Punishments in schools today need some change, some form of improvement. Punishments are supposed to be feared and effective. They must be sufficiently painful to keep kids from repeating what they did. The forms being practiced in schools today are too lenient and should be replaced with corporal punishment. (A form of punishment where the child can be spanked and whipped.)

The systems used today are too gentle, and too moderate. An hour or more of detention is not a punishment. Neither is in-school and out-of-school suspension. To most, these so-called punishments are no more than long-awaited vacations. The child is being rewarded instead of being punished. Punishments are not meant to be enjoyed.

Corporal punishment is the right form of discipline for these students. It brings back allegiance to teachers, order in the classrooms, and a safer environment in schools. Corporal punishment is a form of discipline used only for students who hard to control. It takes many forms, including choking, shaking, disrobement, excessive exercise, and confinement in an uncomfortable space. To some parents these punishments seem excessive, and so the right to choose which punishment is suitable for their children would be given.

Teachers today are losing the ability to control their classrooms. Students are more disruptive, more barbarous, and ill-mannered. It is rare to find students who appreciate their teachers. Rules and discipline which were enforced during the sixties and seventies are not efficient enough for today's rebellious teens.

Gislene Borno, a resident of Norwalk, grew up in Haiti where corporal punishment was mandatory in every school, said "You were forced to do your school work, come to school, and be at every class on time. If these rules were not followed, you'd be whipped, and spanked by your teachers and, on top of that, your parents. "

Another form of punishment would be to have the student stand on one foot holding two heavy rocks or books on each hand for as much as two hours," she explained. This sort of punishment forced kids to learn whether they liked it or not. There is no doubt that these students respected and obeyed their teachers' rules.

Those who believe corporate punishment is an abusive behavior must realize that, if these kids were raised in a correct manner by their parents in the first place, the schools would not have to discipline them. Their parents should have instilled the difference between right and wrong. The teachers should not have to put up with disruption, nor should the students, who come to school to learn.

Many southern schools are realizing how helpful paddling or corporal punishment may be. Paddling has been making a comeback in recent years. Alabama Governor Fab James, Jr., signed a law last August promising teachers that if they decide to spank a student, their school boards would be obliged to back them if they are taken to court. The North Fork School District in Utica, Ohio, approved a paddle last year that is four inches wide and eighteen inches long.

Only twenty-one states have bans on corporal punishmen. These states feel the continued use of corporal punishment appears to reflect inappropriate views of children's rights.

The rights of children should not be an issue in this matter. If kids behaved the way they should, then corporal punishment would not be an issue. With a parent's permission, a student facing detention or suspension can choose paddling instead.

The punishments used now will never work for students today or in the future. What is a phone call to a parent? If that does not bring fear at an elementary level, it definitely will not have an effect on middle school students or high school adolescents. Schools need punishment that is terrifying - a punishment that is sure to bring discomfort and not

enjoyment. ?