Spare the rod & Save the child

COIMBATORE: The recent incident where a private school teacher beat a student and then cut her hair in front of the whole class because she had failed to follow the stipulated hair style has brought the debate over corporal punishment to the forefront.
This is not the first case of corporal punishment that has received some attention. Over the years, there have been many cases lodged against teachers and schools on account of punishment meted out to students.Though corporal punishment was banned in the state a few years ago, it continues to be used as a mode of punishment in city schools.
Susheela Jayaram, whose daughter completed her class 12 from a prominent school in the city said that many schools torture students for reasons ranging from not completing homework to behaviourial problems. "Beating and even cursing children over trivial issues are quite common in many schools," she says.
On the other hand, some teachers say that they find it difficult to control students without using the stick. A senior headmaster in a corporation schools says that he cannot control his students unless he uses his cane. This is a concern raised by many teachers.
T Srinivasan who was the former head of the psychology department at the Government Arts College, Coimbatore, said that teachers should be counselled as to how to deal with students, especially the difficult ones. "If a student is showing disciplinary or behavioural problems, teachers can detect such problems early if they keenly observe their students. The cane will not help any child," he said.
Teachers should be taught how to deal with students without using the stick, he said. At the same time, he says that a certain amount of mischief should be tolerated among students, especially those between the age group of 5 to 10 years. This is essential for the healthy development of their personality. Teachers should handle children without making them submissive, he added.
Schools say that nowadays they ask teachers not to use the sticks. K Satyanarayanan, the headmaster of Mani Higher Secondary School said that they even advise teachers not to take sticks to the classrooms. Satyanarayanan who accepts that he had a terrible reputation for using the stick, says that his former students who were caned remember him with fondness. But this has become the thing of the past. "Now rules and teaching methods have changed," he says.
Nalini Shastry who has taught in several city schools said that she has never raised her voice or her hand. "My experience is that even a class one student is open to reason. If they make noise I would stop teaching and talk to them. I will tell them that if they need to be taught, they should be disciplined. Only after they agree, I would resume lessons," she said.