Some Students Can be Beaten by their Teachers

Matt Toppi, Staff Writer

Corporal punishment should not be allowed in schools. Any act of violence towards children should not be permitted to the faculty. This, unfortunately, is allowed after multiple beatings at Charles R. Drew High Junior High School, Roosevelt Andrews and James Ingraham (along with their parents) filed a Supreme Court Case against the principal of the school: Willie J. Wright. The case was about corporal punishment in schools and whether or not it was against the constitutional rights of Americans. Wright won the case in a 5 to 4 jurial vote meaning that corporal punishment was deemed as lawful and that the eighth amendment, being that there should be no cruel or unusual punishments(according to law.cornell.edu), was not broken.

Some of the jurors on the case believed that the students in schools should not be punished more than some criminals are punished; especially when they have a lesser infraction. Criminals are not punished with violence, and in schools children are punished with violence. That is something that really does not make sense.

When corporal punishment and violence are brought into play, injury and risk of death, in some cases, can come with it. Even in the Ingraham vs Wright case a child was brought to the hospital and put on serious pain medication. Not only is this not good to give children it but it can lead to worse things like addiction and overdosing.

Corporal punishment can cause students to learn less efficiently. When they are worried about being beaten by their teacher it not only takes their mind off of the learning, but it also creates poor relationships with their teachers. Poor teacher-student-relations is only going to cause poor learning.
Corporal punishment is used to scare students into behaving. When students are scared of being hurt they will think before they misbehave. Students will look up to and respect their elders when they know the power they have. Corporal punishment is a quick punishment allowing for little time taken from class and little time taken from teachers after school lives (they do not have to give detentions anymore).

Regardless of the ways corporal punishments are beneficial to schooling, it still involves beating of children. Kids around the world should feel safe learning at school and if they do not wish to learn to their full potential, then that is on them. Anything illegal outside of education should also be illegal in the schools.