Physical Punishment = Violence

After a week of discussion about physical punishment, we'd like to put this up officially.

Physical punishment is INDEED violence.

First of all, let's fill in some background. The punishment here refers to that onto young students (before 12) and/or children (from parenting). Of course, we believe that the topic could lead to many bigger problems but we'll start here.

There are many kinds of punishments, 28 to be exact, according to Unicef. They fall into the categories of physical and psychological.

Physical punishment includes smacking, spanking, kicking, throwing, pinching, pulling hair, twisting arms or ears, forcing the child to stay in uncomfortable or undignified position, forcing the child to take excessive exercise, burning, giving electric shock and hitting them with different objects such as cane, belt, whip, shoe, broom and electric wire.

(the colored ones are what Andy had had... LOL.)

The psychological punishment, found to be more humiliating and degrading, includes verbal abuse, ridicule, isolation and scaring. Such punishments leave children in a vicious cycle of frustration that haunts them for their entire lives.

Reasons may vary of why a teacher or an adult/parent would hit a child/student and the most common so far is that "it's for their own good" or "there's no other(faster) way/it's necessary". We think otherwise and we believe that any kinds of physical punishment is an act of violence thus they are all bad. The term "necessary evil(Ph.P.)" does not apply to minors(at least they're who we're talking about). Negative measures will always result in the same way it starts(negative), given time.

Some people disagree with the concept that punishment is violence. They argue that some children/students just can't be reasoned with and only through pain can they be reminded what to or not to do. To us, that only proves you fail as a teacher/parent. Only the incompetent would use violence to solve problems. It only creates more problems, namely bullying, anger control, various kinds of abuse...etc. What else is there to do to a disobedient youngling? That's a question we should think about before teaching others.

Violence spreads like virus. Once a child experiences it, they either live in fear, try to overpower someone weaker or at best, reconcile with themselves through the help of others. The body may heal, but what's scarred in the heart may take decades to recover or it might never. The virus, on the other hand, burns like wildfire. Once it sparks, it could destroy the whole forest.

No one should live in fear. Children who have never experienced violence may still have the impulse to fight when feeling unfair but they tend to be self-conflicted first and given the guidance in time, they could stay on the right track. Fear drowns potentials; the fear of acting out is to end the light of your skills.

At last, what's the real result, or benefit if you call it, for exercising physical punishment onto a minor?

None. It shows only suppression, overpowering and injustice. What right do we have to hurt others just because things don't go according to our way "even if we think it's for the good of others"? Violence not only spreads, it causes defiance, too.

"Our Very Strength Incites Challenge. Challenge Incites Conflict. And Conflict Breeds Catastrophe."

We are emotional beings, human after all. Everyone has impulses and yes, a lot of times the fist is faster than gaining the moral high ground. However, what makes us intelligent is not because we have power, but that we can control it. Everyone is capable of violence, but the wiser could choose otherwise.

#education