VietNamNet Bridge – A new video clip has been posted on Internet showing a teacher whipping students on their faces. The noteworthy thing is that the students were still happy when they got spanked. It seemed that the students got too familiar to this kind of punishment.

The 2-minute video clip is believed to record the scene happened at a secondary school in HCM City. A teacher found out that their students did not fulfill the home exercises and said that they should be punished.

The students were told to choose one of the two kinds of punishment, either their names would be written down in the class’ record book, or they would get spanked. All of the students chose the latter. And every student was given four strokes of whip.

The teacher was a woman, about 30, who was correct and decent in a traditional long dress. Meanwhile, the students were all in bright green uniforms.

The students were asked to lie prostrate on the table, so that the teacher beat them with a rod. Before executing the punishment, the teacher warned that she would inform to the students’ parents about their learning records at the upcoming parents’ meeting.

A question has been raised that why the students preferred getting spanked to seeing their names written down in the class’ record book. If they had accepted the other option offered by the teacher, they would have avoided the heavy physical punishment.

Commenting on this, Van Toan, a reader of Giao duc Vietnam newspaper, said that no student would prefer bad marks or criticism from parents, teachers or friends. They might think that after they got spanked, their mistakes would be forgiven, while no evidence about their discipline violations would exist.

This also means that their parents would not be informed about their problems, and of course, the parents would not feel ashamed about their children.

“As such, the students would rather get spanked than becoming the shame to their parents. Why should we still punish them so heavily?” Toan commented.

He went on to write that the students who got spanked not only had to endure the physical pain, but also the spiritual pain, because they got spanked before the class and in front their friends. This could be the germ of the hatefulness that the students may always keep in their souls during all of their lives, which would prevent them from growing into useful citizens of the society.

A lot of video clips showing the teachers whipping students have been posted on Internet recently. While the punishment was considered quite normal in the past, this education method is not advocated by modern people.

The teachers, who beat students, had to face the wave of anger from the public. People believed that this is an anti-pedagogical method which must not exist in modern times

Prof Dr Pham Duc Duong, former Head of the Institute for South East Asia studies, said that he has a very good handwriting because he many times got punishment from the teacher who whipped on his five fingers with the ruler made of ironwood.

However, Duong said it would be better if teachers nowadays do not have to beat students but still can compel the obedience from their students.

“A teacher should become respectful in the eyes of students with his deep knowledge, good behaviors, while he should not think of forcing students yield to them by beating them.

Compiled by Thu Uyen