Should children be caned for serious bullying of other children in school?

Question

I know you group huggers will be astounded to why I ask such a thing. But we know that that the punishments (if you can call it that) today mean that child victims are getting no help and live in fear while the bullies have no fear. The cane was a good disciplinary tool when I was at school even hard kids hated it.
Real dicipline would create better adults and not the moddycoddled tyrants that run riot in residential estates that become no go areas. The system we have now for disipline is clearly not working and these kids grow up to be parents who do not know what disicplining is they they bring up little terrors.

I apologise for my typos. :)

Thank you Linda but as we already mentioned you method of no caning has failed. You have this extended ideology but try telling that to the poor victim who is too terrified to go outside his house or school becomes a place of horror because his persecutors are treated with kid gloves.
Instead on focusing on how the bully may feel why not focus on the victims who never chose to be bullied. Bullies choose to bully.

Answer 1

Herein is the social-cancer of the UK in a nutshell....how to deal or not deal with a problem.

In fact, I'm not even going to try and answer the question, because there is no SINGLE answer, but instead, I'll write about a true event.

I knew a lad who was a real bully; forever picking on boys younger and weaker than himself, as bullies usually do. One evening at a youth group, he got very aggressive with another boy, and I was able to isolate him, slam the door shut and have a good shout at him. I was confrontational and angry; really laying into him verbally, at which point he drew a knife and threatened to kill me. (My little robot was waving its arms about...."Danger! Danger!)

Oddly enough, I didn't back off at all, but continued to challenge him.

I shouted at him, "OK, if you think I hate you, then kill me.
If you think I'm going to hurt you, then kill me.
If you think that's all I'm worth, kill me.
If you want to screw your life up, kill me.
If you think no one wants to help you, then kill me."

So it went on....eyeball to eyeball.....

Well, he threw the knife, but he deliberately missed and it went far wide; burying itself into a door.

I quietly took the knife, handed it back to him and said, "Do you want to try again, or tell me what the problem is instead?"

He dropped the knife, put his arms around me and cried his eyes out.

I don't think we ever managed to sort out his violent father and drunken mother, but at least he had someone who would listen and someone to whom he could turn.

Now I'll tell you what the REAL problem is to-day.

We have a society where educated, middle-class people talk about "protection," "inappropriate behaviour," "health and safety issues," "local authority guidelines," "interpersonal life-skill training," and all the other minor-affairs of state which sound important, but actually amount to nothing of substance.

Due to long working hours, an endemic drug and alcohol culture
and nothing but fine words and good intentions, common-sense has been marginalised and even criminalised.

Because I took time to listen, that boy worshipped the ground I walked on, but ask yourself a question, "Would any man to-day dare take that sort of risk with a 14 year-old boy?"

Foolhardy perhaps?

Not a bit of it!

I knew exactly what I was doing, and I would do exactly the same to-day. The difference is, I wouldn't DARE do it in any sort of official capacity as a youth-worker or teacher.

My current concern is a 17 year-old thief and drug-dealer, and I break all the rules. He listens some of the time, but it's slow job trying to get him to do something better with his life.

I AM PROBABLY THE ONLY PERSON IN THE WORLD WHO KNOWS HIM, AND FROM WHOM HE HAS NOT STOLEN A SINGLE THING, BECAUSE HE HAS RESPECT.

All children, whether troublesome or not, need people to give them time, and space and affection.

That's the difference between the Netherlands and the UK; one being at the top of the league, and the other being at the bottom, just 400 miles apart, but with light-years between them.

So please give me lots of thumbs-down and tell me that I'm completely misguided, then I will know that I am doing the right thing!

Answer 2

When i was at school there was one kid going around bullying everyone. The word went round at playtime to get him, all the kids in the whole school got him and the police had to come and save his A.R.S.E. Those kids need to be taken out of the school so the other kids can learn without stress.

Answer 3

Children who are bullies learned their behavior from their parents who haven't broken the chain. This is a form of abuse. Passed on from generation to generation. So who will punish the bullies?I do believe the bully needs to be dealt with in an equal way that they bully. But oh they are by their parents. So we would need to start caning the whole family

Answer 4

Bring back corporal punishment? No! That might offened parents who are too ignorant and lazy to discipline ( WITH OR WITHOUT TIME TESTED AND TRUE PHYSICAL, SAFE AND LOVING METHODS) their own children.

Answer 5

I disagree. Bullying is a normal fun part of growing up and you should not take this right away from children.

Answer 6

when i was at school, bullies were made to stand on their own and wear a cardboard sign round their neck at playtime that read..

"beware, I am a bully"

it was very humiliating for them, humiliation can be a strong deterrant in itself.

Answer 7

I'm all for it. Whatever discipline they use now a days is not working....the kids are taking over. When I was in school you got paddled..and it worked.

Answer 8

Sounds like a good idea to me.

Answer 9

Yes! A good thrashing never hurt anyone.