Two thirds (66%) of public school corporal punishment in Ohio took place in schools falling in the lowest 25% on state report cards in the 99-00 school year. That number increased from the 98-99 statistics which found 59 percent of all paddlings were in the lowest quartile.
The Center for Effective Discipline used Ohio Department of Education corporal punishment statistics and data from school standards (report cards) from 98-99 and 99-00 school years. The Center for Effective Discipline annually verifies and analyzes Department of Education corporal punishment statistics submitted by school districts. Corporal punishment in Ohio schools has declined from 68, 525 instances in l983-84 to 816 in 99-00 according to Center records.
“Obviously, we can’t say that paddling causes poor achievement”, said Nadine Block, Director of the Center for Effective Discipline. “The linkage, however, raises some interesting questions. We know paddling is ineffective as a teaching tool. The same students get hit over and over. Why do mostly disadvantaged schools use corporal punishment? Is it also a sign of other ineffective instructional methods?”
Twenty-seven states have banned corporal punishment in schools. “Ohio needs to get rid of this ineffective and dangerous practice. The use of corporal punishment in disadvantaged, low achieving schools only adds to the accumulation of hardships suffered by children in those schools. It clearly isn’t improving achievement,” said Block.
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