Military School Paddling Interviews

Hi all,
I recently read online about a military academy in Mississippi that still employs corporal punishment. After hearing about this topic, I contacted about 20 current students and recent alumni of Chamberlain Hunt Academy. I've had about ten people reply saying that they were willing to discuss their paddling experiences. Of those, only three have told me anything worth while.

Please respect the privacy of the students/alumni and do not inquire about names or attempt to contact them. I am worried that excessive contact will scare them off or alert them to our real interest in the subject. If you want more information please ask me and I will try my best to find out.

Here is a copy of the correspondence with the first (let me know if you want to see the others):
Me: Hi T,
I see you go/went to Chamberlain Hunt. I'm doing a dissertation on corporal punishment (paddling) in schools and I was wondering if you'd be willing to answer a series of questions for my survey.

All the best,
B

T: i don't mind answering the questions. Just let me know.

Me: Hi T,
Thanks for your quick reply and your willingness to do the survey.

I'm doing a research paper that requires a survey. I figured that it would be possible to get a wider geographical target area by conducting the survey online. I have done research into schools that still employ corporal punishment (paddling) and that is how I found you on Facebook. I appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions. Any answers given will remain anonymous. Please fill out answers as truthfully and completely as possible. If you are unsure about a question, feel free to skip it or ask for clarification. Please number your answers 1-20 to correspond to the following questions. (For the purposes of this survey, "corporal punishment" shall be interpreted as "spanking or paddling of the buttocks with the hand or an implement".)

1. Did you receive corporal punishment whilst growing up?
2. If so, do you feel that corporal punishment worked for you? What sort of effects, if any, did it have on your behavior?
3. Do you feel that corporal punishment was the best punitive option for you, or might other forms of punishment have worked better?
4. How frequently did you experience corporal punishment at home or at school (rarely, monthly, weekly, etc.)?
5. Under what circumstances was corporal punishment administered? (For all offences, only major offences, etc.)
6. Do you feel that embarrassment or humiliation played a part in these punishments? Or was it strictly the infliction of pain?
7. Did you feel fear toward those who administered the punishments (before, during, after, always, etc.)
8. Where did you receive corporal punishment (at home, school, etc.) Do you feel that it was appropriate in these locations?
9. On what portion(s) of your anatomy was corporal punishment administered? Was clothing removed or left in place during punishments? If clothing was removed, did you feel that this was appropriate?
10. What implements (if any) were used? (Paddle, belt, etc.) Did you feel that these were appropriate?
11. What positions were you required to adopt for the punishment (over a knee, bent over, etc.)? Did you feel that this position was appropriate?
12. From whom did you receive corporal punishment? (Parents, teachers, etc.)
13. Did you ever feel that punishments were abusive or inappropriate?
14. Would you use corporal punishment on your children or encourage others to use it on them?
15. Between what ages did you receive corporal punishment? Did you receive it more so at certain ages? Did the degree or style of punishment alter with age?
16. Did punishments ever result in marks (redness, welts, stripes, bruises, etc.)?
17. How many swats/strokes/slaps did you generally receive? Did it vary based on the offence?
18. Did others witness your punishments or were they kept private? Were others aware of your punishments (as in able to hear them taking place or hear about them through word of mouth)? Was it appropriate that others saw/heard/knew about these punishments?
19. Did you witness/hear about others being punished? Did you feel it was appropriate, if so? How did you find out about others' punishments?
20. Any additional comments or beliefs that are relevant.


Thanks again for your time. All the best.

T: 1. Yes
2. I believe it did work. It taught me that there were consequences to my actions, consequences that would make me not want to do it again.
3. Corporal punishment was definitely the right thing for me. I needed it with all the trouble i got into. It limited how much i did things.
4. All the time! I just got into trouble a lot. Weekly I would say.
5. Most offenses required corporal punishment, however, as I got older their were more talks and groundings put in place with corporal punishment.
6. Pain to get the point across. Bible: Spare the rod spoil the child!
7. I was never afraid of the person doing the punishment I was fearful of the pain that was to come from it.
8. Home and School. I felt like for both situations, it was appropriate...Military School.
9. Sometimes at home I was required to remove my pants, this to me is unnecessary. However at my military school, the licks were good enough with pants on, which is what we did. Always spanked on the butt, however occasionally my mother would spank my hand if i did something that would pertain to things I took for example.
10. Paddle, Belt, Hand, Spoon. The purpose was to inflict pain to get the point across to not do what I did again, so the item didn't really matter in my opinion, if it made me hurt then it worked.
11. Bent over was the overall used one. At my military school I was required to put my hands on a desk and bend over.
12. Parents and Teachers.
13. No
14. I would use corporal punishment on my children because I believe they need it. Not to show others that they should use it because I do. I would encourage them verbally to, but that wouldn't be the reason behind why I did it.
15. From about 5 to the end of high school. High School was the worst because of the situations. It left large room for one to get into trouble frequently so during this age I was paddled a lot more.
16. Ha, Absolutely. Not always though.
17. It was just as long as seemed necessary for the time. At my home it varied more. School you never received more than 3 licks at a time.
18. At home it was always just me and the parent. At school they were required to have a witness in the room. And they signed a statement acknowledging that there was nothing wrong with the situation while it happened. I believe at times it was embarrassing but necessary. Liability issues.
19. Yes. I feel bad for them but know that it is a necessary thing for kids.
20. Corporal punishment was frequent in my life. I believe I am better off because of it. I will continue to use this method of teaching throughout my life, and that is exactly what it is to me, a teaching method.

Me: Thanks so much for taking the time to answer these questions and state your views on the subject. Your name will remain anonymous in my paper, but I will definitely be able to use your responses.

I was surprised that you stated that you received corporal on almost a weekly basis. Was it quite common at your school for students to get corporal punishment weekly or did you get it a lot more than most?

All the best,
B

T: No, I got it often but corporal punishment was administered several times during the day for various offenses. I got it every now and then but some people were an everyday kind of people.

Me: Wow, that really surprises me. I didn't realise it was used that often. Did you know people who got it nearly everyday? Did they just take it in their stride?

This, of course, begs the question if someone gets corporal punishment once a week (or day) is it really that effective of a deterent? You said it kept you from doing things that would earn you licks, yet you still got it nearly once a week.

As always, thanks for your responses. I am narrowing down my thesis and these conversations help.

T: Well, I corporal punishment at this school was also given for academic failures as well. So if you didn't do a homework assignment you could be sent to the office to get a lick and 50 push ups. Those were the most common. But I wasn't actually in there every week. However I did have my months where I never went. But this was during a 3 year period while I attended there. The people that were in the office every day were one's that really weren't bothered by the pain of licks so going to the office didn't phase them much. Certain people it worked for, others not so much.

Me: That makes sense. It's useful to know that you think it works for some and not others.

You stated that it sometimes left marks or redness. How long did the marks last and how severe were they?

T: On me the worst lasted about 4 days I'd say, maybe a little more. But i've seen some bad bruises before. They could have last a week.