Corporal Punishment in Schools in the United States, Annotated Bibliography Example

The issue of corporal punishment in American schools remains a divisive issue within public discourses as people discuss the adverse ramification on young students in public. As such, several states in the U.S. have outlawed corporal punishment waged against student because physical abuse should never be rendered acceptable regardless of the situation. Cruel and unusual punishment should never be waged against Americans, especially against minors. However, corporal punishment has been a traditional and long-standing practice that has spawned limited results, and it is also a morally bereft practice. Nonetheless, Corporal punishment doled out in public schools has become synonymous to American society and culture in the same way that apple pie, baseball Chevy cars are. While critics of corporal punishment proclaim that the long-term and potentially calamitous impacts of certain punishment modes foment adverse psychological consequences, as violence that takes place on school campuses or in the neighborhood stems from corporal punishment suffered from in school. Conversely, supporters of such a nefarious practice assert that corporal punishment cultivates both self control and a sense of respect in children. In addition, proponents posit that the dearth of corporal punishment underlies why violent crime pervades within juvenile circles. There is currency in both camps with their arguments, although both camps remain stringent and refuse to conform to their counterpart’s. This annotated bibliography will tease out both sides of the argument in order to discern which has more currency within modern exigencies.

Arcus, Doreen. “School Shooting Fatalities And School Corporal Punishment: A Look At The  States.” Aggressive Behavior 28.3 (2002): 173-183. Print. 

In this scholarly article, Arcus analyzes and assesses the number of preventative deaths of students suffered in mass shootings at schools traversing the United States. Connecting these unfortunate incidents with policies related to the deployment of corporal punishment in schools, Arcus vehemently contends against such nefarious practices within school contexts, reporting a large amount of deaths in school shootings in states that do not outlaw corporal punishment in public schools. In addition, the author connects the region of the nation with the kind of category of punishment allowed in addition to the occasions when violence breaks out on public school campuses. Arcus additionally brings attention to the link between the deployment of corporal punishment in public schools in the southern states as well as the lack of corporal punishment in northern schools, revealing that corporal punishment was predominately accepted in southern public schools. As such, the author examines the aggression of students in southern public schools in contrast to the comportment of students in the northern locales. Arcus thus postulates that there is a small amount of evidence in which corporal punishment can be directly attributed to escalating violence levels at the behest of students. The author further states that corporal punishment within contexts of extreme punishment and/or child abuse, the United States has suffered from more preventative fatalities than other nations such as China.

Dobson, James. “Corporal Punishment Is Effective.” Parenting. Ed. Roman Espejo. Detroit:  Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from “Corporal Punishment & the Strong-Willed Child.” The New Strong-Willed Child. 2007. Opposing Viewpoints in  Context. Web. 23 June 2015.

This article in an interesting one that clearly propagates the utilization of corporal punishment to discipline unruly children. However, the author proffers a differentiatation between abuse and apt punishments in addition to pernicious punishment. Unruly children need to be treated with appropriate discipline that children need when they comprehend what comportment is fitting and thus outwardly displays. Dobsom also argues that corporal punishment, and similar draconian actions, functions as the only avenues through which stubborn and violent youths can react to in a positive way and change their ways with regards to confrontations. It is only through corporal punishment can unruly children undergo fundamental changes. If used incorrectly, however, Dobson acknowledges that corporal punishment can be misused and carried out for exploitation. Finally, it should be noted that children who are exposed to on a quotidian basis violence within their home is that they remain vulnerable to aggressive behaviors if it is the case that corporal punishment is misused.

Cherry, Clare. Please Don’t Sit on the Kids. California: Fearon Pitman, 1983.  

This book takes into consideration the tradition notion that conflates discipline and punishment, thereby embracing a discursive analysis of this issue. Rather than deploying antiquated measures, the author articulated her personal approach dubbed as “non-discipline discipline.” This approach is predicated on caring and friendly beliefs regarding the necessities and developments of the students.