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Corporal punishment in schools a divisive issue

Banning corporal punishment in schools was a topic that drew several legislators, school principals and representatives of civic groups to a public hearing at the Legislative Yuan yesterday.

At issue is the feasibility of incorporating a ban on corporal punishment in schools by amending the Fundamental Law on Education (教育基本法).

The Humanistic Education Foundation, the National Alliance of Parents Association (NAPA) and the National Teachers' Association all said they were against teachers using corporal punishment, but they voiced differing concerns in terms of amending the law.

Shih Ying (史英), the founder of the Humanistic Education Foundation, said there may be good motives for such a punishment, but corporal punishment injures students both mentally and physically.

Shih cited the example of Germany, which amended its laws in 2000 to state that "Children have a right to be brought up without the use of force. Physical punishment, the causing of psychological harm and other degrading measures are forbidden."

Yao Jung-hua (姚榮華), principal of Ming-tsu Junior High School, said that corporal punishment in "moderation" was acceptable, as long as teachers refrained from being overly emotional.

Chang Hui-shan (張輝山), principal of Dong-guan Elementary School in Kaohsiung, corporal punishment should not be banned since this kind of punishment is not a moral issue, but a cultural one.

"It has to do with the conventional values of our country and our culture. The law is not something we can amend now. It is also not a race for us to make the top 50 list of the countries with such laws [banning corporal punishment]," Chang said.

NAPA and other groups said culture should not be used as an excuse because there is a need for a law to protect children at school.

Minister of Education Tu Cheng-sheng (杜正勝) told the hearing that he had begun teaching elementary school at age 18 and had used corporal punishment then. As he grew older, he said, he realized that such punishment was inappropriate, but at 18, he had not been emotionally mature.

Teachers must be professional and emotionally controlled, Tu said.

"Culture is not an excuse. But how will we change existing values? What methods can we use to stop corporal punishment in schools? Is a law really the way to solve the problem?" Tu said.

Several people raised the question of who would bear responsibility if the law was amended and afterward a teacher still used corporal punishment.

They urged the education ministry to carefully review the issue before proposing an amendment to the law.
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