Bring back the cane in schools

[JennyBr]

You do not have to kick the S*** out of a child to instil discipline or respect...

In principle, I agree but what do you do when nothing else works? How would you deal with those fifth formers (usually girls) who "tax" (= rob) first formers? How would you deal with those pupils who constantly disrupt lessons?

How should my headmistress have dealt with me the third time I was caught smoking or any of the other times I was caught breaking the rules? As I said above, suspension or expulsion would have had very serious consequences for my future - I doubt I'd have achieved anything like what I have.

If you have a solution, or even a working hypothesis, please let us know.

[chester2]

Its starts at home..

Unfortunately, there is an element of society that overlooks this and their social responsibilities to others around them.. hence the 'you can't tell me what to do' and 'I'll do whatever I want' type of attitude..

It may well be an irreversible situation now... however, it could be phased out in a generation or two if ALL parents accepted their responsibilities..

[Macinyoko]

The system needs to change back to where the teachers have the power to fit the punishment to the crime of what the student(s) did. Plus, if they really want to act up and think that the spanking and or detention was alright with them. How about repeating the grade back over because of all their acting up has cut into their grades? When faced with certain punishments that will follow you around or cause great embarassment, I think they would come around.

Japan is bad right now and I wish the board would act as they should.

[JennyBr]

Schoolroom smacking was mainly with a ruler or something.
Some teachers would pull you shorts hard up your bottom,trying to expose some bottom cheeks to smack on.
We were only little kids,and most kids thought it was funny.
Especially the girls,who by the time I got to 5th grade,could no longer be spanked.
I thought that was unfair then,and I still do.

Those sexist schools that exempted girls, but not boys, from CP were admitting they didn't consider it necessary in order to maintain discipline. It's clear, therefore, that using its use on boys in such schools was nothing more than gratuitous brutality.

The practice was also counter-productive because, knowing they were exempt, some girls would deliberately goad boys into misbehaving. There was also the underlying resentment that built up.

Other girls, such as I, wouldn't have tried to get boys into trouble (I'm not that nasty, honest!) but would have had absolutely no respect for the teachers whatsoever. Girls in such schools took full advantage of their "privileged position" and it wasn't at all unusual for them to tell teachers to F*** O** if their behaviour were ever challenged. I would almost certainly have done the same if I had attended such a school.

The downside of this was that girls received a very poor education and left school with few, if any, qualifications. That could have been the intention behind not disciplining girls.

[JennyBr]

I think that the cane should be brought back to schools for sure!
..................................................

If boys broke the rules,that was the punishment,and they all knew it. Believe me,my brothers,and all the boys,dreaded a caning. My little brother told me that after his six,he couldn't sit comfortably for well over a week. I guess people might say that girls got off lightly,and they are probably right in some respects. But doing a week or so of detention and lines and usually a spanking as well was no picnic. I sometimes thought I'd rather be caned,as it was quick,but seeing it's effects on the boys,I don't know.

I'd love to see some of these little smartarse bastards on the train hauled up and given a caning. They know they can misbehave now days and nobody can do anything to them. And their parents always stick up for them if the schools try to discipline them.Idiots! The girls could do with some lessons too,because some of them are as bad,or worse,than the boys. Some long detentions and a bloody good slippering would sort them out. It was a stupid liberal C***-up to take CP out of schools.

If the cane is to be brought back it must be used fairly. That means it must be used to discipline girls as well as boys. If a group of children are jointly and equally involved in misbehaviour, caning some and giving the others detention is clearly unfair. As you are aware though, it's not clear which group it's unfair to. Also, if one sex is exempt, clearly the school doesn't believe the cane is a necessary, or reasonable, method of maintaining discipline. In that case, it's use on the other sex is unjustifiable brutality. As you say, girls are as bad or worse than the boys (as was ever thus) so there is no reason to try to be lenient - that approach will only make them worse.

In general, nowadays, I find boys are much better behaved and more polite than girls. At a local school I often see girls lighting cigarettes, in full view of the teachers, as they leave the building. I've seen fewer boys smoking and never near the school. When I commented on this to a couple of sixth formers, I was told that boys get detention if they're caught but nothing is ever said to the girls.

I was treated very fairly at school, there was no sexism at all. I had the same opportunities as the boys and, if I misbehaved, I got the slipper or cane as appropriate. I thought that far preferable to long, drawn out punishments which, ultimately, discourage a child from doing ordinary school work. This was a large part of the reason girls tended not to do as well as boys at school. Lines and detentions were rare at my school but, on the few occasions I got either, I simply didn't do them and had the slipper the next day instead.

[Jean1952]

I got the cane at school and an effective punishment it was too. However, I’m now a teacher of long standing (just a couple of years to go to retirement) and would hate to be using corporal punishment of any sort on my pupils. Indeed, I would not have entered teaching had there been a requirement to hit children.

In its day the cane, slipper, ruler and strap (I personally experienced the first three) had its place, but we have moved on now as a society and the idea of caning children has about as much relevance as public floggings, and about as much chance of being brought back into use.

[Em14]

I got the cane at school and an effective punishment it was too. However, I’m now a teacher of long standing (just a couple of years to go to retirement) and would hate to be using corporal punishment of any sort on my pupils. Indeed, I would not have entered teaching had there been a requirement to hit children.

In its day the cane, slipper, ruler and strap (I personally experienced the first three) had its place, but we have moved on now as a society and the idea of caning children has about as much relevance as public floggings, and about as much chance of being brought back into use.

I agree, as someone who was caned and slippered school (I had the backs of my legs strapped a few times at home as well) - I think both are barbaric and humiliating forms of punishments - neither have a place in either modern day schools or family homes.

[randomdude2236]

well i remember when they took it away down here..

In principles office and he said he cant cause of the new law.

We were like WTF do we do now.
and thus began detention....how boring

But i def agree it needs to be brought back to a certain extent though. some ppl outright abuse kids.

speaking to a child first is the first solution if that doesn't work a few times then bam. but depending on the fault at hand.

Schools world wide have gone down the drain diciplin wise.

Kids have too many rights.

[Jean Simpson 1122]

[color=#FFFF00]

well i remember when they took it away down here..

In principles office and he said he cant cause of the new law.

We were like WTF do we do now.
and thus began detention....how boring

But i def agree it needs to be brought back to a certain extent though. some ppl outright abuse kids.

speaking to a child first is the first solution if that doesn't work a few times then bam. but depending on the fault at hand.

Schools world wide have gone down the drain diciplin wise.

Kids have too many rights.

[/quote

As a teacher, I came to realise sometime ago that really serious misbehaviour from most children has its roots in home conditions. You would be surprised at how many youngsters are either physically or verbally abused or both at home. If problems at home result in behavioural problems at school, there is nothing to be gained by the use of physical punishment.

For less serious issues such as late to class, talking in my lessons or running in the corridor etc, my voice, heavy in sarcasm or humour as appropriate, is normally enough to deal with the issue, without the need to resort to the use of a plimsoll or ruler, as was the case in my school days. If I couldn’t control a class by word and look then I would get out of teaching.

I would not want, nor would I be prepared to use, corporal punishment to control my pupils. It had its place in my formative years (I got the cane and deserved it), but that was the 60’s, a time when we still hung people, had only just decriminalised homosexuality and it was perfectly ok to abuse or discriminate against people based on race, colour, gender and sexual orientation. Thankfully, society has moved on since then and physically chastising children is, and should remain, part of our past.

[Shimmyshake]

I don't think the cane is known for its effectiveness, these days its more barbaric and ridiculous in my opinion. What do you think it will do for the student?

[Guest]

I actually think that for certain teenagers (12-15), have 6 pretty firm stokes of a cane applied to their bottoms, might at least make them think carefully before doing whatever it is, that got the strokes in the first place.

It worked in times gone by, and could work again , in the future.

[JennyBr]

I actually think that for certain teenagers (12-15), have 6 pretty firm stokes of a cane applied to their bottoms, might at least make them think carefully before doing whatever it is, that got the strokes in the first place.

It worked in times gone by, and could work again , in the future.

It was very effective with girls, although less so with boys, when I was at school, there wasn't a "ladette" culture in those days. I wouldn't limit it to just 12 - 15 though.

[Mary1960]

I actually think that for certain teenagers (12-15), have 6 pretty firm stokes of a cane applied to their bottoms, might at least make them think carefully before doing whatever it is, that got the strokes in the first place.

It worked in times gone by, and could work again , in the future.

It was very effective with girls, although less so with boys, when I was at school, there wasn't a "ladette" culture in those days. I wouldn't limit it to just 12 - 15 though.

I guess if the 'strokes' were very hard indeed, and thus extremely painful (but a reasonable response to the behaviour) they would be very hard to forget - this would make a good deterrent for future bad behaviour.

Skirming around on an extremely sore bottom for the rest of the day ( or perhaps the next several days) would surely make some of today's teenage troublemakers think twice before misbehaving.

[JennyBr]

I guess if the 'strokes' were very hard indeed, and thus extremely painful (but a reasonable response to the behaviour) they would be very hard to forget - this would make a good deterrent for future bad behaviour.

Skirming around on an extremely sore bottom for the rest of the day ( or perhaps the next several days) would surely make some of today's teenage troublemakers think twice before misbehaving.

The strokes don't have to be "very hard indeed" for a caning to be very painful - and memorable. The canings I received worked well enough. I could be a right little brat when I was younger but, thanks to firm discipline from my parents and a very fair school, I did very well for myself.

[Mary1960]

I guess if the 'strokes' were very hard indeed, and thus extremely painful (but a reasonable response to the behaviour) they would be very hard to forget - this would make a good deterrent for future bad behaviour.

Skirming around on an extremely sore bottom for the rest of the day ( or perhaps the next several days) would surely make some of today's teenage troublemakers think twice before misbehaving.

The strokes don't have to be "very hard indeed" for a caning to be very painful - and memorable. The canings I received worked well enough. I could be a right little brat when I was younger but, thanks to firm discipline from my parents and a very fair school, I did very well for myself.

How hard were the strokes given to you then, they seemed to have made an impression?