My family and I went to a Hess bookstore in Zhongli yesterday. In the children books section, I noticed that they sold something which looked like a horsewhip with a handle at one end little black leather hand attached at the other end. Well, at first it didn
Holger,
Think twice about sending your children to a Taiwanese school.
Just do a search on this site and you’ll see what I mean.
my 2 quai
quote:It's still fairly common but is being used less and less. Parents often call for it more than teachers do.
Originally posted by Holger Nygaard: How widely is corporal punishment used in Taiwan?
quote[quote]Are there any laws against it?[/quote] Yes. It has been illegal for several years.quote[quote]What do you do if you don't want your child spanked at school?[/quote] Tell the school and your child's main teacher. You shouldn't have any problems.
Damn, I’ve definitely been spending too much time at the wrong sites – the content of this thread is NOT what I expected at all, at all.
Come on Sandy – kids, spanking and the rod. There must be a subtext somewhere between the lines…
Come on… this was not intended to be a seedy subject .
It was just a bit of a schocker that they actually sell things here, which is designed for spanking children (as a punishment that is).
I later asked my wife, who sells school books. She could tell me that spanking devices were common in schools here (legal or not).
That said, the kindergardens attended by my daughters both seem to be well run by people who care about the children in their care.
Thanks for your informative answer cranky
It never occured to me that they were for that purpose - I use them for the kids to run up to the board and “tap” the square that has the answer. Was I intimidating them by having them in the class???
I’ve only ever seen students hit on their open palms with those things.
I always thought those were for use as ‘teacher’s pointers’ and for games like Rian said too. Actually I think they are.
If you want to send your kid to school in Taiwan, make it clear that he/she is not to be hit at all.
Sandman: maybe you were looing for spankEE’s paradise?
Bri
Alright. I can see some people are humorless, so I will be serious.
Looking at the size of these bamboo sticks, it has always been clear to me that they were for purposes of threats, not for actual use. Really, they are built for caning, not spanking. You could seriously injure an adult with one of those, forget about a kid.
Perhaps the ulterior question here is: Should teachers be allowed to strike misbehaving children in class? They certainly were in my time.
I am not a parent, but if I were, I would make it clear that no physical punishment of my child by anyone other than family would be tolerated in any form. Any person smacks my kid, they can expect a same-day visit from a pissed off me. :bluemad: :no-no: As far as maintaining discipline in the classroom goes, that’s best handled by attentive parents. Man, I used to dread bringing home those notes from the teacher… 
Those things are dangerous. I hit myself on the leg with one in Watsons and provided what I’m sure was an amusing show for the sales staff.
I had a bruise on my ass that stayed for weeks. Can I say ass?
Violence breeds violence. That’s I want to avoid getting my kids spanked.
I remember the range of disciplinary actions available at my primary school as good enough to maintain discipline even though the use of physical violence wasn’t among them. Parents were in general demanding but supportive.
My personal experience as a parent tells me that a non-violent upbringing is entirely possible.
I guess I come from a background, where the posibility of being accussed of something else, scares me to the point that I would not touch any student
What do the teachers wear when they use these implements? Do they sell bondage gear as well?
Jesus Christ!
I would cause such a stink and if any teacher dared to touch my child (don’t have one, but if i did)I would wreak havoc in the school system like they’d never heard before!
I’m sure the ones sold at Hess are ‘whim’ items as I can’t imagine parents and teachers going to a bookshop to find such a thing. More like, ‘Hmm, I’ll need one of those to beat Xiao Didi’s bottom, with.’
I remember my math teacher in 4th grade, the sadistic old cow, beating the hell out of the boys with a one-inch thick paddle with holes in it for suction. She’d have them bend down in front of the class and pull their pants down.
What gets me is that this was during the enlightened late 70’s, and the boys she regularly beat were black kids, so she must have got some sick racist pleasure out of that.
When and if you register your kids for school, make a point of telling them that it is unacceptable for them to physically discipline your child. I thought it was a law too, but you never know how strictly those laws are adhered to in Taiwan, as with everything else here…
Yeah, I remember my 3rd form (about Grade 9 I guess). I was pretty naughty andI usedtoget pissed off that I never got caned (it was an honour that my friends were lucky enough to get for the sameoffences) but had to sit through hours of detentions instead. I had the record. I later found out that my parents had specifically requested that I not be caned. Wankers I also later found out that the discipline master (also soccer coach and a catholic priest) was probably buggering little Samoan boys and that’s probably why one 12 year-old kid hanged himself with his bootlaces while I was at school.
Bri
Finally, a thread that applies to me!
Holger, I agree with you that violence breeds violence. When I first got here two years ago, I used to see baskets full of these things at Watson’s. I put two and two together and figured it out. I then saw them at a couple of baby stores and asked the sales clerks what they were. They confirmed that they were for spanking, and because they wouldn’t have understood me anyway, I made it clear in my expression that I found it disgusting. Probably didn’t matter to them though.
My son (4.5) just started school at a Chinese private school, but this is one that has a pretty good reputation, and my husband works there and seems to have a good relationship with the teachers and admin.
I’ve talked about this subject with my friends who are foreign and have their kids in public schools. They said you just have to make it clear that corporal punishment will not be tolerated.
Things really are getting better here and by the time your children start public school in 2004, I think more people will be opposed to this sort of thing.
I think it also helps to become involved in class/school activities, so you have the opportunity to voice your opinion on this and other subjects.
Jennifer
Domestic Goddess and Mom to 3
My father had THE RULER. It was wooden, it was square and it hung there in the basement in a dark corner.
All that was needed was mention of THE RULER and fear oozed down my spine, to my groin and then up to throat.
THE RULER collected dust, cobwebs…
and was never used.
Y’all must be joking. We used to get an option - detention or swats. Anybody with any balls took the swats and proudly paraded his rosy bottom around the locker room.
For little boys, deferring for detention was like crying when they draw blood. Corporal punishment rocks! It was the coolest arrangement ever devised by adults. We could act up, take a couple swats, and be off scott free with no parental interference at all… tailored to mischievous yoots.
You’d be surprised what your kids are learning and NOT telling you for fear of bursting the non-violence bubble. Deception for one.