Corporal Punishment Essay: Useful In Schools

Corporal Punishment: Useful in Schools WHACK! WHACK! WHACK! Students who attended many American schools from the founding of the United States until the mid-to-late twentieth century know that sound all too well. These students all knew exactly what was happening when they heard this noise. Each and every student knew that one of their peers had acted up and was being punished- with a paddle. Though in modern times many are opposing this form of discipline, even claiming it is abuse, corporal punishment is a very effective disciplinary action if used correctly. Corporal punishment in American schools has been a commonly practiced discipline tool since colonial times. Educational faculty, be it administrators or teachers, have been able to give a misbehaving student a spanking or a few licks with a ruler as a method of punishment (Phillips, 2012, p.12). Throughout the years the idea of corporal punishment in the American school system was fairly routine until the 1970s and the case of Ingraham v. Wright, in which the Supreme Court ruled that corporal punishment was legal where not forbidden on a state, district, or local level. Since this case, thirty-one states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico have outlawed corporal punishment …show more content…
Though other forms of punishment may be costly and time consuming, corporal punishment is neither. Although, other practices, such as in school suspension and detention may require additional staff to be hired, paddling can be practiced by a qualified teacher or administrator, and will be completed in a matter of moments. Corporal punishment is free or nearly free, often times the only costs associated with corporal punishment is the cost of the materials for the paddle (“The Pros and Cons of Corporal Punishment”). Cost effectiveness is often times a driving factor in school districts, and the need for budget cuts is a strong reason to adopt corporal