hit, all children worry about it. They know that punishers often act impulsively and are rarely, if ever, asked to justify their actions before or after the fact. A constant diet of fear and anxiety impedes learning and is also dangerous to the health of children.

MYTH: This method of student management has been used for many years and has overwhelming support from parents and the public.

FACT: It is true that violent handling of students has been used throughout recorded history. But today, only the most culturally backward places continue to use it. In most of the democratic world, violent punishment of schoolchildren is illegal and nowhere is it making a comeback. The dwindling number of parents who approve of these methods are themselves products of that system. They naturally feel reassured when they see teachers at school modeling the same bad behavior they use with their own children at home. Both violent parents and violent teachers delude themselves when they claim that their methods are universally approved.

MYTH — It works.

FACT — If it worked, why do punishers have to keep punishing? And why are our maximum security prisons filled with violent criminals who were raised and educated using these very methods? Parents tend to trust educators who, after all, are highly trained in their field and licensed by the state. And virtually all parents want to believe that those who take care of their child at school are motivated by genuine and loving feelings for the child. Educators recognize and indulge this powerful natural desire. Deliberate vagueness about detail meets the needs of both parties: the practical needs of educators and the emotional needs of parents. However, responsible and thoughtful parents must keep in mind that they are delegating their most important responsibility to complete strangers: strangers who have their own agendas, who vary widely in their level of competence, who operate with minimal supervision and almost complete control. absolute. impunity. Few people would hand over their car keys under the same circumstances, with the same degree of confidence. Readers who visit the state education websites listed below and search for the word “paddle” or the phrase “corporal punishment” will be left empty-handed. One would never imagine that in these school systems children are hit in the pelvic area with wooden weapons between 1/3 and 1/2 million times a year according to the most conservative estimates. Some researchers estimate that the number of legal student beatings in the 22 student beating states is about 1 million per year. No wonder no one is talking!

States that allow corporal punishment:

ALABAMA

Office of the Superintendent of Education

Alabama Department of Education

Gordon People Office Building

50 North Ripley Street

PO Box 302102

Montgomery, AL 36130-2101

Telephone: (334) 242-9702 FAX: (334) 242-9708

ARIZONA

director’s office

Arizona Department of Education

state capitol

1700 western Washington

Phoenix, Arizona 85007

Telephone: (602) 542-5460 FAX(602) 542-5440

ARKANSAS

director’s office

Arkansas Department of Education

Four State Capitol Mall, Room 304 A

Little Rock, AR 72201-1071

Telephone: (501) 682-4204 FAX: (501) 682 1079

COLORADO

Office of the Commissioner of Education

Colorado Department of Education

201 East Colfax Avenue

Denver, CO 80203-1799

Phone: (303) 866-6808 FAX: (303) 866-6938

FLORIDA

Office of the Commissioner of Education

Florida Department of Education

Capitol Building, Room PL 08

Tallahassee, FL 32301

Phone: (904) 487-1785 FAX: (904)488-1492

GEORGIA

Office of the State Superintendent of Schools

Twin Towers East

Atlanta, Georgia 30334-5001

Phone: (404) 657-0516

IDAHO

Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction

Idaho Department of Education

Len B Jordan Office Building

650 West State Street

PO Box 83720

Boise, ID 83720

Telephone: (208) 334-3300 FAX: (208) 334-2228

INDIANA

Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction

Indiana Department of Education

Government House, Room 229

Indianapolis, IN 46204-2798

Telephone: (317) 232-6665 FAX: (317) 232-8004

KANSAS

Office of the Commissioner of Education

120 Tenth Avenue Southeast

Topeka, Kansas 66612-1182

Telephone: (913) 296-3202 FAX: (913) 296-7933

KENTUCKY

Office of the Commissioner of Education

Kentucky Department of Education

Capitol Plaza Tower – Calle Mero 500

Frankfurt, KY 40601

Telephone: (502) 564-3141 FAX: (502) 564-5680

LOUISIANA

Office of the Superintendent of Education

Louisiana Department of Education

626 North 4th Street, 12th Floor

Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9064

Telephone: (504) 342-3602 FAX: (504) 342-7316

MISSISSIPPI

Office of the Superintendent of Education

State Department of Education

550 Mayor Street, Room 501

Jackson, MS 39201

Telephone: (601) 359-3512 FAX: (601) 359-3242

MISSOURI

Office of the Commissioner of Education

Missouri Department of Elementary

& Secondary Education

205 Jefferson Street, 6th Floor

Jefferson City, MO 65102

Telephone: (572) 751-4446 FAX: (573) 751-1179

NEW MEXICO

Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction

New Mexico Department of Education

educational building

300 Don Gaspar

Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501-2786

Phone: (505) 827-6688 FAX: (505) 827-6520

NORTH CAROLINA

Office of the State Superintendent of Public Education

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

educational building

301 North Wilmington Street

Raleigh, North Carolina 27601-2825

Telephone: (919) 715-1277 FAX: (919) 715-1278

OHIO

Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction

Ohio Department of Education

65 South Front Street, Room 810

Columbus, OH 43215-4183

Phone: (614) 466-3304 FAX: (614) 644-5960

OKLAHOMA

Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction

Oklahoma State Department of Education

Hodge Educational Building

2500 North Lincoln Boulevard

Oklahoma City, OK 73105-4599

Phone: (405) 521-4887 FAX: (405) 421-6205

PENNSYLVANIA (Some school districts prohibit corporal punishment)

Education secretary

Pennsylvania Department of Education

333 Market Street. 10th floor

Harrisburg, PA 17126-0333

Phone: (717) 787-5820 FAX (717) 787-7222

SOUTH CAROLINA

Office of the State Superintendent of Education

South Carolina Department of Education

1006 Rutledge Building

Senate Street 1429

Columbia, South Carolina 29201

Phone: (803) 734-8492 FAX: (803) 734-4426

TENNESSEE

Office of the Commissioner of Education

Tennessee Department of Education

Sixth Floor, Gateway Plaza

710 James Robertson Parkway

Nashville, Tennessee 37243-0375

Phone: (615) 741-2731 FAX: (615) 741-6236

TEXAS

Office of the Commissioner of Education

Texas Education Agency Office

William B Travis Building

1701 North Congress Avenue

Austin, Texas 78701-1494

Telephone: (512) 463-5825 FAX: (512) 463-9008

WYOMING

Office of the State Department of Public Instruction

Wyoming Department of Education

2300 Capitol Avenue, second floor

hathaway building

Cheyenne, WY 82002-0050

Telephone: (307) 777-7675 FAX: (307) 777-6234

Information courtesy of Jordan Riak http://www.nospank.net