There is still a school of thought that one cannot bring in discipline in children without the use of corporal punishments. To support this view the advocates of this theory still harp on old proverbs, like the one in Tamil 'adiyatha madu padiyathu', to the effect "beat the animal so that it doesn't go offbeat!"
I still remember my maths teacher Mr JV in 10th standard. He had an obsession of buying different kinds of canes from his own funds that he would flaunt in his class. He was like, say the character of "Gabbarsingh" of Sholay to all of us. We would be holding our breath every day in fear to find out who was his prey on every class. He would first choose his prey and call him to his side 'lovingly'. Then keep showering with pleasantries like 'your shirt is very nice.. where did you take it.. did you go to the shop yourself or you went with your parents'.. all such enquiries he will make whilst he would teasingly run his newly acquired cane on the body of the boy(Thankfully it was a boys only school!).
He would extract a confession that the boy did not complete the homework. He would then cane him at the most unexpected moment and inflicting excruciating pain.
This was in 1974!
Now I wonder if this person could have gone scotfree, had he been living now. There were several instances of suicides by young children due to sense of humiliation and loss of self esteem, due to corporal punishments or just due to the fear of an impending one. world over, Governments have now brought in strict rules prohibiting corporal punishments not only in schools but applicable to child abuses happening anywhere.
We all know that several old beliefs have been replaced over the years based on new findings about the ill-effects of following such beliefs.
There is a direct relation to the childhood experiences in the development of human personality. A child growing fearlessly grows in its natural behaviour and becomes a well-rounded personality.
In a forwarded mail, I read this heartrending story of a boy who inscribes something in the new car, using a nail. The father of the boy, in a fit of rage, punctures his hand only to learn later that his son had inscribed on the fender of his new car, "I love you Pappa"
Let us say no to corporal punishment, be at home or at school, or for that matter anywhere from the area of influence of children!
5 comments:
Children should never be punished, they should be handled with love, only then they would blossom into good human beings. One can be strict and firm,but hitting a child defeats the purpose.
Of course, some schools don't pay the teachers enough, so they are bound to lose their patience, when children, don't listen to them. Also, children too are burdened with too many complex things/ issues in their lives that they feel they must rebel in some way.
It is sad when we look at it impartially, we cannot blame anyone. And then there are the parents who want their children to excel in everything, forgetting that there is too little time for too many things to be achieved simultaneously.
However if we as parents can bring about a change in our attitude , maybe we can help improve things a lot.
What do you think ?
i prefer to be a friend of my kids than parent..the tough task of discipline among them is handle by my wifie..heheh
is beating alone punishment?
Gandhiji took satyagraha - how to call it?
every time it differs with ages..
some times - turning faces, non-speaking, gossiping etc..
feel the beating is better - comparing to all the above..
(ps: our teacher's asked us to buy the cane!)
forget to add:
a newly joined teacher a day punished my younger brother for some reasons..
my dad went to the school and fight with her - "how dare - you beat him?"
it may sound idiotic..
but at times we missed those idiotic people
and could never retrieve them again in our whole life..
When in high school, as a class leader i used to write down the names of whoever talks in the class room when the teacher goes for smoking or tea break, then every one in the list would get five whips!!
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