Lawmakers Set To Study The 'Effectiveness Of Properly Administered Corporal Punishment'

An interim study has been approved to study the “effectiveness of properly administered corporal punishment.” The lawmaker behind the idea says he wants to ensure school districts in the state still have the option to use the discipline method if they choose to.

The study was at the request of State Representative Jim Olsen (R) Roland, but advocacy groups like the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy are pushing back on the idea.

“A school district is foolish if they're going to do corporal punishment in any form or fashion,” said Joe Dorman, CEO of OICA.

“This has been useful to parents for centuries and for school districts for centuries,” said Olsen.

Under current state law, each district can choose whether or not they want to allow corporal punishment. A 2023 report: https://www.okappleseed.org/we-dont-hit-report shows that at least 137 schools still use corporal punishment, while at least 60 allow corporal punishment for students with disabilities.

“Right now, more than half choose not to allow it,” said Olsen.

Representative Olsen is running an interim study titled “Effectiveness of Properly Administered Corporal Punishment.” The study was approved by House Speaker Charles McCall and will be conducted before the 2025 legislative session.

Olsen wants to make it clear that he doesn't want to force any schools to adopt new methods, he wants to preserve the option for schools that choose the method of corporal punishment.

“To totally eliminate it, I think that's a great violation of liberty,” said Olsen.

“There are other ways to administer discipline which we recommend, but certainly not hitting a child,” said Dorman. “OICA has the position that corporal punishment is not the way to handle most behaviors.”

Dorman says corporal punishment could put schools in legal trouble.

“If they bruise a child, if they hurt a child, they're at risk of a lawsuit; there are attorneys lining up to sue school districts if something happens to a child,” said Dorman.

Dorman has backed the proposed law to ban corporal punishment, including hitting, slapping, paddling, or inflicting any kind of physical pain on disabled students. 

“We have different social sciences that have looked at the use of corporal punishment; it's not effective, especially when it comes to kids that don't understand why they're being punished,” said Dorman.

The legislation has received bipartisan support for the last two years but has failed in the most recent two sessions.

“On the face of it, it sounds like how could you oppose prohibiting corporal punishment for those with disabilities? The answer is that the federal government classification of disabilities is so broad,” said Olsen.

The legislation is expected to be revived in February 2025, when lawmakers will decide whether or not the state will continue to allow corporal punishment.

“There are other ways to administer discipline which we recommend, but certainly not hitting a child, especially when you're going to cause harm to that child,” said Dorman.

“I think it is somewhat of an outrage to try and prohibit it entirely,” said Olsen.

This was one of more than 100 interim studies that were approved. No dates have been set but the studies will likely be starting this month and must wrap up by November.