Corporal Punishment Should Be Avoided In Schools

Children have the right to be protected from all forms of violence, abuse and maltreatment. Corporal punishment in any setting is a violation of that right. The CRC to which the Government of India is a signatory, states that learning environments should respect the children’s dignity and discipline in school and teaching should be administered in a manner consistent with children’s dignity. The value of physical or corporal punishment is disputed among psychologists; some regard it as harmless, while many others consider it potentially harmful. It is the intentional infliction of physical pain as a method of changing behavior. It may include methods such as hitting, slapping, punching, kicking, pinching, shaking, use of various objects, or painful body postures. Corporal punishment has been a form of punishment in schools in India for a long time and sadly, this form of punishment still continues to thrive today. According to the Indian Penal Code section 83, any child who has not done homework or has not dressed in an appropriate fashion should not incite any form of corporal punishment in schools in India. All children under the age of seven are supposed to be exempted from criminal liability and any mistake they may have done cannot merit corporal punishment in schools in India as they are still considered minors. Physical and other forms of humiliating and abusive treatment are not only a violation of the child’s right to protection from violence, but also counter-productive to learning. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 prohibits physical punishment and mental harassment to the child. The Act states that no child shall be subjected to physical punishment or mental harassment. In August 2007, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights wrote to all the Chief Secretaries of States, providing detailed guidelines recommending that there should be no gradations while judging corporal punishment. The Commission noted that “small acts” should not be condemned, but nipped in the bud, as they actually lead to gross violations. Children are more affected by emotional punishments than physical and other forms of punishments. Scolding abusing and humiliating; slapping by the opposite sex; making them stand at the back of the class; suspending them for a couple of days are some of the forms of emotional punishment. Negative reinforcement is another form of punishment. The children are mentally oppressed by these punishments in schools. Several State governments have also passed government orders to stop Corporal Punishment. But these acts can be turned into reality only when the parents and teachers understand the importance of them and provide children an environment of freedom and dignity where they can prosper.