I have seen parents who use extreme methods beyond spanking to discipline a child, at the end, they did more damage than good. Children are very fragile beings, as they grow older they toughen up and began to develop their own perspective about life which might not conform with the perspective of their parents. For some parents, it takes longer period of time for them to understand that everyone is entitled to have their own opinion, to exercise our freewill, including children. It is what makes us humans. While some parents might understand this, some consider it as an act of rebellion from a child and in so doing, they try their best by using every way possible to reshape the mind of their child.
I think most parents need to realize, they are raising future leaders not bunch of zombies or sheep that only does what they are told without having their own opinion in mind. What am I getting at? It is the fact that the way we discipline a child tends to reshape their mindset and sticks with them till adulthood. Which means finding the right methods to discipline a child matters a lot. The fact that a specific method works on your first child doesn't mean it will work on the second. It all leads back to understanding a child.
As an Ex-corp member, with teaching experience, I have met some children who are incapable of speaking up for themselves in class. It is not because they are not brilliant, they are just too timid to voice out their opinion. While there are others who might not be as intelligent as them, who finds it more comfortable speaking in any situation. You see those timid ones, the moment you call on them for something, they are already shaking as if they have done something wrong and whereas they haven't. That fear already exist within them and it is usually because the way their parents deal with them at home.
Some children respond more to one on one conversation than beating. As a parent, failing to understand this will only lead to disastrous consequences. Children have the habit of adapting to their environment and if they keep getting a particular treatment that doesn't conform with their personality, they would be forced to change from their natural way of thinking and evolve to something that would make it a lot easier on them to survive their environment.
Any method of disciplining a child should not only conform with the personality of a child but should match the crime committed. Some parents forgets that disciplining a child is about correcting the wrongdoings of a child not leaving a scar on a child either mentally or physically. In disciplining a child, a child needs to know why he/she is being punished. And if the method of discipline is not working doesn't mean a parent should change to a more extreme methods. It is all about finding the best way to communicate the right ideas to a child that match with their level of understanding, without traumatizing them in the process.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled Physical discipline in hive learners community.
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