Abolition of corporal punishment in schools debate commences

As government prepares to launch a series of consultations on the abolition of corporal punishment in the school system, Education  Minister Priya Manickchand hosted a panel discussion on the issue last Saturday evening on the National Communications Network (NCN).
The panel discussion, which also saw input from Dominique Gaskin, executive member of the Alliance For Change (AFC); Karen De Souza, head of Red Thread and Jennifer Cumberbatch, headteacher of Winfer Gardens Secondary, debated whether corporal punishments should be eliminated, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.
According to the education minister, while several countries have abolished corporal punishment in the school system, others including the United States are still at “loggerheads”, as to whether it should be eliminated or retained. “Canada, as recently as 2004, after a case went to the Supreme Court banned it across the country and the U. S. decided that it was not a breach of the Constitution,” she said.
While Poland has been the first country to have abolished corporal punishment in schools, Guyana is yet to take a stance on the issue, hence the need for countrywide consultations.
Thus far, all parties have agreed that no child in classes below Grade Two should be beaten in school, and this has so been noted in the new Education Bill, which is yet to be taken to Parliament to be made into law.
“We are at a place where, because of consultations, we have come to a conclusion that our children younger than Grade Two should not be beaten in school and we have also laid down rules about how this is to happen,” Minister Manickchand said.
Gaskin, while making a clear point that corporal punishment should not be abolished, stated that it should be regulated, whereby if the need so arise that children should be physically scolded in schools, it must be carefully done and monitored by the relevant authorities.
There is a place for it
“I know there are a lot of people who are against it and I respect that view. Corporal punishment is a system; I think there is a place for it. However, abusive behaviour against students, I am totally against it,” he said.
Principal Cumberbatch maintained that corporal punishment should be retained in the schools system, noting that children are becoming more insolent to teachers. “I have no problem if someone were to give a child two lashes, that is not abuse… I am in agreement with those persons who feel that there should be no corporal punishment if it is abusive, but we have to do something to stem that tide, because our children will become like those First World countries where children talk to their teachers anyhow,” she said.
She added that corporal punishments at most schools is the last resort, as there is currently a teachers’ manual, which governs how teachers are to maintain order and discipline in schools.
Should not be allowed
De Souza stated that while the issue can be challenging, especially for teachers, corporal punishment should not be allowed, as it is a defeat to a teachers’ professional standards and ethics.
A view Cumberbatch contested, stating that teachers are concerned about children and as such, would not scold a child to the extent of being physically abusive. She added that it is challenging for a teacher to function in a classroom where children are ill-mannered and disorderly, as it would be difficult for a teacher to be respected and for the curriculum to move forward.
Consultations on the abolishment of corporal punishment in the school system are the fulfilment of a commitment made during the submission of Guyana’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to the United Nations Rights Commission on several human rights conventions in 2010. The consultations will be organised by the education minister, and will take place in the broader context of other consultations which will continue on the draft Education Bill of 2012.
As government prepares to launch a series of consultations on the abolition of corporal punishment in the school system, Education  Minister Priya Manickchand hosted a panel discussion on the issue last Saturday evening on the National Communications Network (NCN).The panel discussion, which also saw input from Dominique Gaskin, executive member of the Alliance For Change (AFC); Karen De Souza, head of Red Thread and Jennifer Cumberbatch, headteacher of Winfer Gardens Secondary, debated whether corporal punishments should be eliminated, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.According to the education minister, while several countries have abolished corporal punishment in the school system, others including the United States are still at “loggerheads”, as to whether it should be eliminated or retained. “Canada, as recently as 2004, after a case went to the Supreme Court banned it across the country and the U. S. decided that it was not a breach of the Constitution,” she said.While Poland has been the first country to have abolished corporal punishment in schools, Guyana is yet to take a stance on the issue, hence the need for countrywide consultations.Thus far, all parties have agreed that no child in classes below Grade Two should be beaten in school, and this has so been noted in the new Education Bill, which is yet to be taken to Parliament to be made into law.“We are at a place where, because of consultations, we have come to a conclusion that our children younger than Grade Two should not be beaten in school and we have also laid down rules about how this is to happen,” Minister Manickchand said.Gaskin, while making a clear point that corporal punishment should not be abolished, stated that it should be regulated, whereby if the need so arise that children should be physically scolded in schools, it must be carefully done and monitored by the relevant authorities.
There is a place for it “I know there are a lot of people who are against it and I respect that view. Corporal punishment is a system; I think there is a place for it. However, abusive behaviour against students, I am totally against it,” he said.Principal Cumberbatch maintained that corporal punishment should be retained in the schools system, noting that children are becoming more insolent to teachers. “I have no problem if someone were to give a child two lashes, that is not abuse… I am in agreement with those persons who feel that there should be no corporal punishment if it is abusive, but we have to do something to stem that tide, because our children will become like those First World countries where children talk to their teachers anyhow,” she said.She added that corporal punishments at most schools is the last resort, as there is currently a teachers’ manual, which governs how teachers are to maintain order and discipline in schools.
Should not be allowedDe Souza stated that while the issue can be challenging, especially for teachers, corporal punishment should not be allowed, as it is a defeat to a teachers’ professional standards and ethics.A view Cumberbatch contested, stating that teachers are concerned about children and as such, would not scold a child to the extent of being physically abusive. She added that it is challenging for a teacher to function in a classroom where children are ill-mannered and disorderly, as it would be difficult for a teacher to be respected and for the curriculum to move forward.Consultations on the abolishment of corporal punishment in the school system are the fulfilment of a commitment made during the submission of Guyana’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to the United Nations Rights Commission on several human rights conventions in 2010. The consultations will be organised by the education minister, and will take place in the broader context of other consultations which will continue on the draft Education Bill of 2012.