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‘I Dread to Enter Some Classrooms’: Perspectives Regarding Alternatives to Corporal Punishment in Secondary Schools

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Abstract

The abolition of corporal punishment (CP) in South African schools in 1996 has continued to generate heated debates among all concerned stakeholders in the educational sector. While some support the ban of corporal punishment, others have vehemently protested its abolishment. Unfortunately, irrespective of the line of debate, legislative instrument has forbidden teachers to use CP on learners and educators have been advised to employ Alternative to Corporal Punishment (ATCP) methods in schools. Regrettably, educators’ capabilities and the effectiveness of ATCP in lieu of CP, especially in the KwaZulu Natal province, South Africa, is yet to be established. Hence, this study is based on the Stimulus-Response Theory and has explored educators’ perceptions and their capabilities of using ATCP in secondary schools. This study employed a qualitative research design to collect data through semi-structured interviews with 12 educators which comprise of three principals and nine teachers from three secondary schools and two circuit managers within the City of uMhlathuze municipalities in the King Cetshwayo district, KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Data collected were analysed using thematic content analysis with an iterative process. Findings revealed that educators use ATCP, but they are dissatisfied because: They cannot make use of CP; there are no specific effective ATCP strategies; they need active involvement of parents/guardians to promote expected behaviour among learners, and they have reduced capacities to discipline learners with ATCP. Based on the findings, the study recommended capacity building programmes for educators for effective use of ATCP to maintain discipline in schools. Also, there is a need for concrete synergy between the schools and parents/guardians to foster self-discipline in learners.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education, University of Zululand, Richards Bay, South Africa

    Olufemi Timothy Adigun Ph.D

  2. Department of Educational Foundations and Management, University of Zululand, Richards Bay, South Africa

    D. S. Chonco & A. P. Kutame

  3. Department of Social Science Education, University of Zululand, Richards Bay, South Africa

    I. S. Kapueja

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  1. Olufemi Timothy Adigun Ph.D
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Adigun, O.T., Chonco, D.S., Kutame, A.P. et al. ‘I Dread to Enter Some Classrooms’: Perspectives Regarding Alternatives to Corporal Punishment in Secondary Schools. Interchange 53, 391–406 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10780-022-09460-w

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