Maine is one of 22 states in the U.S. where corporal punishment is allowed in schools. That would change if LD 527, an act to prohibit corporal punishment, is enacted. Fifteen of the 22 states expressly permit corporal punishment—the other seven (including Maine) do not prohibit it. There are 28 states and the District of Columbia that expressly prohibit corporal punishment. Some of the 110,000 students subjected to corporal punishment are in states where it is prohibited.
The Maine bill defines corporal punishment as “any form of discipline or punishment involving offensive physical contact with or inflicting physical pain or discomfort on a student. It says corporal punishment does not include the use of physical restraint to protect the student or others from immediate harm. The bill also prohibits corporal punishment in “an elementary or secondary school or any public or private preschool program that provides instruction to children who are 4 years of age.”
The 22 states that allow corporal punishment are: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming. The attached map, created by the US Department of Education and based on 2013-14 Civil Rights Data Collection, shows higher rates of corporal punishment in many of these states.
In the final months of the Obama Administration, U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. urged the nation's governors and state school chiefs (Letter of November 22, 2016) to eliminate corporal punishment “from your schools, and instead promote supportive, effective disciplinary measures.” King wrote “A safe, supportive school environment is critical to support effective teaching and learning.” Resources to create that environment are referenced. A November, 2016 letter signed on by organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and National Education Association, expressed opposition to corporal punishment.
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