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Subscribe to RSSAt Holmes County High School in Florida’s rural north, not only do naughty students get spanked, but the woodshop class makes the paddles, according to reports in the media.
Eddie Dixon, the principal at the school in Bonifay, a small town 15 miles from the Alabama border, recently told a reporter from StateImpact about the shop class's product: a lightweight paddle made of ash wood, measuring about 16 inches long, 5 inches wide and half an inch wide.
“You can’t buy them anywhere,” Dixon said, according to StateImpact, a partnership of local public media and National Public Radio. “There’s not a market for them, so yeah, students make it.”
The report didn't say how many paddles a school the size of Holmes County High, with about 500 students, might need. An attempt by msnbc.com to contact Dixon by telephone was not successful Thursday evening.
Holmes apparently isn't the only Florida school making its own paddles. At Madison County Central's elementary and middle school, east of Tallahassee, townfolk make the paddles out of plexiglass, the dean of schools said, according to StateImpact.
Florida is among 19 states that allow school staff to use corporal punishment, according to the Center for Effective Discipline. Other states allowing corporal punishment: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Wyoming.
More than 220,000 school children nationwide were subjected to physical punishment during the 2005-2006 school year, according to the Ohio-based center, citing the most recent figures available.
Florida defines corporal punishment as the “moderate use of physical force or physical contact by a teacher or principal as may be necessary to maintain discipline or to enforce school rule.”
In September 2011, the Ending Corporal Punishment in Schools Act was introduced in Congress. But the bill, which would outlaw “paddling, spanking or other forms of physical punishment, however light, imposed upon a student," was referred to committee in the House and is seen as unlikely to become law. A state representative's attempt to pass a similar law also failed last year.
So students like Lucas Mixon will face more spankings.
“I been getting them since about first grade,” said Mixon, a junior at Holmes, National Public Radio reported. “It’s just regular. They tell you to put your hands up on the desk and how many swats you’re going to get.”
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Do you flunk wood shop if your paddle breaks?
No, you get that asss whoop'd.
It would be interesting to the results of a study done showing how many violent offenders were beaten with wooden paddles in school (of all places).
Violence and dropout rates are higher in the US than any other developed nation in the world, and now I understand part of the reason why. Lazy uncreative parents who need schools to dole out physical punishment to their children, because they themselves won't take responsibility for their children's behavior are the real issue here.
Many of todays parents are single/divorced and are worried about being popular with their children, and won't deal with their children's behavior issues. it's easier to point the finger at the school official who dealt the punishment as "the bad guy/gal" and remain popular with the child.
Paddling is an uncreative problematic sadistic approach to dealing with everyday common issues with students problems. A more effective form of punishment would be requiring extra homework such as a book report, detention, sport suspensions, or even cleaning duties, resulting in a denial of the students personal time.
Parents who condone or use paddling are not looking at the real issue, and are looking for a quick easy solution to ordinary problems which face every parent and child.
Paddling is a form of sadism, sadistic behavior leads to more violence and abuse, be it physical or mental.
It is hard to say how much violence and abuse goes on in other countries, as most other countries media sources are partially or completely censored, yes even developed westernized countries censor their news to appear less violent(yes even Spain). China and Russia are a complete mystery as to what actually goes on behind the scenes, so don't be too hard on yourselves, Americans, just fix the problem and don't believe all foreign propaganda and always question the source, after all, if America is so bad...why does everyone want to come here ?
These people call themselves teachers?
No; substitute parents. If the parents would, the teachers wouldn't have to.
Spare the rod and spoil the child. From what I read and hear, many schools have loss their disciplinary edge. I think more schools should be allowed to spank, but I don't think by just anyone. Send them to a designated spanker. A martial arts expert preferably. I think you would have the most well mannered children in school real quick.
"Hey teacher, leave those kids alone"
LOL!!! “I been getting them since about first grade,” said Mixon, .... “It’s just regular. ..."
Apparently it is having no affect on this kid, but the "teachers" are too stupid to "get it".
Never worked on me when I was in school either. In fact, after "getting busted" (paddled), my friends would gather around and want to know what it was like, if it hurt. I would just say it stung a little. I liked the attention actually. Looking back, I realize it was like an initiation in to manhood for a young boy.
I will admit it did teach me two valuable lessons in life: 1. If you're going to do something not approved of, make sure you don't get caught if it's not worth a few moments of physical discomfort. 2. Corporal punishment teaches one to not get caught, not one thing about values or right from wrong.
So, keep paddling you ignorant "educators".
Corporal punishment should be allowed in all 50 states.
Should work on adult misdemeanor criminals, too.
Amen. It also teaches students not to make waves. I was threatened with the paddle for wanting to learn more than the rest of the class was doing. Reading ahead in my work books and English reading books, even though my parents told me to, was enough for the teacher to threaten me with the paddle. And of course my parents didn't believe me--what type of teacher would ever do a thing like that?
And year after year, it always seemed to be the same boys who got paddled--kids from single parent homes and/or where the dad was a known drunk.
I guess the scariest part about corporal punishment these days is that some kid somewhere might retaliate lethally. I mean, spankings can be interpreted as a form of institutional bullying. Too bad the situation with our children in present-day society has continued to deteriorate where the paddle still seems needed.
If some kid will retaliate lethally then he's a loose cannon that will go off anyway. The paddle works on many more kids than it fails with. It's not intended to disable or maim kids so these comments like from hs321 are to be expected. It's not supposed to cause an unbearable level of pain. The embarrassment factor more than any pain is what causes it to be effective. If someone isn't bothered on that level then it has no more effect than time out does for other kids.
My 6th grade teacher in Utah had a paddle that he used to put a very heavy chalk X on to leave tell-tale marks on your pants. Everyone in the school knew it when you got swatted!
In Texas in first grade(1976) at the Gatesville Elementary School I was taken into the hallway every single day by an evil,nasty woman named Mrs. Springston and hit with the paddle for problems getting my work done. I wasn't being willful or insubordinate by not getting it done. I just happen to have brain chemistry that makes certain tasks more difficult for me to get done the same as the average person.
I caused no problems in class. I never gave this monster any reason to do this to me other than maybe she was burned out or simply didn't know how to do her job or possibly she just enjoyed hurting children and I was the one she chose to single out EVERY SINGLE DAY, making me an outsider from the rest of my classmates in addition to the other trauma it caused. I know it came to a screeching halt when my Mom found out, but not before it pretty much ruined school for me.
Perhaps if she had not been allowed to do this as a matter of policy she would have been forced to find out what was actually the problem with me, (as if this evil woman actually cared) instead of trying to beat it out of me....I often wonder what might have been different in my life if this had not happened to me.
There are always abusive people to be found. At our school the teachers weren't allowed to do that. They were sent to the main office and were either paddled with yours or your parents permission. If you didn't want to go that route the options were suspensions and detentions. Sorry for your experience.
oh curt im sure the same options are availiable at that school. but well here it is: parents dont wanna take responsibility for their kids. many think the school is a daycare center. and they damn sure dont wanna take a day off to keep their kid at home! so think about it who's fault is this anyways the school for enforcing the rules or the parent for not taking the responsible path and raising their own child?
hmmm i wonder?
My parents took plenty of responsibility for me throughout my childhood and even beyond...they are wonderful people and have been my guiding light and the ones who taught me what was really right from wrong....At 6 years old in an elementary school in Texas you are under the power of the teacher...when you are a little child in a Texas school ( at least back then) you don't get to exersise many "options".
I was taught by my parents to be polite and respectful. I never acted out or caused any problems in class. It did not matter. I was still singled out for abuse....so what rules was she enforcing?
Quite simply this woman(may she rot in hell) was allowed by the Texas school sytem to abuse a child until my parents put a stop to it....Hmmmm I wonder who is at fault here?
I had one of those teachers in Clawson Michigan ...
In the 60's and 70's in Philipsburg, MT. we had to make these for the school in shop class cause sometimes they broke in use.
Holes were drilled in them to maximize the hitting power.
( I got to "test" these regularly!!)
Glad you lived to write about it dok!! :-)
yup me too dok and what do ya know? im not worse off for getting them!
however i have seen the "new" way of rasing a child, no respect, no morals, no follow thru, self intitlement all the way thru and i must say i think kicking your kids ass is the way to go! understand the difference between smacking them 2 or 3 times as opposed to beating your kid. there is a huge difference!
All children should be beaten until they're semi-literate.
I've seen that "new" way of raising children as well, but I don't subscribe to it. I'm not opposed to spankings, I distinctly remember a couple times in my childhood where that happened, and I developed just fine. The problem is that most parents don't escalate to that. It goes from ignoring their child while they update their status on their phone to yelling and screaming when the child is asking for attention and acting out to receive it. If you give a child attention, and give them minor corrections to keep them on a logical path, you won't have to escalate to corporal punishment when the child is way off the path because they'll never get there.
I remember one of my teachers in high school talking about his toddler, and how his life was no longer his. He would get home late and want to sit down and read the paper, but his little girl would take his hand, and they would go outside and inspect every piece of loose gravel in the driveway, and every dandelion on the way there. When you have children, they should be the center of your universe for a long time. Instead, it's turned into a scenario where parents don't participate. They observe and report the child's behavior via social networking.
We made pointy sticks .
Kids can't hug each other in school but their teachers can beat them? Sounds fair to me...
Anyone using corporal punishment on my children better go through me first!. We had the pendulum swing out of the dark ages where the teachers beat up, reduced their students to quivering flesh, traumatized by mean authority....every child's worse nightmare - then BLAZES no punishment for any children at all! And now we've got children of the Corn, lol. It takes wisdom to raise children - NOT PADDLES! And I would question every single time a child is hit by authority!!!! It better be documented!
I didn't realize that schools were still allowed to do this. Awesome! Given the liberal leniency in schools today it's wonderful to hear that at least one school doesn't "spare the rod."
I don't want anyone hitting my kids, period. Glad I live in a state where this is not allowed.
Boo Hoo.When I got my 1 shot[for shooting a basket w a soccer ball],my teacher got the relief he nedded.It also reinforced for about 25 young males the hierarchy and need to listen.I consider it taking one for the team.Don't be such girls about it.
Are you kidding me??? If an adult hit another adult with something like that, they'd be charged and convicted of assault! If you hit a dog with it you would be charged and convicted of animal cruelty. But it's OK to hit a kid with a weapon like that? What offenses warrant violence like that? Chewing gum? Using bad language?
All this teaches is that if you have power on your side, it is OK to use violence to control those weaker than yourself. The reason these paddles are not available for purchase is that most of us have evolved enough to know that violence is not the proper way to solve a problem.
Do the adults in this community submit to a good "spanking" every time they get caught speeding or littering? Seems to me, they deserve it more than the kids...
glynnglo -
As you said at the end of your comments, corproal punishment should work on misdemeanor adult criminals, too.
Do the administrators of this school have the spankings taped so they can sit and engage in self-abuse?
Well as being a former student that had my butt paddled once in 6th grade, and as a parent..I think that school is for teaching BUT...parents are for discipline. If the parents do not want the school to discipline their child when they act up then send the kid home. Let the parent deal with them then. But then when the kid misses too much school because the parent will not discipline the child then its time for ...somone..local government and welfare officials to...discipline the parent. Time off from work for court ordered parenting classes, court appearances, maybe getting fired for too much time off for not doing what they should had in the start...that frees up the schools to teach and not dumb down the classes because of a few unruly kids. Discipline of kids has gone downhill fast with both parents needing to work and in the 70's when child abuse charges got ridiculous...saw a woman have her child taken away when she scolded him in the shopping cart, he screamed out "Noo...mommy...don't spank me...." she never laid a hand on him and SHE got arrested and took her 3 days to get her lying brat back. Its time to stop...sparing the rod and not abuse the kids but...teach them the only way most seem to understand...discomfort.
Oww.
Thank You
I remember the days when corporal punishment was the norm for all schools. And you know what? The schools did not have the degree of discipline problems that they face today. The problem children were afraid of those paddles and therefore, they made a bigger effort to straighten up when threatened with them. Now, you get a note sent home and loose a recess or have to stay for detention. Big Deal! And that is how children look at discipline in the schools nowadays, "Big effin Deal"! Bring back the paddles in all schools, they will not be saying "Bif Effin Deal" anymore!
OMG! I didn't realize there were still people who think it's OK to abuse a smaller person with a weapon! If they really believe that this works, then adults should be beat up when they are found guilty of traffic violations! That will get them to drive the speed limit and use their turn signals!!
Honestly, if I go next door and hit my nieghbor, if my husband hits me, if I smacked the grocery bagger, I'd be immediately arrested for assault!! If I kick my dog, in my state, it's a felony! But beat up a tiny, innocent person who hasn't even learned all of life's lessons yet is horrible. Physical assault has never taught anyone anything but fear. All they learned is to not get caught. THIS NEEDS TO STOP! MORONS!!!
Principal Dixon couldn't be more wrong when he says you can't buy spanking paddles and that there's no market for them. A simple Google search confirms there are many manufacturers producing and selling them. You can even buy ones made out of leather instead of wood if you prefer.