INDIANAPOLIS ? Indiana is among 22 states that allow public school officials to spank students, an increasingly uncommon disciplinary practice that is drawing growing criticism nationwide.
Legislative efforts to ban the practice in Indiana have come and gone over the years, but have never passed the General Assembly.
The debate gained momentum in Indianapolis after school officials this month suspended two teachers who administrators said were involved in paddling six 9-year-old boys, including one who was treated at a hospital for bruises and swelling.
Still, some Indianapolis Public School officials defend the practice a key tool to show children there are consequences for disruptive behavior.
''If you don't want your child paddled, then every time he or she acts up in school, come get them and take them home,'' IPS School Board member Michael D. Brown said.
Critics say there are more effective ways to discipline students and call paddling a negative response to negative behavior.
''If we use violence to counter violence, then the message is lost,'' Ted Feinberg, assistant executive director of the National Association of School Psychologists in Bethesda, Md., told The Indianapolis Star for a story Sunday. ''It just doesn't work, and it doesn't help the kids who are prone to inappropriate behavior.''
In 1999-2000 -- the most recent period for which figures were available from the Center for Effective Discipline -- more than 2,200 Indiana students felt the sting of paddling under a corporal punishment policy that gives educators the same disciplinary rights as parents.
The practice of paddling has been on the state's books for at least 30 years. A 1995 revision authorized teachers and school staffers to ''take any action that is reasonably necessary'' to prevent interference with educational missions. Another law gives parents and guardians the right to use ''reasonable'' physical force to discipline a child.
Efforts to ban corporal punishment have been introduced but never passed the General Assembly.
Rep. John Day, D-Indianapolis, said changes are needed.
''Teaching is the only profession where you're allowed to spank a child,'' he said.
Day has attempted to outlaw corporal punishment four or five times but has found little support. The last time he proposed a ban was about a decade ago; the measure failed to pass out of committee.
Most schools that use corporal punishment say it's a last resort -- and is done with parents' permission.
Larry Moore, superintendent of Northwestern Shelby Schools, said his 1,539-student district uses corporal punishment sparingly, and parents are notified in advance and given the chance to object.
Of the five to 10 students paddled in the district during the past three years, most received the punishment at the request of parents, he said. ''We have more questions here from our families as to why we don't do more of it,'' he said.
Shelbyville Central Schools has banned corporal punishment for more than a decade, said Superintendent Jim Peck.
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