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Teaching by example



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John H Birkett (Letters, 15 May) says recent correspondents who disagree with corporal punishment have offered no alternative solutions to deal with "juvenile miscreants". Most educationists accept physical punishment was not only an ineffective deterrent to bad behaviour but taught children to accept aggression as normal and to believe using violence was a way to solve problems.
A conclusion was reached many years ago that corporal punishment was not a solution to dealing with undesirable behaviour. Preventing unruliness and delinquency is better than trying to cure it and what is needed is for adults to think more about teaching children by good example, not punishing them by the use of force.

MALCOLM W EWEN, Ferryhills Road, North Queensferry, Fife





The full article contains 122 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 16 May 2008 8:58 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

Mikey,

17/05/2008 06:30:30
Unfortunately, Malcolm, teaching begins in the home and if the parents are incapable of teaching their chiildren the difference between social and anti social behaviour, what hope have teachers got?
2

Normal!,

Highland 17/05/2008 09:07:14
If Malcolm believes corporal punishment was 'ineffective' perhaps he can explain the increase in violent behaviour and lack of respect for all authority since it was banned. As for violence towards children making them more violent, perhaps he could also explain why, instead of youth violence decreasing since the ban, it has increased, and is getting worse.
3

Upbeat,

17/05/2008 09:23:57
On the day after the anniversary of the Dam Busters raid, it is relevent to draw attention to the age at which those involved were given responsibility for huge aircraft, and the way they carried through their tasks justifying the trust placed in them. Old aircrew were in their mid 20's, young ones...even pilots... in their late teens.

The "hard justice" fear of failure was part of it - the discipline of war; they grew up in an age of social conditioning to respect authority - a tough series of regulations and penalties to ensure obediance; these young men also accept their conformance to duty and recognised the chance of survivla lay in the importance of work as part of a much larger team operating within the rules.

Today those who work with young people in positions of supposed authority have had their powers usurped by other agencies. There is little daily teaching of social responsibility , teams are for the now sold sports fields, and the school of hard knocks is itself become ensnared in the compensation culture.

What we have is social confusion.

The writer remarks that critics of the present impasse have no solutions. The solutiion to all this is so obvious. Proper penalties which deter, proper instant action to remind miscreants of their social duties, and a harsh no nonsense "three 'strokes' and you are out" regime..a form of national service regime.( not necessarily military in ethos.)which takes offenders sharps and far out of their comfort zones and shows them how society views the errors of their ways, and reminds them to show proper respect for authority.

4

Itchy,

17/05/2008 14:14:48
#2 you're right. What we need is a return to the days when children were beaten for being left handed or for getting questions wrong.

That would teach them discipline and respect for authority.
5

Calum Crubag,

17/05/2008 16:08:45
#2 - prove it. Where's your evidence.

I went to school some 25 years ago when the tawse was still used. High school especially was horrendous. The schools i see today are not worse. There are some problems but most kids are ok.

In fact, in most primaries, education is a lot more fun that in was. If beating kids works, how come we have so many morons of 35 and more walking our streets? How come there's so much bullying, racism and hatred in the Army?
6

Hugh V McLachlan,

Elderslie 17/05/2008 22:59:28
'Most educationists accept physical punishment was not only an ineffective deterrent to bad behaviour but taught children to accept aggression as normal and to believe using violence was a way to solve problems.'

It is not an educational matter. The punishment of children should be distinguished from their education. The punishment of children need not be carried out by their teachers.
7

Itchy,

18/05/2008 02:38:03
#2 If you noticed, Black Sabbath released the 'Mob Rules' album in 1981 and behaviour has gone downhill since.

This shows that the Sabbath should never have released the album because society has not recovered and generations of fans have been exposed to the music.

This is the same ludicrous line of reasoning that belters advocate.
8

Hugh V McLachlan,

Elderslie 18/05/2008 15:08:51
#7 Itchy

'This is the same ludicrous line of reasoning that belters advocate.'

There is nothing wrong with the form of the reasoning. The argument will be good or bad by virtue of its content.
9

Itchy,

18/05/2008 22:06:45
The problem is that belters never say why it 'worked'. They just say note that the belt was abolished and blame everything under the sun that has gone wrong on it since.
10

Hugh V McLachlan,

Elderslie 19/05/2008 00:21:18
#9 Itchy

A fair point. Correlation in itself will not establish that a causal connection exists between the variables in question. (I agree that whether there is a correlation in the case in question has not been established.)

 

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