Back to School? In These States, Be Prepared to Get Spanked
Though proven ineffective and sometimes harmful, corporal punishment is legal in much of the U.S.
Put an end to hitting children in school.
Add that to the list, along with immigration reform, student loan reform, and spending authorization, of things Congress failed to do when it went on vacation earlier this month.
As a result, as kids return to school this month and next, in 19 states they will face the possibility of corporal punishment at the hands of teachers or school officials. That's despite the introduction by Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y., in Congress on June 26 of a bill that would outlaw the practice.
Despite decades of research indicating corporal punishment is not only ineffective but produces kids who are more badly behaved, many Americans view spanking as a reasonable and necessary disciplinary tool. In February, a Kansas state lawmaker proposed legislation that would have provided a sound legal framework for the practice.
Moreover, corporal punishment in schools—as with punishment the criminal justice system metes out—falls more heavily on minorities. Data from the Department of Education shows that nonwhite children bear the brunt of U.S. schools' violent disciplinary measures. While African American students make up approximately 17 percent of the national student population, they account for 36 percent of all students who receive physical punishment at school.
McCarthy hopes to end the practice.
“As a mother and a grandmother, [I find] the statistics are alarming,” she said after introducing the bill. “There is nothing positive or productive about corporal punishment, and it should be discouraged everywhere.”
McCarthy’s current effort is her third and final attempt to pass theEnding Corporal Punishment in Schools Act, as she plans to retire at the end of this term. This time she has tweaked the measure to offer a carrot-and-stick approach. Instead of banning the practice outright, the law would attach it to funding: Schools are free to implement corporal discipline but would lose some federal support for doing that. The same tactic was instrumental in persuading states to increase the drinking age from 18 to 21 in the 1980s.
In McCarthy's prior efforts, the bill has stalled because of lack of awareness, an aide to the congresswoman said. Much of her work since has therefore been focused on educating other members about this issue.
We now have enough research to conclude that spanking is ineffective at best and harmful to children at worst— Elizabeth Gershoff, associate professor of human development and family sciences, University of Texas at Austin
Stalwart supporters of the measure include the ACLU and the Center for Effective Discipline, a nonprofit that advocates against corporal punishment.
“If you bring the wooden paddle schools use to hit children into an airport or a courthouse, security will stop you and identify it as a weapon,” said Deb Sendek, program director at the Center for Effective Discipline. “Hitting one child is hitting one too many.”
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