ECC Says Corporal Punishment Must End

 

Commissioner of the Early Childhood Commission (ECC), Dr. Rose Davies, says the organization remains strident in its quest to rid the nation’s schools of the practice of corporal punishment. Noting that the practice is still very prevalent in some schools, Dr. Davies said the ECC has been working with teachers in developing alternative approaches to corporal punishment.

 Delivering the keynote address at the ECC’s 10thanniversary awards luncheon at the Hotel Riu in St. James, on September 11, Dr. Davies said the Commission is adamant that the practice must be discontinued.

“The Early Childhood Commission is very strident in the call to do away with corporal punishment, which is  very prevalent in Jamaica and across the Caribbean and is far along the way in developing  guidelines to support teachers using alternative approaches in guiding and managing children’s behaviours,” she noted.

Dr. Davies said the guidelines against corporal punishment are contained in the ECC’s standards which govern early childhood education across the island, which should be observed by everyone who work with children. “This is a very important standard that should be observed by all of us who work with children, because the harm that corporal punishment does to young children can have undesired and irreversible results. Let us make an effort in this regard,” she urged.

Dr. Davies told the audience that she is aware of at least one basic school in Kingston where both parents and teachers met and agreed to phase out the use of corporal punishment at that institution and to try alternative approaches.

Ten teachers from St. James with an accumulated 416 years of service to the early childhood sector were honoured by the ECC, as part of the commission’s 10th anniversary celebrations.

By Marlon Tingling

Organization: 
Jamaica Information Service