Corporal Punishment Revived and Well in Texas School District
Time-outs are out the door at one central Texas school district. Temple, like many other school districts, banned corporal punishment, but paddling was reinstated last May in response to popular demand -- from parents.
Although most U.S. school districts have banned corporal punishment, Texas doesn't seem to believe in sparing the rod. Of the estimated 225,000 students spanked in schools in 2006, the latest available figures, nearly one-fourth, were from Texas.
But Temple is unusual in that after banning the practice, the school district revived it last May at the request of parents, who were nostalgic for the orderly schools of yesteryear.
Without it, there weren't any consequences for students, according to Steve Wright, Temple's school board president. (Source: Associated Press)
Principals and assistant principals throughout the district can opt to spank a student for severe offenses like bullying, using racial slurs or directing profanity at others. (Source: KXXV)
Proponents of public school paddling say the results are striking.
Although only one student has been paddled in the past year, officials say the change in student behavior in Temple's 14 public schools has been dramatic and that they note fewer discipline problems.
Many of the parents who pushed for the change paddle their children at home and wanted consistent discipline in the classroom, said John Hancock, Temple's assistant superintendent of administration.
"We're rural central Texas," Hancock said. "We're very well-educated, but still there are those core values. This is a tool we'd like in the toolbox for responding to discipline issues." Churches are full on Sundays. Source
And, unfortunately, Texas prisons are full as well. So, I'm not convinced. Studies show that children who are spanked are angrier and more aggressive than children who are not. And there is proof that disabled and black children are subjected to corporal punishment at a much higher rate than other kids. From Human Rights Watch:
According to the Department of Education, while African Americans make up 17.1 percent of public school students nationwide, they accounted for 35.6 percent of those who were paddled during the 2006-2007 school year.
A Mississippi teacher also noted the racial disparity in the administration of corporal punishment: "I've heard this said at my school and at other schools: 'This child should get less whips, it'll leave marks.' Students that are dark-skinned, it takes more to let their skin be bruised. Even with all black students, there is an imbalance: darker-skinned students get worse punishment. This really affected me, being a dark-skinned person myself."
Evidence shows that students with disabilities are also disproportionally subjected to corporal punishment. The Department of Education has reported that although students with disabilities constitute 13.7 percent of all public school students, they make up 18.8 percent of those who are subjected to corporal punishment. In many of these cases, students were punished for exhibiting behaviors related to their disabilities, such as autism or Tourette's syndrome. Source: "Corporal Punishment in Schools and Its Effect on Academic Success" Joint HRW/ACLU Statement
Enforcement disparities like these have led to a growing movement in favor of banning corporal punishment.
Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.), is preparing to call for a halt to the practice. She chairs a House subcommittee that held a hearing on corporal punishment Thursday and is expected to introduce legislation within weeks.
"When you look that the federal government has outlawed physical punishment in prisons, I think the time has come that we should do it in schools," she said. Source
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