Corporal Punishment In Texas

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Many people within the United States think corporal punishment has long disappeared from all American public schools. However, this is not true. Texas is one of the nineteen states that still permit corporal punishment by principals or teachers. There are many questions as to why corporal punishment is still allowed in some states. Many people question if it is effective, or if it is necessary to discipline. Recently in Texas, two parents complained that their daughters had been paddled hard enough to develop bruises and burn-like red marks. The Springtown school board voted to amend their corporal punishment rules. However, they did not abolish the practice, they expanded it to allow teachers and administrators of the opposite gender to punish…show more content…
According to, The National Association of School Nurses, corporal punishment is defined as, “intentional infliction of physical pain as a method of changing behavior. This can include hitting, shaking or slapping, either with a hand or with an object, such as a paddle or belt. Corporal punishment becomes abuse if it causes injury to the child” (NASN). In one case, Taylor Santos, a high-school sophomore at Springtown High School, opted to take a spanking rather than serve another day in school suspension. However, she was left bruised badly blistered after her male vice-principal spanked her. Taylor’s mother gave permission for her daughter’s punishment, but she did not know it would be the schools male vice- principal administering it. According to Springtown’s ISD policy, “corporal punishment shall be administered only by an employee who is the same sex as the student” (FOX NEWS). In Taylor’s case, her punishment caused injury to her body. Two days after the paddling Taylor stated that, “[she] still has welts on her today” (FOX NEWS). Taylor’s punishment caused bruising and blisters. Therefore, the National Association of School Nurses would recognize her case as a form of child abuse. In addition, Taylor’s mother states that the administrator “used too much force” (FOX NEWS). Furthermore, Livestrong.com writes that, “Physical abuse is any act perpetrated upon a child that causes…show more content…
Child abuse does not only include physical abuse. Dr. Frank Putnam of the National Institute of Mental Health and Dr. Martin Teicher of Harvard Medical School, “studied 170 girls, 6-15 years old. The girls who experienced corporal punishment had symptoms such as abnormally high stress hormones, which can kill neurons in brain areas crucial for thinking and memory, and high levels of an antibody that weakens the immune system” (Self-growth). Taylor’s mom states that her daughter, “[is] more humiliated and embarrassed than anything” (FOX NEWS). Taylor did not only endure phyisical injuries, she was also a victim of emotional distress. Taylor’s classmates knew about her bruises and that she received them from her male vice-principal paddling her. It was uncomfortable for her to sit in her chair, however she did anyways so she would not be teased. In another

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