“Whoever holds back his rod* (*or “discipline; punishment”) hates his son, but the one who loves him disciplines him diligently.” -Proverbs 13:24.
“Foolishness is tied up in the heart of a boy* (*or “child; youth”), but the rod of discipline will remove it far from him.” -Proverbs 22:15.
“Do not hold back discipline from a boy* (*or “child; youth”). If you strike him with the rod, he will not die. With the rod you should strike him, in order to save him from the Grave.” -Proverbs 23:13, 14.
“The rod* (*Or “discipline; punishment”) and reproof impart wisdom, but a child left unrestrained brings shame on his mother.” -Proverbs 29:15.
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SIR: Discipline in schools is very important! It helps to build the foundation for the school children’s success later in life. It is what helps children achieve good performance in school and it is responsible for maintaining order in the classroom, yet it constitutes one of the greatest challenges facing teachers nowadays. Discipline is defined as “the practice of training people to obey rules or a code of behaviour, using punishment to correct disobedience.”

A lack of proper parental and school discipline can result in disruptive behaviours in the classroom. Disruptive behaviour interferes with the teacher’s ability to effectively deliver a lesson, as it requires a large amount of the teacher’s time and attention, in order to be addressed. Disruptive pupils/students can also influence their peers with their actions and encourage them to behave similarly, thereby compromising the teacher’s authority.

Nowadays, however, the views of many child psychologists on discipline conflict with what is recommended in God’s Word, the Bible, as recorded in the verses of Proverbs quoted above. Their theories collide head on with the counsel we find in the Holy Scriptures.

What have been the results of sowing the seeds of permissiveness? What has resulted from a lack of proper parental and school discipline? In one publication of Jehovah’s Witnesses (“Making Your Family Life Happy”), in Chapter 10, titled, “The Value of Disciplining in Love,” paragraph 3 (accessible on www.jw.org), we find this report: “The bumper crop of crime and delinquency is well known. Youth crime accounts for over 50 per cent of serious crimes in many industrialised nations. In some parts of the world, school campuses are hotbeds of class disruptions, fights, verbal abuse and obscenities, vandalism, assault, extortion, arson, robberies, rapes, drugs and murders.”

A spanking may therefore be a lifesaver to a child, as God’s Word recommends in the Book of Proverbs. If parents and teachers hold the children’s life interests dear to them, they will not weakly or carelessly let disciplinary action slip from their hands. Love will motivate them to take action, wisely and fairly, when it is needed.
Daniel Ighakpe wrote from the University of Benin (UNIBEN), Benin City, Edo State.