Due to the nature of my employment starting Easter I will be doing primarily research work and it will be impossible to read and respond in a timely manner to postings. The internet has given me a way of staying home and being paid when others are just trying to stay in their homes. As I said last month: "this isn't a valedictory", I am starting this thread called scholars corner. Im far from a scholar but I think its the best way for me to kill two birds with one stone: my research and my off topic work interests. Here are some materials that arent as readily accessible without research already posted. This thread may take a life of its own or just fizzle; only time will tell.

http://dept.lamar.edu/lustudentjnl/VOL4/VOLUME4/Others/USE_WEB_&_Kritsonis%5B1%5D.pdf

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2005/is_3_38/ai_n13810111/?tag=content;col1

http://www.primaryresearch.org/PRTHB/schoolhistory/dipietro.pdf

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9805EFD8163FE633A25752C0A9649C946296D6CF

http://books.google.com/books?id=3w0NBv8pu88C&dq=judging+school+discipline&printsec=frontcover&source=bn&hl=en&ei=nqS-Sa7mO9eMtgfo-7X4Cw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result#PPP1,M1

Corporal punishment in colonial times in our nation's history is often overlooked as in this excerpt from Boston Latin School with links for Latin lovers as follow.

Otis also told his granddaughter about an "old Latin School ditty" that linked the punishments to the grammar lessons:
Hic haec hoc, strap him to the block;
Noun and pronoun, pull his breeches down,
Verb and participle, the rod begins to whistle.
Another Latin School alumnus recalled how another boy "pronounced the P in P-tolemy, and the younger Lovell rapped him over the head with a heavy ferule.

http://www.universalhub.com/node/6002

http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2006/09/corporal-punishment-in-colonial.html

http://boston1775.blogspot.com/2006/10/so-afraid-they-could-not-study.html

American Way, you say in your post above:

with links for Latin lovers

Well there's at least two of them on this estimable Forum, as I know to my cost!    However, one of them may still be away on a lengthy business trip.

Hello, A-L. Yes, still here in Australia (back in the UK in two weeks time), though I've now at least managed to get my full Internet access restored, so I can start catching up on what's been happening. It feels strange to be having Good Friday in autumn, but Happy Easter to you nonetheless.

Hi Nero, great to hear from you, and a Happy Easter to you too. It will be good to have you back regularly on this estimable Forum, and I look forward to it.

Thought provoking.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/255891/The-Case-for-Corporal-Punishment-in-Guyana

Guyana addendum.

http://www.stabroeknews.com/2009/news/local/02/28/no-promotion-for-berbice-high-caning-teacher-for-two-years/

It is good to read a recently published scholarly work that I can wholeheartedly agree with. I hope you find the article as worthwhile as I did. Below is the link for the article and the abstract. As promised it will be under this link that my contributions will be coming in the ensuing months. I would appreciate feedback especially from Doctor Dominum.

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1226573#reg

Abstract:

The Science and Statistics Behind Spanking Suggest that Laws Allowing Corporal Punishment are in the Best Interests of the Child

Jason M. Fuller
Akron Law Review

Akron Law Review, Vol. 42, No. 243, 2009

Abstract:

Anti-spanking laws are proposed and passed with the hope that they will create a "cultural spillover" of non-violence, and a society that does not need correction. While such lawmaking may seem harmless, even commendable, the empirical data indicate that a spanking ban is a grave mistake.

With spanking bans have come increased rates of child abuse, aggressive parenting, and youth violence. Criminal records suggest that children raised under a spanking ban are much more likely to be involved in crime than other children. Accordingly, almost thirty years after Sweden became the world's first country to ban spanking, six out of ten Swedish children now feel vulnerable at school, and just as many have been victims of youth violence.

Perhaps it is no surprise that the methodologically sound research suggests that spanking is not harmful, and is often more helpful than other common discipline methods. On average, spanking seems to reduce aggression, defiance, and antisocial behavior better than mental punishments like timeout, reasoning, privilege removal, threats, verbal power assertion, ignoring, love withdrawal, or diverting. Indeed, the most friendly, stable, and competent children tend to come from "authoritative" families -- families that raise children with love, firm guidance, and at least occasional spanking.

Nevertheless, spanking's successes are largely ignored. Many philosophically oppose corporal punishment and praise spanking bans, but few honestly consider the entire body of child discipline statistics. Therefore, in this rapidly changing area of the law that lies at the heart of our children's education and future, only one side of the story is being told.

Well, I'd have to see the whole article to really comment - and from what I can see, the Akron Law Review for 2009 won't be available in most Australian Universities until 2010 (they seem to get it on an annual basis) so that may be a while. But looking at the abstract, a lot of what is said there matches my opinions and what I've had to say about a lot of research in the past.

Many of the studies used to claim corporal punishment is a bad idea contain significant methodological flaws. Some of these should have been picked up at the time the study was done (ie, classifying a single smack on the bottom as being equivalent to beating a child around the head with the metal part of a vacuum cleaner), while others were somewhat understandable (for example, failing to consider that boys and girls might react very differently to corporal punishment for genuine non-socially oriented reasons). Other studies are not obviously flawed but only applied to particular groups, and have since been taken as if they apply much more broadly - a study into the attitudes of American toddlers towards corporal punishment shouldn't automatically be assumed to have any relevance of all to the attitudes of Australian teenagers.

Studies that show normative corporal punishment as being effective and unlikely to be harmful are ignored - Johnson, Simons, and Conger; Deater-Deckard and Dodge; Hughes, Deater-Deckard, and Cutting - they get ignored and they put their careers at some risk in some cases by not pushing the status quo. We get false or unproven claims (such as Miller's claim that Hitler was beaten as a child) repeated over and over again until they are considered mainstream truths.

There is considerable research that normative corporal punishment works in many cases. There's also the commonsense approach of people's own anecdotes - yes, there are people who don't think it worked for them and their views should be taken seriously. But so should the views of those who say it did work for them. Taken together, the logical conclusion is it works for some and doesn't work for others. So what do we do?

If it's available as an option, it doesn't have to be used on those it doesn't work on. Having it available as an option doesn't have to negatively impact them (although it could if not handled properly). Eliminating it as an option, on the other hand, guarantees that those who would benefit are negatively impacted.

Abolition guarantees a negative impact on some people. Allowing it carries a risk of negative impact, certainly, but no guarantee.

A risk of negative impact is better than a guarantee of negative impact.

Personally I advocate a great deal of care be taken to mitigate the risk and unless it can be get at a low level, I'll even support abolition as the lesser of two evils. But I believe the risk can be managed well - and in that case, abolition is the greater of two potential evils.

No need to wait to 2010, it's ready to download today at the url I gave.

The Science and Statistics Behind Spanking Suggest that Laws Allowing Corporal Punishment are in the Best Interests of the Child | Show Abstract Hide Abstract | Download |

May 29, 1741 publication of a 30 page book entitled Shameful Discipline about SCP is found in the below link. It's the oldest I have come across. It's quite easy to read in the Flip Book mode and in your zoom preference. For whatever reason Toronto under the Canadian Libraries surpasses American Libraries for online books.

http://www.us.archive.org/GnuBook/?id=shamefuldiscipli00wclouoft#0

Lyman Cobb (1800-1864) was the leading competitor of Noah Webster as an author of spelling books. In 1847 he daringly wrote against corporal punishment against the tide. Cobb wrote: Read carefully, reflect candidly: then but not till then, approve or condemn the following work.

In 1983 corporal punishment went into free fall in the United States and now Texas and Mississippi are states that account for 40 percent of the 223,190 children who were paddled at least once during the 2006-2007 school year. Carl Sommer daringly wrote for corporal punishment in 1983 and IMHO too often knee jerk reactions lead to a counter productive herd mentality so everyone should read carefully, reflect candidly: then but not till then, approve or condemn the following works. Too often knee jerk reactions lead to a counter productive herd mentality.

http://books.google.com/books?id=3-4KAAAAIAAJ&dq=The+Evil+Tendencies+Of+Corporal+Punishment+As+A+Means+Of+Moral+Discipline:+In+Families+And+Schools,+Examined+And+Discussed&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=-QlqQcm5GE&sig=uheVN_Au784EiuSc5Zi0Cyg66ng&hl=en&ei=zawNSuWfPJPaMe6fhcEG&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1

http://books.google.com/books?id=41H-KZygdigC&dq=carl+sommer+school&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=bKTm-PYIAN&sig=LJa1vf5XYXeOqsIFkqg4SQZIST4&hl=en&ei=4q4NSpGNKorFtgehvPCXCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8

As I stated in the beginning I would post under Scholars Corner from time to time. First to clear the air with Doctor Dominum, Doc Ive been told by my former colleagues on the school board that they would not think twice about hiring you despite your use of SCP in the past. They have found your postings informative and feel that nothing you have written has shown a prurient interest and as I said before I agree with them on that point. The fact that some teachers in your running list didnt cane as often raised some flags, rightly or wrongly. As DHM are you called upon to punish other students than your own as school administrators are here? Hence, where there is smoke there is fire may not fairly apply. I strongly suspect you have the best interests of your charges in mind but I feel that discipline matrices prepare a youngster for the real world such as a getting a speeding ticket and facing the same consequences depending on how over the limit you are. A sore spot with me under my new travel duties!!! Im glad they dont have JCP here!!!

The tailoring of the consequence to an offense based on your knowledge of the boy removes the likelihood of lapsing in judgment about the positive or negative impact of choosing to cane or not to cane. Im sure you have had regrets in some cases with the benefit of hindsight. Judging the positive or negative effect of caning on the student obviously is imprecise even with your years of experience. If a kid shouldnt be caned they can be exempted, absolutely and not selectively, in the beginning of every year. By being the parents choice the onus of unfairness is placed on the parents and not upon the teacher. Oddly, no one favors TWP with SCP in the primary school (size and innocence) but they did in the upper grades to maintain a learning environment. They also think its discriminatory and girls should not be exempted from paddling. They American girls saw the picture of the Malaysian girls palms and thought that was awful being so use to the paddle in the South. The younger the woman the more they favored SCP because paddling was so rare and the kids at school were so bad. They went to schools where it was on the books but rarely employed and never a man paddling a girl and one said it wasnt allow when she went to school in the eighties without anything said about it in the handbook. The youngest was paddled by a man at a Christian school and seemed to have no objection. He prayed with her. Sounds sick to my way of thinking!!! She is the least Christian of them all but who am I to judge? The second youngest was the most opposed to SCP from India who had to contend with the chair and the duster from her brutal male PT teacher. I cant imagine her doing anything wrong. The ensuing links show her school and talks about her teacher. She is the tall girl in pigtails directly behind the teacher.

http://khs1995.blogspot.com/2006/04/class-iv-class-v-transition-phase.html

She said being caned was especially embarrassing if you cried in front of the boys. She knew college students who were caned for breaking curfew in a Catholic Teaching College in Bangalore. Guys on the bum (as she put it) and girls on the hands but from the same gender and always in private so she thought it was no big deal. She has a great sense of humor and said she has more padding now and would choose the bum. She talked about Murga as in this link.

http://dimdima.com/forumnw/message.asp?Tid=61&q_title=My+School+Punishment

Hi American Way. A most interesting post, thank you. I am pleased to see that your former colleagues on the school board echo my opinion regarding Doctor Dominum, who sadly has been much abused in this estimable Forum.

I am unclear if the young women you mention are amongst your former colleagues. However, I am in full agreement with you regarding the practise in some Christian schools of administering corporal punishment to children and then praying with them. I would find it very difficult to define exactly why I find this unpleasant, but I do.

You say that the Indian lady mentioned Murga (sometimes spelt Murgha) punishments. This combination of painful posture and public humiliation seems to be widely used on the Indian Sub-Continent, from the police through schoolteachers to parents, but as far as I can see is not used elsewhere. I used a discussion of it to introduce an element of reality into a wildly fantastical fun poster thread here last November. You'll find my post on the subject at 02:40 on 29 November 2008 in the 'Coodgee Piers' thread here

Least anyone is tempted to research Murga following your posting above, I'll repeat the warning I gave in November. The Dimdima forum you quote is quite safe, although a little difficult to decipher. However several other Indian forums discussing the subject are used to drop Trojans on unsuspecting visitors, so beware!

Dropping trojans!!! I do like that phrase. The Christian school graduate recently joined the Board so she was not my colleague but did weigh in on the matter. She is not one of the more popular members. The only evidence of her love of God or neighbor is found in the perspiration caused by her carrying the Good Book under her arm. The thought of praying and paddling as sanctifying is beyond me but I'm not as wise as Solomon!!!

Firn the most part I have refrained from joining those members of this esteem Forum who have berated Dr Dominum. Some of our differences involve language. He caned a bare bottom and not spanked one with the palm of his hand, a small difference to some but calmed me down considerably. I do think far too much time and energy is spent on investigating him. Suffice it to say he is a part of this esteem Forum for weal or for woe depending on your perspective. He is tired of talking about it as I'm sure others are.

In a school the size he teaches and for the high standards they demand the frequency of the sanctions applied to the offenses is within the range of being normal. I'm glad he is teaching in a secondary school. Like him I think, I prefer to err on the challenging side than the enabling side when it comes to discipline. Why some teachers (like DD perhaps because of age) would be more prone to cane than others, judging by the running list, or why some boys would be caned while others not by the same teacher for the same offense may taint a child's view as seen to be the case of our posters about their teachers who strapped, slippered, caned or paddled. In the USA, Australia and Malaysia, see link below, we're talking about tomorrow's memories which I hope will be fonder than many found here. Fairness and severity play such a large part. The pendulum doesnt always swing one way as seen in Malaysia as of May 10th for the girls from Corpun 2007 and maybe even in the UK (Restore Order Measure 3) some day?

http://malaysia.news.yahoo.com/bnm/20090510/tts-stu-cane-bm-993ba14.html

http://www.corpun.com/mys00711.htm

http://restoreorder.tripod.com/id23.html

Hi American Way, you say:

Dropping Trojans!!! I do like that phrase.

Yes, nice phrase, nasty habit, and one which if you are not protected can severely damage your wealth and your social well-being, to say nothing of your operating system and your credibility with your ISP!

More interesting links, thank you. You certainly get around the web! The Restore Order site is interesting, but I'm afraid being so obviously hosted on Tripod doesn't give it much credibility. If they can't even afford their own domain name they don't amount to much!

They certainly seem to be having problems with schoolgirls in parts of Asia. Judging by the agitation to reintroduce caning for them one gets the impression that they must make our UK ladettes look quite tame!

It is an interesting observation about tripod. I haven't found anything updated on the site since 2008 and while tripod forbids ads I am always leery about contacting them to foster any advocacy group that quotes a "Mister Poll" on the issue of school corporal punishment. The Members of the Parliament approved by a few votes the SCP ban back when. Like a fire burning even if there are embers (220,000) children in a land of over 300,000,000 it's easier to build than from scratch. The UK was not as keen on banning it as other European countries but not surprisingly, given the increase of classroom misbehavior, so many teachers, more I am sure than MP favors overturning the ban, even taking in fact the number of young teachers who have only heard about it. How vocal must the teachers be and how out of control must the students be before change is considered? Note the sensible paddle preference over the cane for secondary school students. I don't know how that will go over in the UK. Like the United States understandably the secondary schools is where SCP is most used and unlike many other areas of the world the target (bottom) is the same for both genders where and when they need need to make the most impact.

The Restore Order site is more interesting in many ways than TWP because it puts the narrow issue of corporal punishment into a broader context of teaching and reaches out beyond the South and smaller children. This website should be of more interests than most posters here who are not from the USA. Has anyone from here encountered this website before? Would anyone consider asking the RESTORE ORDER folks to contact this esteem Forum? TWP contact here generated interest in their website. Measure 3 below is just as it says one measure among others to restore order.

To reintroduce a SAFE and sensible monitored system of corporal punishment to be carried out only by a Head Teacher or authorised officer and subject to parental consent. Parents who disagree may opt out.

The proposal is that for certain offences, corporal punishment (CP) may be administered by an authorised person. This should be for two types of offence: serious and persistent. Pupils may only be caned by a same-sex adult.

It is suggested that the Government could introduce corporal punishment on a trial basis in a small number of schools and that parents would have the choice to opt out. Those that don't agree with it therefore would be placated. In the long term, perhaps parents could have a choice of schools: CP or Non-CP. Surveys have shown that 50-70% of parents are in now in favour of corporal punishment because they have watched standards plummet in the last 20 years. (see Polls)

There are certain pupils in every school who are not bad by nature, but persistently commit a multitude of small disruptions or offences. It is proposed that when detention, lines and internal exclusion has failed, [as it HAS in many cases], then a final stage - corporal punishment should be used.

We believe that mild corporal punishment (such as a ruler on the hand) should be used in Primary schools, again administered by authorised persons and with the approval of parents or guardians for persistent or serious offences only.

The problem with the present system is that despite all of the arguments, no one can deny that for some pupils 'words have no effect.' Some children cannot be reasoned with, and in fact they will continue to destroy other people's education until an assertive and definite message, such as a smack, makes it clear: your behaviour is not acceptable. If the worst a pupil gets is a telling off or a detention then many pupils think that they have 'got away with it' and therefore they continue.

At secondary level the same is true. Words have no effect. Some children cannot be reasoned with. It is this minority that ruin it for everyone else. A telling off or a detention DOES NOT WORK and is clearly not working right now.

In many American states today, 'the paddle' is being used. We suggest that Britain adopts a similar tool for secondary level. A wide wooden implement will not leave marks and yet it can still hurt. For the penalty to be effective it should be administered with enough pressure to make it hurt. If it does not hurt, there is danger that the message will not get through.

We are not advocating beatings or unfair punishments. Stories from the past show that abuse did go on. Lessons from the past also show us that education standards were very much higher and the reason for this is obvious - children were listening in silence while the teacher talked and questions could be answered without interruption.

The anti-smacking campaigners often say that corporal punishment will only teach children to respond with violence. No! For a minority, words have no effect. These children cannot be reasoned with.

A smack is the most natural thing in the world. In the animal kingdom, if a cub that falls out of line, it gets a cuff and soon learns. A young child that gets a smack on the hand soon learns to stop bad behaviour. We're not talking about child abuse. It is true that the majority of children don't need corporal punishment - therefore those that are well-behaved won't get it. The intention is to stop those children who persistently cause trouble - those children who simply laugh at the present pathetic system - and how right they are to laugh.

The greatest harm comes to those that don't get a smack when they badly need it. How unkind it is to let that child grow up without knowing the difference between right and wrong! How unkind it is to let that child ruin other people's education! How stupid it is for us to watch as those children learn that when they are violent, adults respond with another 'telling off.' They soon learn that a detention or a telling off means nothing. In fact, if they accuse a teacher of pushing them or God forbid 'touching them inappropriately' the teacher will be immediately suspended and may risk jail.

Let us see an end to this ridiculous political correctness. Some people say we will never see a return of corporal punishment. We say it is only a matter of time before the Government will have no choice. The reintroduction of corporal punishment as a final measure is perfectly possible if those parents who want it (50-70%) say YES. Parents want that choice.

Whipping Therapy.

http://www.addictioninfo.org/articles/2638/1/Whipping-therapy-cures-addiction-depression-and-suicide-crises/Page1.html

http://parishiltonatemyferret.blogspot.com/2008/05/whipping-therapy-cures-depression-and.html

http://www.corpun.com/ruj00503.htm

Back to my research. The second link rivals names from Wales!!! I hope you in the UK appreciate my humor. My Dad of blessed memory loved the hospitality of Wales as opposed to England in WWII, of course his parents were born in Ireland.

As of 2009-MAY, the only European country to allow corporal punishment in both the home and school is Switzerland. Corporal punishment against them (BGE 117 lV 18), and corporal punishment in schools is prohibited by federal law, pursuant to cantonal legislation.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/spankin2.htm


Corporal punishment against them (BGE 117 lV 18), and corporal punishment in schools is prohibited by federal law, pursuant to cantonal legislation.

http://books.google.com/books?id=6pfWJ_Si67gC&pg=PA157&lpg=PA157&dq=BGE+117+IV+18+switzerland&source=bl&ots=s570HIZoLo&sig=z-fddsCqmvZMxQ9EbXuD-zYyMXY&hl=en&ei=iWAmSp6aIpCg8wTr4_iBDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum

Furthermore, many cantonal school laws do not contain any interdiction of corporal punishment inflicted by teachers. On the contrary: The Regulation concerning obligatory Schooling in the Canton of Zurich (Verordnung betreffend das Volksschulwesen des Kantons Zürich) considers corporal punishment «excusable in special cases, in particular when the teacher has been provoked». Many other cantonal school laws or regulations do not explicitly mention the subject of corporal punishment. Thia from a better link on Swiss SCP. Which countries in Europe would be most likely to have retained SCP without Eurupe interdiction? Scotland?

http://www.violencestudy.org/europe-ca/PDF/NGO/Violence%20Against%20Children%20in%20Switzerland.pdf

New Zealand Corporal Punishment

http://www.nzfamilies.org.nz/download/nicola-taylor.pdf

Second link is vintage corporal punishment postcard from a small rural schools in Hopkinsville, KY, in a county where CP is still practiced 100 years later. The first link puts it into context.

http://csaa.typepad.com/country_school_associatio/2008/06/keeping-order-i.html

http://www.vintagepostcards.org/hopkinsville-teacher-school-marm-corporal-punishment-p-4576.html

This scholarly medical research can be applied salubriously or salaciously Perhaps strictly off topic but does pertain to corporal punishment to the bathing suit area.

http://www.hotlanta.com/sirreal/BDSMScience.htm

Changing the Terms of Authority in Islamic Law: The Punishment for Drinking Wine.

http://www.yale.edu/cir/2004/fopwis.doc

FYI Part 2

www.insidesaudi.com/whippingwomen.html