School or Scam

[Troubleshooter]

Originally posted by warch
I dont think allowing teachers to beat students into submission is the answer.

It may not be the answer but it is an answer.

It should be the answer when all other options have failed.

The problem is that the other options aren't working and the answer short circuits to corporal punishment instead of following the chain of escalating severity.

Punishment should be rated on three factors:

certainty, celerity, and severity.

The first two are the most important I think, because if they think it might not happen then they will be more willing to risk punishment. If it waits until they get home, then it looses the instructional capacity of immediacy. If you know that you are going to get punished as soon as you break the rules it will reduce the window in which they are willing to break the rules. Nothing stings like getting tightened up in front of your friends.

Severity is the most fluid of the factors. It should adjust for both the capacity of a child to understand as well as the severity of the infraction. Ideally, corporal punishment should decrease the older a child gets as their cognitive skills increase and other punishment options are available. Unfortunately, it seems it is the other way around with many parents and administrators.