Educationists call for proactive steps to end corporal punishment

While the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, prohibits corporal punishment, classifying it as ‘physical harassment’, the Monday’s incident involving a 13-year-old boy, who lost his eyesight after being struck on his head by a teacher exposes a total lack of awareness on the subject, claim academicians.

As per the Act, offenders involved in such acts can be charged under Section 75 of the Juvenile Act, which calls for the imprisonment of three years and/or a fine of Rs 3 lakh on the offender.

Despite the existence of a stringent set of rules, cases of corporal punishment are still rampant in Tamil Nadu. In November last year, four Class-11 students ended their lives by jumping into a well in Panapakkam village in Vellore, as a result of such treatment. Again in November 2019, a mathematics teacher in Erode was alleged to have beaten 12 students with a wooden ruler.

Such behaviour from teachers is impossible to occur due to the regular and stringent camps, notices and programmes conducted for them, says PK Ilamaran, state president, Tamil Nadu Teachers’ Association. “Teachers, particularly at the government-run ones, are informed of these laws and undergo compulsory training programmes to ensure they are up-to-date on the latest methods to be adopted while handling the students. They are briefed on alternative methods like initiating dialogue, consulting parents, and other disciplining methods that can be adopted in the classroom,” he said.

Yet, despite these measures, the problem persists. The reason for the same, according to educational activist Prince Gajendra Babu, is the conservative principles being held on by the teachers. “Many teachers believe in the age-old saying of ‘spare the rod, spoil the child’. Due to this, they feel as though this is the only way to discipline the child. They are unaware of the changing role of teachers in modern society – that they must approach their children differently, as a friend, and have dialogue with them,” he said.

According to Gajendra Babu, though there could be claims and arguments on measures being undertaken to stop such incidents in schools, the fact remains that information on the same is unavailable to activists and educationalists. “There exists no centralised data source on such matters, which could have helped in identifying causes and devising possible solutions,” he said adding that data on the number of cases too is unreliable as not all cases are reported.

“In government schools we have access to the school and to the headmaster at least. There is some transparency. But when it comes to private schools, what occurs within the walls is a mystery to us,” he said.

Gajendra Babu also demanded that an officer should be given the responsibility of conducting regular checks in every educational district so as to ensure that schools are adhering to the set norms and do not try to cover up such incidents. “If this means that the government will have to hire more people, I think the matter is worth it. We must ensure such acts do not occur again,” he said.

Moving forward, there needs to exist more rules in place to ensure that such acts do not occur again, said S Arumainathan, State president, Tamil Nadu Student Teacher Welfare Association. “A teacher who is newly hired should be placed under a six-month probationary period, during which they should be monitored for their interactions with the children and the methods and techniques they employ. This will help check issues right in the beginning itself. Furthermore, teachers who have been accused of corporal punishment must not be allowed to return to teaching, and should rather be given other roles,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rekha, mother of latest victim Karthik, rued that all such debates are happening only after such atrocities are committed and the child being subjected to undergo physical and emotional trauma. “At least, that is the case with my son,” she said.

Rekha is distraught at the prospect of her son losing his eyesight. “It was better than losing him completely, as the doctors said his condition was very serious when we admitted him last week. One eye has popped out of the socket, and is hanging by the muscle and nerves alone,” said the resident of Pallikaranai.

Adding that she has filed a complaint with the police, pending an FIR, Rekha’s only question is how such an incident could have occurred despite the existing laws.

“He loved to paint. There are paintings of his all around our house even now. He won’t be able to pursue that passion in painting anymore because of what has happened to him. Was it fair to give this big a punishment to a child, that too for a silly thing as not completing his homework?” she asked.