The Knowledge, Practice, and Perception Regarding Corporal Punishment Among Teachers in Jaffna Educational Zone, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Objectives: Corporal punishment (CP), despite being considered an act punishable by law, is still practiced in homes and schools in Sri Lanka.
Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional institute-based study aimed to assess the knowledge, perception, and practice regarding CP among teachers in the Jaffna educational zone in Sri Lanka.
Results: The study involved 212 participants, out of which 160 (75.5%) were female. About 155 (73%) of the participants belonged to the age group of 31 to 50 years. About 114 (54.2%) participants had received training in disciplining students. About 7.5% had good knowledge, 33% had average knowledge, 24% had poor knowledge, and 35.4% had very poor knowledge regarding CP. In 28% (n = 59) were involved in CP. 58% (n = 123) had a negative perception of CP. The study found no significant correlation between socio-demographic factors such as age, gender, marital status, race, and religion and knowledge about CP.
Conclusion: This study demonstrated that the knowledge and practices on CP among this study population can further be improved. Larger-scale studies including participants of wider ethnic and geographical span would yield more data which might suggest the need for further inculcating knowledge on CP among teachers in Sri Lanka