By Cho Jae-hyon
City Editor
We were often beaten by our teachers in the old days. The most horrible and humiliating corporal punishment we received was the slap in the face. Some teachers were very “considerate” of us. Before slapping us in the face, they always warned us: “Grit your teeth tightly” (so that the impact would not break our teeth).
While watching our classmates get punished ahead of us, we abhorred the wait for our turn ― it was the scariest moment, more frightening than the actual corporal punishment itself.
I still remember a teacher who was notorious for his brutal beatings ― his nickname was “mad dog.” He used to line us up for one reason or another in front of the classroom. Then he slapped us in the face real hard, knocking most of us onto the floor one after another like domino chips.
We had to take beatings for various reasons ― from not buttoning up school uniform shirts to having long hair or failing to do an assignment.
The most painful physical punishment was the beating with a long, thick, round wooden rod. They hit us on the buttocks in most cases. But sometimes we were ordered to get on our knees on our desks and beaten in the upper thighs with the mob rod. It really hurt.
These kinds of brutal disciplines, albeit unthinkable these days, were common in most middle and high school classrooms in the 1970s and 1980s.
At that time, such brutal physical punishment was taken as a necessary part of education.
Why did they beat us so often with no mercy?
They believed misbehaving students deserve a harsh spanking otherwise they will be spoiled further and contaminate the whole class.
It was an authoritarian era. Our teachers were also beaten by their teachers. Violence passes down to the next generation not only in schools but also at home. It’s highly contagious.
But even in those days, there were teachers who knew how to run classes without scaring their pupils with rods. The teachers respected by their pupils barely wielded whips.
Of course, some of us were very naughty. However, did the appliance of physical discipline serve to help convert those unruly students into better ones? I don’t think so. The teachers who did not use rods influenced us in far more positive way.
Once again, corporal punishment has emerged as a hot potato, pitting liberal educators against conservative forces. It is said more than 90 percent of school principals oppose the idea of banning physical punishment.
They are worried that if such discipline is banned, students, many of whom are already uncontrollable, will turn more unruly.
For what should they be tamed and controlled under the threat of physical punishment? Under the grand pretext of educational purposes, schools still remain very rigid and authoritarian.
Schools should be the places that help students reach their full potential. Students also have their own ideas and opinions. They need a supportive not oppressive environment.
Under the current school system, students are expected to be the same. They are trained to excel in all kinds of exams. They are required to memorize a lot of material and do a great deal of assignments. And they will be punished if they do not comply.
All these are for a collective goal to advance to better universities and become salaried workers for companies. Public schools are meant to produce these standardized citizens.
Under this compulsory mood, it’s hard for students to be creative. They are trained to do as instructed. Originality is almost impossible.
Schools should help students reach their full potential. Teachers should be mentors who inspire their pupils. Students should not be guided by fear. They are not test-taking robots. Getting higher test grades sometimes has little to do with learning.
Teachers would say that the attempt to lift the ban on corporal punishment is too naive a thinking that comes from idealists who have no idea about what’s going on in schools. It’s not hard to guess their struggle with unruly students.
But that does not necessarily justify beatings.
Of course, specific and effective alternatives to corporal punishment are necessary before pushing for the ban. But all talk should be based on the principle that corporal punishment must be banned as it is inhumane and far from educational.
We grew up in the spare-the-rod, spoil-the-child world. Many of the so-called baby boomers, who are now controlling education policies, are still firm believers in the doctrine. But it’s no longer true. It’s time to spare the rod and eliminate other authoritarian rules that choke creativity and originality in schools.
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