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Eschew the BEATEN track
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With corporal punishment being banned in two States in the country, it is time to reflect, feels HEMJITH BHARTHAN.
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CORPORAL PUNISHMENT is in the news again. With the States of West Bengal and Orissa banning this extreme measure in schools, it is time to debate the issue. Is using the rod and raising the child really necessary to invert the much touted axiom, `spare the rod and spoil the child'? Do parents and teachers feel that physical force has to be resorted to in raising children to develop them into better individuals?
Corporal punishment has been declared as a violation of the dignity and integrity of the child. The 1998 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child advocates the abandonment of force in disciplining children in favour of non-violent methods of coercion. India has ratified this system. However, the stark reality is disturbing. For violence is widely prevalent not just in juvenile homes but also in many schools and homes.
Says, Dr. Seethalakshmi, Child Psychiatrist, "Corporal punishment or physical punishment is a primitive form of correcting children. It is widely practised in India due to the age-old maxim-spare the rod and spoil the child. Many parents and teachers feel that beating helps the child. They also feel they have a right to do so. They may get results initially, but always perpetuates violence and the child gets defiant in the long run.. There is also a bizarre concept that a stick or chooral is more `effective' than the hand. While some schools practise corporal punishment certain schools avoid it. The degree of punishment also varies from school to school. In certain schools there is a stick in every class. In other schools the stick is only in the higher classes, while in some it is in the Principal's office."
Negative effect
What effect does corporal punishment have on the child? Is it an effective part of training children? More than the physical pain it is humiliation, fear and resentment that the child suffers. And above all once violence is inflicted the seeds for retaliation get sown. If you have seen a child being spanked you would have noticed that his immediate reaction most often would be to look around and cringe with embarrassment to see how many onlookers are witnessing his moment of shame, before he breaks down. The more experienced victims on the other hand often maintain a rigid and stoic poise, while holding out their hands for the `cuts', but in their mind lurks vengeance setting in anti-social tendencies. Research has also shown that victims of childhood physical violence tend to commit child abuse in their adult lives.
Kids as punching bags
Corporal punishment thus is a disturbing facet of our society today. The startling fact is that it is rampant not only among the lower class but also in many well-to-do and educated homes. Distressing as it may sound many parents take it out on their children when fraught with domestic tension, for in their subconscious mind they know that children are helpless and dependent on them. Says a mother who has a stormy relationship with her alcoholic husband, "whenever I have a showdown with my hot-tempered husband I often end up beating my son on any silly excuse. Later I end up feeling guilty and hating myself." Thus the brunt of domestic instability and violence ultimately is borne by the vulnerable child, who becomes a punching bag. Many such home truths often hit you in the face.
Says Manjoo Menon, Founder Secretary of Delta Study, Fort Kochi and Trustee of Abacus Montessori, Chennai, "a child's body is his own personal property and nobody has the right to abuse it. Shouting or spanking never reforms anybody. If a person ill behaves, warn him. And if he ignores the warning, deprive him of some of his benefits, instead of inflicting violence. This is the civilized form of correction. It works not just for children but adults too."
Impulsive action
To protest and condemn child beating is easier said than done. Many children are by nature naughty and always getting on one's nerves. So how should one deal with kids who are uncontrollable? For at times even the most well intentioned parent in an impulsive moment lands a blow on the child to stop his unruly behaviour. Are such incidents pardonable, provided the parent makes him understand immediately why such a reaction though improper was necessary? "No," says Dr. Seethalakshmi, "though it may not be as harmful as thrashing the child `to teach him a lesson', parents should check their impulsive behaviour. Impulsive behaviour is harmful and if unchecked can have dire consequences. For there are cases of a mother flinging a kitchen knife at her child in a moment of fury while she lost her patience with him when she was cutting tomatoes. If children are uncontrollable there are other civilized ways like counselling."
Strong denunciation
Says Molly Cyril, Principal of Choice School, "corporal punishment should be banned at all levels. Violence should never be used as a reformatory measure as it sends the wrong signal to the child. Some teachers resort to beating out of a sense of frustration while certain others for better performance due to the undue emphasis on marks. It is an easy way to get things done. But teachers have to be more resourceful and use other methods of correction. For certain children are sensitive and even shouting at them before others can induce terror. A committed and dedicated teacher does not have to resort to corporal punishment. However, the general awareness on the evils of corporal punishment is spreading and more and more schools are shunning this evil. But still there is a small percentage of parents who still believe that beating should be resorted to correct children."
Yet cases of children being bruised and battered are often reported. Incidents of school children getting mentally deranged or committing suicide after the humiliation, terror and indignity caused by thrashing continue to haunt us. For many corporal punishments are still reasonable and rational remedial measures. It is so deeply enmeshed in the social psyche that it may take some more time for a world free of this practice. The best legacy we can leave behind for the future generation is a world free of violence, shame, fear and disgrace. And for this more stringent and effective rules should be imposed to ban corporal punishment. For using violence as a tool never reforms, but only deforms a child's outlook and attitude.
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