Can Caning be abolished in Ghanaian Schools?

Source: Afrosays.wordpress.com

Though Ghanaian schools are banning the use of cane, some communities are struggling to find other alternatives. Some teachers have altogether abandoned any idea of punishing the children.

Peki Adzokoe in the South Dayi District of the Volta Region is one of such community in limbo.

Some parents here believe the cane is the only way to discipline school children. Their conviction is because of a perception of indiscipline in the community which they blame on the absence of severe caning.

The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the District Education Directorate of South Dayi, Mr. Kuvor Micheal, informed that cane is still been used in the district schools.

This contravenes article 13, clauses (1) and (2) of the Children's Act (560) and other International conventions, like the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of Children, to protect children from abuse.

This is not new. In a study conducted, Estelle Matilda Appiah, noted that 61%, in a national study, think child beating is acceptable and another 32% thinks it's somehow acceptable. Only 8% thinks otherwise.

“In general, there is a lack of a socially acceptable and unambiguous distinction between physical punishment for corrective purpose and children abuse,” she says.

Some teachers have abstained from punishing pupils because of this confusion.

A teacher admits she has chosen not to beat the children. She wouldn't be the only teacher to admit this.

It might be because parents in the locality are notorious for threatening and physically abusing teachers (in some extreme cases). Also, teachers have acknowledged that caning is a form of physical abuse against the child and is hardly effective in reforming children.

A Head Teacher of one school (though teachers have been warned against granting interviews) said “caning is still going on [in the school] but the children are not changing. Now, you cane a child for a behaviour and they do the same thing you caned them for.” Earlier, He disagreed with the notion of abolishing caning in school saying, “we teachers don't buy the idea of abolishing caning.”

One other teacher confided that pupils understand their rights “so at times when you try to punish them [with the cane] they resist”, he added.

This some teachers misconstrue as insolence on the part of pupils. In this particular instance, the teacher narrated how he neglected a pupil and promoted her only for her to be demoted because she couldn't even construct a decent sentence in English.

This instance proves one point; Teachers lack alternative for punishing children.

The PRO of the Education Directorate, South Dayi, intimated that 'trained' teachers, even so, are given lessons in Educational Psychology adequate for them to address behavioural challenges in students.

Abstaining from punishing recalcitrant individuals is as dangerous as the injuries that come about through excessive beating with the cane.

The traditional ruler of the area, Togbe Kodzo Drah XI, alluded that the indiscipline originated form the home. The schools are burdened with these behavioural slags, therefore “force is needed to straighten them” hence, the cane is a necessary evil.

Caning as a corporal punishment was introduced by missionaries in the colonial occupation to subdue indiscipline. It is not to say that there was no caning in pre-colonial Africa but the evidence to that is not readily available. However “Things Fall Apart” by Chinua Achebe, proves an evidence of caning institutionalized by colonialists as a means for punishment. Okonkwo the prominent character was publicly lashed, inconsistent with tradition.

“In German colony times, (Teachers) were ordered that you could cane the child on the buttocks for 72 times and nothing will ever happen. At that time, cane really worked,” said a Head Teacher of Adzorkoe.

In pre-colonial Ghanaian communities, spanking was just a small alternative in the mass array of options parents adopted to punish (rather, abuse) the children. Denial of meal, driving the child to sleep outside the house as punishment, extra farming times, knocking the child on the head, pulling the child's ears, physical exertions such as squat-ups, putting one leg up and one hand down to humiliate children were just some ways children were punished in the pre-colonial, traditional communities. Spanking and slapping was common but not caning.

In Ghana, there is always the need to instantly and severely punish the child to conform.

“I don't think there is any parent, sensible, or a serious parent who will say he won't use the cane on a child. Using the cane does not necessarily mean beating but even threatening with the cane. But to leave the cane out, altogether, you cannot. If you are not careful, you won't have good children, I mean a trained child,” said Togbe Drah XI, the traditional ruler of Peki Adzorkoe.

Caning itself is a crude physical torture, but what other alternatives are there.

The confusion was elaborate when Togbe Drah XI said “If 'Human Rights' societies say we shouldn't punish the child by caning, by weeding and the others, what kind of punishment is there; If I shout on the child seriously, it is a threat to his life (he explained that the child panics when that happens). That one too is not to be done. So what now?”

This tempted a discussion on the available means to punish a child and the effect it could have. I went about the village to interview some people what they thought about idea of abolishing caning in schools.

One elderly man who gave his name as Pastor Owusu of the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church – Peki Adzokoe thinks caning is inimical to the child and when asked what alternative are there he said the children could be rebuked. Tempting further, I ask “if that fails, what next?”

Most of the respondent said cane could not be taken out of schools. Pastor Owusu could not think of any other means of punishing the child if rebuking, reproaching and 'advising' the children fails.

Source: thisisafrica.me

“Rebuking the child, educate them on the effect of their behaviour” said the Head Master: “instructing them to plant trees as punishment and asking them to be responsible for them,” said the PRO. With some persuasive questioning some came up with some interesting ideas in punishing students. What about detention, suspension?

Writing line is one effective cognitive ways of correcting a student. For instance, writing 100 lines of the sentence “I shall not abuse school pupils.” it is painful to the wrist as it is strenuous and boring. Repetition they say is the key to memory. Writing lines is the most methodical in correcting bad behaviour; a sort of cognitive reprogramming, as well as improving handwriting and sentence construction.

However, in the rural setting parents cannot afford to buy exercise books for entire subjects taught. “Common exercise books some parent cannot buy and you say they should use them for punishment?” said Togbe Drah XI.

Such is the case for several of the punishment initially mentioned. They hardly work in rural settings.