A Missouri school district announced that it is bringing back paddling -- the practice of hitting children with a wooden paddle as punishment. While corporal punishment on children has been in decline, it remains legal in 19 states. With all of the research we have on how physical punishment is psychologically and physically harmful to children in the short AND long run, schools are still deciding to use corporal punishment on their students! This practice is abusive and must end.
Sign the petition to demand Congress ban the use of corporal punishment in schools on a federal level!
Groups like the American Psychological Association, have long pointed to research showing that paddling can cause injury and trauma and is not effective at improving behavior. Researchers have also found that Black children and disabled children are more likely to be "paddled" in school than their peers.
Elizabeth T. Gershoff, a professor of human development and family sciences at the University of Texas at Austin put it best: "If one adult were to paddle another with a wooden board, it would be considered assault. But when the teacher hits a smaller person who happens to be a child, these states and these schools are saying it's okay. It's showing we give children less protection against violence than we give adults."
Sign the petition to demand Congress ban the use of corporal punishment in schools in every state!
