In 2011, 20 states permitted corporal punishment in public schools. Many students who live outside those states find it hard to believe that corporal punishment still exists.
This lesson allows students to debate a complex issue while at the same time working on inferential comprehension.
To begin the lesson, I put signs on the four walls of the classroom that say Agree, Sort of Agree, Sort of Disagree and Disagree. I tell students that we are going to be talking about an issue that we, fortunately, do not have to deal with in our state. After explaining what corporal punishment is, I put up 10 to 15 statements about it on the overhead, one at a time. As each statement is put up, I have each student stand under the sign that best reflects his or her opinion. After they do this, the students take turns stating the reasons for their opinions.
Sample statements:
Punishments at our school
don’t seem to stop kids from
misbehaving.
If paddling were allowed at our school, certain students would probably be paddled over and over.
If a teacher or principal paddled me I would probably hate him or her.
Paddling might be an effective punishment in certain cases.
Next, we read two articles together. The first article, located at CNN. com, includes a map that shows where corporal punishment is still legal, which is a good visual for the kids. The article points out that students of color and students with disabilities are paddled at a much higher rate than other students. The other article, located at Newsweek.com, is about a school in South Carolina that brought back paddling. The principal there believes corporal punishment is responsible for the school’s turnaround, although he still feels conflicted about using the paddle.
After reading both articles, I have students answer questions (both multiple choice and short answer). The questions force them to make inferences about each article, including inferences about the authors’ biases. Then students must complete a graphic organizer that asks them to find arguments in the articles that both support and discourage the use of corporal punishment. Finally, they apply the topic to real life by writing a letter to an elected official about the subject.
My students were completely engaged in this topic, and they were able to express their opinions and debate in a thoughtful, respectful manner.
Erin Carrock
Centennial Middle School
Portland, Ore.
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