School district approves smacking misbehaving students with paddle
A Texas school board has come under fire after introducing a policy that allows teachers to smack misbehaving students with a paddle.
The Three Rivers Independent School board trustees unanimously approved the policy last week that would see students slapped with a paddle for not following classroom rules or being disobedient to a teacher.
Parents in the school district will have the opportunity to opt in or out of the policy.
“If the parent is not comfortable with it, that’s the end of the discussion,” Superintendent Mary Springs told the Caller-Times.
Texas is one of 15 states that permits corporal punishment, defining it as a “deliberate infliction of physical pain by hitting, paddling, spanking, slapping or any other physical force used as a means of discipline.”
The issue has been a recent subject of heavy debate in Australia with severely damaged classrooms and threats to teachers prompting calls for corporal punishment to return.
Earlier this year, it was revealed teachers in NSW are beng trained on how to physically restrain violent children, including blocking punches and using leverage techniques to break free if a student grabs hold of them.
However corporal punishment and any form of disipline that "includes any threat of physical and violent harm" remain out of the question.
The discussion comes just days after a school in Sydney's west was criticised for allowing students as young as 15 to smoke cigarettes during recess and lunch.
The teachers believe eliminating nicotine is not the primary concern for the students as some have been kicked out of home or may have a criminal past.
The publication claims Warakirri College, a government-funded school, caters to those from 15 to 22-years-old and has campuses at Blacktown and another at Fairfield.
“At my school you can come with bright blue hair and metal in your face," Principal Carolyn Blanden told the Daily Telegraph.
“And if you need to have a smoke, that’s OK too.”
Newsbreak - July 24
