Corporal Punishment of Children

Corporal punishment is a physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain (not injury) as retribution for an offence, or for the purpose of disciplining or reforming a wrongdoer, or to deter attitudes or behaviour deemed unacceptable. The term usually refers to methodically striking the offender with an implement, whether in judicial, domestic, or educational settings. Corporal punishment is in three forms: parental or domestic corporal punishment: within the family-typically, children punished by parents or guardians; school corporal punishment: within schools, when students are punished by teachers or school administrators, or, in the past, apprentices by master craftsmen; judicial corporal punishment: as part of a criminal sentence ordered by a court of law.