After an earlier post on corporal punishment in Nigerian schools, where its widespread use, factors encouraging its use and its effect on individuals were highlighted, i thought it wise to also write on feasible alternatives to this method of behavior control and discipline.
The ideas offered in this post, far from being original, are based on principles of psychology. Educational psychology offers a great deal of effective methods for teachers in the way of handling and dealing with indiscipline or antisocial behaviors. And with the increasing campaign against the use of corporal punishment in homes and schools, the urgent need for teachers to start implementing some basics of educational psychology now become paramount. The following are some of the alternatives to corporal punishments :
The ideas offered in this post, far from being original, are based on principles of psychology. Educational psychology offers a great deal of effective methods for teachers in the way of handling and dealing with indiscipline or antisocial behaviors. And with the increasing campaign against the use of corporal punishment in homes and schools, the urgent need for teachers to start implementing some basics of educational psychology now become paramount. The following are some of the alternatives to corporal punishments :
Guidance and Counseling
It's a know fact that lot of schools operated both by government and private owners in Nigeria rarely have a guidance and counselling unit or department. And in cases where there is one, nearly no impact is made on the students in shaping their behavior. Personally, i was "privileged" to have attended a secondary school which has a guidance and counseling department, but majority of us (students) never knew or appreciate its services.
Guidance and counseling is one of the major application of educational psychology in practical sense, it has the potential of not only to shape students behavior in the present, but also in the future. It's the greatest tool in behavior control and discipline.
Thus, in schools where no department is dedicated to the services of guidance and counseling, the bulk of the job therefore falls collectively and individually on the teachers of the school. One-on-one and group counseling should routinely be done in relation to new or existing behavioral challenges posed by students. If for instance, a student has the habit of arriving late to school, rather than using corporal punishment to address the problem, the proper way would be to investigate into the problem, identify reasons for the students habitual lateness to school and offer an appropriate guidance and counseling. Sometimes, the problem may be traced back to the child's home, thus, the parents should sometimes be involved in the planned solutions.
Also, the adolescents are one of the most difficult group of students to help, nonetheless, teachers should exhibit the highest level of professionalism in handling and correcting their behaviors. The understanding of their stage in human development is very crucial in any attempt of guidance and counseling, also, possible factors that may be influencing any noticed antisocial behavior should first be investigated prior to counseling. Students at this stage in development tend to exhibit an increase level of violence, disobedience, sexual awareness and some other antisocial behaviors. Guidance and counseling is certainly the best method and not canning to address these problem, but most importantly, for the method to be successful, several factors that may be influencing the behavioral changes such as movies, games, abusive use of the internet and peer pressure should be well taking into consideration in attempts of guidance and counseling. In most serious cases, the support of the parents should be sought in monitoring the child's activities at home such as his/her exposure to internet contents, certain types of video games, satellite television contents and member of his/her friends.
With the right knowledge, guidance and counseling is indisputably a tool for all teachers both to correct students behavior and as a means to discipline.
It's a know fact that lot of schools operated both by government and private owners in Nigeria rarely have a guidance and counselling unit or department. And in cases where there is one, nearly no impact is made on the students in shaping their behavior. Personally, i was "privileged" to have attended a secondary school which has a guidance and counseling department, but majority of us (students) never knew or appreciate its services.
Guidance and counseling is one of the major application of educational psychology in practical sense, it has the potential of not only to shape students behavior in the present, but also in the future. It's the greatest tool in behavior control and discipline.
Thus, in schools where no department is dedicated to the services of guidance and counseling, the bulk of the job therefore falls collectively and individually on the teachers of the school. One-on-one and group counseling should routinely be done in relation to new or existing behavioral challenges posed by students. If for instance, a student has the habit of arriving late to school, rather than using corporal punishment to address the problem, the proper way would be to investigate into the problem, identify reasons for the students habitual lateness to school and offer an appropriate guidance and counseling. Sometimes, the problem may be traced back to the child's home, thus, the parents should sometimes be involved in the planned solutions.
Also, the adolescents are one of the most difficult group of students to help, nonetheless, teachers should exhibit the highest level of professionalism in handling and correcting their behaviors. The understanding of their stage in human development is very crucial in any attempt of guidance and counseling, also, possible factors that may be influencing any noticed antisocial behavior should first be investigated prior to counseling. Students at this stage in development tend to exhibit an increase level of violence, disobedience, sexual awareness and some other antisocial behaviors. Guidance and counseling is certainly the best method and not canning to address these problem, but most importantly, for the method to be successful, several factors that may be influencing the behavioral changes such as movies, games, abusive use of the internet and peer pressure should be well taking into consideration in attempts of guidance and counseling. In most serious cases, the support of the parents should be sought in monitoring the child's activities at home such as his/her exposure to internet contents, certain types of video games, satellite television contents and member of his/her friends.
With the right knowledge, guidance and counseling is indisputably a tool for all teachers both to correct students behavior and as a means to discipline.
Positive Reinforcement/Praises
This is one alternative to corporal punishment that teachers have mostly under used. The power of praises and reward for correct actions or behavior have been proven beyond doubt to be effective in shaping or modifying a subject/learner's behavior. It has been proven in classical experiments with animals and human subjects that reward and praises can positively reinforce a desired behavior and the lack of those (reward and praises), in cases of wrong action or behavior would discourage such actions. So, if method well used and applied as early as tender ages, the result can be amazing and students may no longer require canning as animals. Praises and rewards also has the potential of creating a healthy competition among students. If for instance, a student is praised and rewarded in the presence of his/her mates for good behaviours such as always being punctual to school and keeping a healthy appearance, other students could become motivated to emulate similar behaviour in return for similar rewards and praises.
Praises could be in utterance of positive words on the student or in writing, by passing positive comments about the student on the school notice board, report cards and in exercise note books. Rewards may be in the form of presentation of customized materials like exercise notebooks, writing materials or textbooks and in the act of award of position of responsibility as school prefect. If the criteria for the award of a position of responsibility is well announced in advance to potential candidates, the probability of a healthy competition and rivalry for a desired behavior increases - in which case, the students behavior would have been wittinly changed.
Thus, both reward and praises can change or shape the students behavior and the need for canning or other corporal punishment would no longer be require for discipline. As opposed to popular thinking, not much would be required in material and cash to implement these alternative methods, the most needed resources is the commitment of both teachers and school management to the principle of praises and reward.
This is one alternative to corporal punishment that teachers have mostly under used. The power of praises and reward for correct actions or behavior have been proven beyond doubt to be effective in shaping or modifying a subject/learner's behavior. It has been proven in classical experiments with animals and human subjects that reward and praises can positively reinforce a desired behavior and the lack of those (reward and praises), in cases of wrong action or behavior would discourage such actions. So, if method well used and applied as early as tender ages, the result can be amazing and students may no longer require canning as animals. Praises and rewards also has the potential of creating a healthy competition among students. If for instance, a student is praised and rewarded in the presence of his/her mates for good behaviours such as always being punctual to school and keeping a healthy appearance, other students could become motivated to emulate similar behaviour in return for similar rewards and praises.
Praises could be in utterance of positive words on the student or in writing, by passing positive comments about the student on the school notice board, report cards and in exercise note books. Rewards may be in the form of presentation of customized materials like exercise notebooks, writing materials or textbooks and in the act of award of position of responsibility as school prefect. If the criteria for the award of a position of responsibility is well announced in advance to potential candidates, the probability of a healthy competition and rivalry for a desired behavior increases - in which case, the students behavior would have been wittinly changed.
Thus, both reward and praises can change or shape the students behavior and the need for canning or other corporal punishment would no longer be require for discipline. As opposed to popular thinking, not much would be required in material and cash to implement these alternative methods, the most needed resources is the commitment of both teachers and school management to the principle of praises and reward.
Suspension
Though, this is one of the most extreme method of discipline, but if correctly used, particularly in most serious cases of indiscipline and social vices, it could make the job of behavior control a much easy task. The common mistakes of many school management has often been the use of suspension after every use corporal punishment have failed to change the student's behavior. In this case, corporal punishment itself had failed to produce the desired result and the school management uses the tool of suspension in an act of desperation and not as part of a planned regime of correction and rehabilitation for the student. One way to correctly use this method would be to precede its use by several sessions of counseling and to have a planned regime of rehabilitation for the student post suspension.
In the course of our discussion on a totally different matter, a student once said to me that suspension from school for one week was the worst punishment he had ever received for his act of indiscipline, disobedience and "stubbornness", worse than all corporal punishments he has ever served for similar offenses. And according to him, it was the only punishment that changed him from his past behaviors. What made the punishment worse was watching his classmates and friends leaving and returning from school while he is sent on errands around the village or to work in the farm.
The school was a rural farming community school with no formal guidance and counseling department and to the new principal posted to the school, suspension in his opinion is a better method of discipline than corporal punishment and in this case, even from the student's testimony, the method worked !
So if suspension is carefully used, most importantly, with the cooperation of the parents and with a post suspension rehabilitation follow up on the student, the desired behavior from the student could be achieved.
In conclusion, not a single method among the ones described above and others is an exact alternative to corporal punishment, rather, a combination of it. Teachers must not relent in shaping their student's behavior, values and orientation to the overall desire of the larger society. If all teachers should do their job in this regard, the prospect of a sane society - free of mob/jungle justice, drug abuse, domestic violence, rape and other antisocial behaviors - gets realistic.
Though, this is one of the most extreme method of discipline, but if correctly used, particularly in most serious cases of indiscipline and social vices, it could make the job of behavior control a much easy task. The common mistakes of many school management has often been the use of suspension after every use corporal punishment have failed to change the student's behavior. In this case, corporal punishment itself had failed to produce the desired result and the school management uses the tool of suspension in an act of desperation and not as part of a planned regime of correction and rehabilitation for the student. One way to correctly use this method would be to precede its use by several sessions of counseling and to have a planned regime of rehabilitation for the student post suspension.
In the course of our discussion on a totally different matter, a student once said to me that suspension from school for one week was the worst punishment he had ever received for his act of indiscipline, disobedience and "stubbornness", worse than all corporal punishments he has ever served for similar offenses. And according to him, it was the only punishment that changed him from his past behaviors. What made the punishment worse was watching his classmates and friends leaving and returning from school while he is sent on errands around the village or to work in the farm.
The school was a rural farming community school with no formal guidance and counseling department and to the new principal posted to the school, suspension in his opinion is a better method of discipline than corporal punishment and in this case, even from the student's testimony, the method worked !
So if suspension is carefully used, most importantly, with the cooperation of the parents and with a post suspension rehabilitation follow up on the student, the desired behavior from the student could be achieved.
In conclusion, not a single method among the ones described above and others is an exact alternative to corporal punishment, rather, a combination of it. Teachers must not relent in shaping their student's behavior, values and orientation to the overall desire of the larger society. If all teachers should do their job in this regard, the prospect of a sane society - free of mob/jungle justice, drug abuse, domestic violence, rape and other antisocial behaviors - gets realistic.
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