NCJ Number
204316
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 25 Issue: 2 Dated: February 2001 Pages: 265-277
Editor(s)
Richard D. Krugman,
John M. Leventhal
Date Published
February 2001
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This study sought to determine the nature and extent of physical abuse perpetrated on primary school students by their teachers, and to determine why some teachers physically abuse their primary school students in Zimbabwe.
Abstract
Research indicates that physical abuse of pupils by their teachers sometimes results in minor to extensive physical, psychological, and behavioral problems. Yet, the available literature shows that parents and teachers in many African cultures view the use of corporal punishment as a positive tool to build character, teach respect, make children understand, and decrease behavior problems. In Zimbabwean schools, only the school head is mandated by the Public Service Regulations to use corporal punishment on student offenders and only to a certain extent. For this study, the violation of the regulations by school heads or teachers was considered as physical abuse of primary school students. The study analyzed epidemiological data of 38 cases of reported physical abuse by teachers in Zimbabwe between January 1990 and December 1997 using information in the teachers’ files. The data analysis found that 78.9 percent of the perpetrators were male while 21.1 percent were female; and 92.1 percent were trained teachers versus 7.9 percent untrained. Of the victims, 58.7 percent were male while 41.3 percent were female. Students reported 91.4 percent of the cases and school heads reported 8.7 percent; 73.9 percent of the cases were reported to the Ministry of Education while 26.1 percent were reported to the police. The data show that 80.4 percent of the victims were beaten, whipped, or hit by their perpetrators; 10.9 percent were clapped or slapped; 4.3 percent were punched with fists; and 2.2 percent each were kicked and pinched, respectively. The study also found that the majority of the perpetrators (63.2 percent) were merely fined or reprimanded; 5.3 percent were discharged from the teaching service; and the rest were fined, demoted, reprimanded, transferred, or warned. Only six cases were referred to a court of law and all the perpetrators were fined for the offenses. The findings indicate that teachers perpetuate various forms of physical abuse and that this form of abuse is increasing. The study also shows that the Public Service (Disciplinary) Regulations seem not to be deterrent enough because the majority of the perpetrators were merely fined or reprimanded while only a small percentage were discharged from the teaching service. The author concludes that the use of corporal punishment is prevalent in African culture, both at home and in school, and this makes it difficult to enforce a law advocating for the protection of children against physical abuse in schools in terms of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Tables and references