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Naseem Alston:

Professor Coleman:

English 112:

7 March 2020:

Parents should not spank their children

Disciplining children is sometimes hard for some parents, as it could make them irritated

or frustrated. When children do not listen and adhere to simple instructions and guidelines, their

parents get angry. Should parents, therefore, punish children by spanking them or discipline them

in other ways? "Spare the rod and spoil the child" is a famous saying, but is it necessary? Some

young parents opt to spank their children instead of finding out the root cause of their defiance or

what is making the child act out. Also, parents are often confused about whether to punish their

children or to put them in time out. Eventually, spanking children will lead to negative results.

Therefore, spanking is not an effective way to discipline children as it yields a negative reaction.

Firstly, spanking creates a bad example for the child. Parents who often spank their

children have a higher chance of raising negative behaviors between family members or during

school to teachers and their peers. For example, when can one get their four-year-old child

fighting with her younger sister, and the child will innocently justify her actions that she is doing

what her mom does precisely to her. It is also dangerous when the parents make some mistakes

in their upbringing role as it can backfire on them in the future. Most children tend to imitate

people who they most respect and emulate. Parents should, therefore, be careful as their actions
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and behaviors positively or negatively impact children. Parents should be aware that they are

raising fathers, mothers, wives, and husbands for the future generation.

Notably, if we use violence towards our children, they will be violent to their children.

Spanking makes children see that they have the right to hit others. As a result, children can fight

and settle scores with their siblings and friends whenever they feel like. Parents should try to

teach their children how to control their emotions; hence spanking and beating should be

discarded. Our anger and violent ways can destroy all these efforts. With the change in times,

spanking as a form of punishment no longer seems appropriate to our children. Recent research

from a group of psychologists has shown that punishment distracts the child from learning how

to resolve conflict effectively and humanely (Kim,2018). One of the studies recently published

by the University of Columbia proved that the more spanking children get, the more they grow

and become rebellious.

For most individuals globally, like Professor Michael Mackenzie, child punishment is

like an arms race. In some stages of development, children have some substantial requirements to

ascertain their independence. They do the exact opposite of what they ought to do and go against

their parents. When one’s child continues to undergo a series of disciplinary actions such as

slaps, spankings, and punches, they may end up in tears and also hurt their hands and buttocks.

Children who are spanked in their early childhood are more likely to be aggressive as older

children and also more likely to do worse on vocabulary tests than their peers were never

punished. (Deborah,2013).

Kids may also learn from spanking and corporal punishment that violence is acceptable in

our society. For instance, where a parent smacks their child for wrongdoing, and the child

reiterates. The parents will hit the child and warn him or her that parents are to be respected no

matter the situation. This whole scenario confuses the child as they thought defending
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themselves was the epitome. There must be a different and unique way to discipline a child for

wrongdoing. Spanking should be avoided as it adversely affects a child emotionally (Bill,2013).

A situation where a grown-up whip a child mercilessly could make a child feel inferior as they

have no say in such a case. In the long run, the child could develop insecurities. Spanking could

also teach a child to lie to avoid getting spanked and punished.

Also, spanking leads to rebellious behavior. A child will never confess when they are on

the wrong as they already know that they will be punished. A child's self-esteem could be

lowered by spanking as well. Spanking is detrimental to the wellbeing and self-confidence of a

child. Children may feel unwanted and unappreciated through spanking. Parents and guardians

should try a different method when it comes to disciplining their kids. For instance, they can

punish the kids by making them do push-ups, run laps, wall sits, or even holding a talk with them

until they learn their lesson. Military-style discipline will better them and avoid lots of adverse

reactions. The military-style will make one's child stronger, respectful, well-mannered hence

make them a better person later on in life.

Work Cited
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● Olver, Kim. “10 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Spank Your Kids.” World of Psychology, 8

July 2018, psychcentral.com/blog/why-shouldnt-you-spank-your-kids-heres-9-reasons/.

● NETBURN, DEBORAH. “Spanking Your Kids Could Affect Their Vocabulary down

the Road.” Los Angeles Times , Los Angeles Times, 21 October 2013,

www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-spanking-study-20131021-story. html.

● Sears, Bill. “10 Reasons Not to Hit Your Child.” Ask Dr Sears , 4 August 2013,

www.askdrsears.com/topics/parenting/discipline-behavior/spanking/10-reasons-n ot-hit-

your-child.