Traditional Punishment

Traditionally, punishment is something that someone in authority imposes on someone else as a penalty for a misdeed. We all know that traditional punishments are not always effective in changing behavior yet we persist, secure in the knowledge that behavior will eventually change.

Traditional punishments involve taking away something the child likes or imposing something the child doesn't like that have nothing to do with the behavior, but rather with punishing children. Punishment relieves guilt and remorse. Children no longer have to feel remorse or guilt when they feel they have paid for their misbehavior by serving the punishment, or “paid their debt to society.”  When children feel they have more than paid for their misbehavior, they tend to become resentful, angry, and vindictive. Perhaps the only good thing about traditional punishment is the effect it may have on others.  Seeing someone else punished for something you refrained from doing reinforces not only your behavior but also your values related to appropriate behavior.

Punishment is strong medicine. As with any strong medicine, potentially harmful side effects may occur. Some children are more prone than others to side effects.

Some side effects to watch for:

1.      Lying, sneaking, dishonesty, blaming others. Children eventually learn to avoid getting caught.

2.      Don't trust adults. When children are not sure they did the right thing, they will normally come to adults for advice, unless they fear they will be punished.

3.      People often feel hurt and misunderstood when they have been punished and become resentful and angry.

4.      When we punish, they sometimes learn to punish others when they feel hurt in some way.

5.      Poor self-image. Children tend to see themselves through the eyes of others.  Knowing that adults think they deserve to be punished can be very damaging.

6.      Loss of confidence and motivation. Children who are punished sometimes feel they can't do anything right and don't try

When we free ourselves from the mistaken belief that children must be punished for their misbehavior we can usually find creative ways to insure that misbehavior is punished effectively without having to punish children and being tough with them, there are logical consequences that teachers can apply to target specific behaviors.