Culture Studies Activity netw rks...netw rks Socialization Culture Studies Activity Reading 6 “We Were Weirdos” From 1972–1976, Margaret Heidenry and her three siblings (Mary,

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netw rksSocialization

Culture Studies Activity

Reading 6

“We Were Weirdos”

From 1972–1976, Margaret Heidenry and her three siblings (Mary, James, and John), all under the age of 7 when they left New York City, traveled the world for four years with their parents. During that time, their mother home-schooled the children. While they loved their adventures, the Heidenry children suffered from severe culture shock when they entered American public school. This article reinforces the concepts of socialization, peers, and the hidden curriculum discussed in Chapter 4.

. . . There were a few interludes of standardized education, but for the most part, as my mother would later write, . . . “during all this time, the children traveled with us and received nothing that remotely resembled formal schooling.” . . .

[. . . My] mother laid out the basic tenets of her approach to educating us. “They work at their own pace,” she wrote. “They have no assignments to complete. . . . I am not teaching the children. I am permitting them to learn.” . . .

. . . It is not surprising . . . that art—and travel—is what stands out most in our minds when we think back on those years. John, who was especially fond of the time the family spent in Mexico, recalls “third-class bus trips to see the mummies of Guanajuato” and “taking tinware classes at the Bellas Artes.” James remembers the tea breaks and exploring medieval English ruins in thick, warm sweaters. “You know what it’s like to be a kid and go into a ruined castle?” James says. “England was the best field trip ever.” My sister’s most vivid memories are also of England. “I remember a moment that has always stayed with me because it was so beautiful—sitting in a field where sheep were grazing and sketching an old gray stone church. Parishioners were inside singing, while outside the bells were ringing.”

But these far-flung field trips had downsides. Mary vividly remembers the 10-day drive to Mexico—seven people crammed into a used station wagon with no air-conditioning. “We mostly ate Heinz beans warmed up on a hot plate in motel rooms,” she recalled. “And moving around so often could be lonely. We had only one another for company.” . . .

The night before our first day of school [in St. Louis in 1976], instead of staying up worrying about what it would be like, we looked forward to it as “the latest adventure,” John recalls, “like moving to Mexico or England.” . . .

Looking like Goodwill poster children was [the hardest part]. “I thought I looked great in my huaraches and striped, fiesta-themed peasant pants,” Mary says. “But everyone else in the sixth grade was wearing a Led Zeppelin T-shirt and jeans. I was not too naïve to realize I needed to get some jeans. Quick.”

Everything about the single-file, cliquey public-school system was counter to our counter-lifestyle. “I was in math class,” John recalls, “sitting at a desk wondering, Am I going to have to sit in this same spot every single day from now on? The teacher was grilling kids on decimals, which I did not understand. To me it just looked like a dot! Then the teacher asked me to recite the nine multiplication table. I answered, totally nonchalantly, ‘I don’t know it.’ The teacher paused, eyes zeroing in on me, and said, ‘Boy, I’m gonna have fun with you.’ ” Slowly the meaning of being unable to recite lines from “Star Wars” (we’d never seen Hollywood movies) and not having feathered hair began to sink in. We were weirdos.

Sociology and You 1

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Culture Studies Activity cont.

In 1978, NPR interviewed my mother about her home-schooling experiment when a multistate teachers strike left thousands of parents wondering what to do with their homebound children. After asking, “I’m curious about how you basically stood it all day,” Cokie Roberts repeatedly pressed my mother about our socialization. To gain independence and prepare children for the realities of adulthood, didn’t they need to be with their peers and suffer all the harsh experiences that entails?

“I don’t know if children should be put through bad school situations just so they can be socialized,” my mom replied. It was a noble sentiment, but unfortunately bad situations were exactly what was in store for us, especially for John and James. “I was very green, and a few days into school this kid pushed me so hard I fell over a desk,” John remembers. “I just couldn’t understand. Why would a kid want to fight me? At home, James and I were like two peas in a pod.”

At my schoolyard, James, in third grade, was instantly picked on. Within the first week, he recalls, “an older kid kicked me in the butt really hard. The other boys were laughing. A girl finally told me someone put a ‘kick me’ sign on my back. I never heard of that, teasing and pranks.” James was also taken to the back of the bus and “punched incessantly” for the better part of grade school. “Oh, . . . it was awful.” James never told my parents. He just “took it.” Was Cokie Roberts right? James thinks so. “I wasn’t around kids,” he says. “The four of us were never threatened, so I didn’t learn how to stick up for myself.”

My mother worried that when we went to school, she would lose her identity. But she flourished in her new job as an editor at St. Louis magazine. We were the ones who lost ours. Mary never told anyone she’d been home-schooled. “By sixth grade I knew that kids weren’t, especially back then. When you’re a kid, you don’t want to be different, you want to fit in.” Mary conformed quickly and even liked the rules, like having to “write your name at the top of paper.” John was picked on until he fought back, pushing his tormentor over a desk. James learned how to fit in by observing the other kids and copying what they did. “It was a chameleon act. I was never the most popular, but I eventually made friends.”

Academically, my siblings were all over the map. Mary, the avid reader, did well without much effort. “And if I didn’t understand something, I wasn’t afraid to raise my hand and ask.” John was taken under the wing of Mr. I’m Gonna Have Fun With You, who drilled him on math one on one until John caught up. James excelled in subjects like science and history but had a hard time with reading. “It was very stressful,” he remembers. “I couldn’t get it.” . . .

James now wishes our parents had made reading a priority for him. “It would have made my life a lot easier,” he recalls. “Struggling wasn’t fun. I was frustrated that I couldn’t do better in school.”

Credit: From The New York Times, November 8, 2011 © 2012 The New York Times. All rights reserved. Used by permission and protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States. The printing, copying, redistribution, or retransmission of this content without express written permission is prohibited.

2 Sociology and You


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Directions: Using information from the reading, answer the following questions.

1. Summarizing What was “school” like for the Heidenry children before they began attending public school in St. Louis?

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2. Identifying What diff erent actions did each of the author’s three siblings take to adapt to their new school situation in St. Louis?

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3. Analyzing What were the main drawbacks for the Heidenry children of their unusual home-schooling experience?

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4. Evaluating When interviewed by NPR, the Heidenrys’ mother indicated she did not expend any extra eff ort to socialize her children. After the fact, do the siblings seem to be satisfi ed with her decision?

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Sociology and You 3


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Thinking Like a Sociologist

5. Hypothesizing Suppose you are a parent and have decided you need to home-school your children (perhaps to ensure they get more personal academic attention). You are concerned you will be hurting their socialization by doing this. What actions can you take to ensure your children are still adequately socialized despite being home-schooled?

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Topic for Research

6. Researching In the 1970s, home-schooling was illegal and practiced by very few families. It did not become legal in all 50 states until 1993. Research the history of the home-schooling movement. Why was it legalized? Why was it illegal in the fi rst place? How has home schooling changed between the 1970s and today?

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4 Sociology and You


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Enrichment Activity

Desocialization and Resocialization in Basic Combat Training

When most people think of the U.S. Army’s Basic Combat Training (BCT), commonly referred to as “boot camp,” they typically think about physical training, obstacle courses, sleeping outside, and learning how to use a rifle. While all of these things are an important part of the training process, BCT develops more than physical skills. A key aspect of BCT is the process of desocialization and resocialization that recruits undergo. This process remakes recruits into soldiers. A sociologist studying soldiers and Army life would be very interested in the techniques and tactics used by the Army to desocialize and resocialize recruits, along with the long-term effectiveness of the process.

Army BCT is ten weeks long and is divided into three main phases. Even before BCT officially begins, however, the army has already started the desocialization process. During “Week 0,” reception week, recruits begin to have their old identities dismantled. Before arriving, recruits are issued a very specific list of what they are allowed to bring with them; all contraband is removed. The list is so specific that it even indicates what color of hair ties or underwear is allowed. Recruits are issued identical equipment—weapons, gas masks, etc. Recruits no longer have brand symbols, religious symbols, jewelry, T-shirts with slogans, or other symbols of affiliation to set the recruits apart from each other. Who they were in their old life begins to fade and decrease in importance.

The army also controls all of the means of communication between recruits and their families or friends. Reception week is typically the last time during BCT that a recruit has the opportunity to call home. They are given this opportunity to inform their families that they arrived at BCT safely. Sometimes recruits also get to call their families after they have been assigned to a specific unit. After that, the only way recruits will get to talk to their families on the phone is if there is a family emergency of some kind. Instead, recruits and their families are encouraged to send each other letters. Packages are closely watched. Family members are not allowed to send food, candy, or other contraband. Recruits are not allowed cell phones, computers, or access to the Internet. Instead, they must communicate with friends and family solely through regular postal mail. While this situation may be frustrating to both recruits and their friends and families, it is an important aspect of the army’s resocialization process for recruits. By decreasing the influence of family and friends, the army can substitute mentors and peers they would rather have influencing the recruits—their fellow recruits, drill sergeants, and superior officers.

After reception week is over, recruits begin the “red phase” of training, which covers weeks one, two, and three. During BCT, but especially during the red phase, recruits are subject to “total control”: their drill sergeants keep a very close eye on their behavior and enforce punishments for even minor infractions. One of the goals during this time is to teach recruits discipline and very close attention to detail. The system of punishments and rewards that the army uses is a technique of desocialization as old habits are broken and resocialization as new habits are instilled and constantly reinforced. During the red phase, recruits study the Uniform Code of Military Justice, or UCMJ, the set of laws that will govern the soldiers’ behaviors for the rest of their military careers. Recruits take classes on nutrition, which accompanies their changing diets. The army has complete control over their meals during BCT. For many recruits, this may mean a significant shift in nutrition regiment. This can also mean a shift in identity for recruits, especially for those who ate a specific type of ethnic cuisine at home but are now forced to eat army-accepted American fare.

While the army retains a similar level of control over recruits in the white and blue phases that follow the red phase, recruits move on to learning new subjects and begin to regain some of their independence. This is, however, dependent on their good behavior and increased self-discipline. The white phase focuses on marksmanship, while the blue phase focuses on advanced combat skills such as working with weapons that require a team or defending convoy. The final week of training covers a final field exercise, gives soldiers a day to spend with their families, and culminates in graduation.

The army has a very specific idea of what they would like their soldiers to look like once they have been resocialized. While physical fitness and battlefield skills are important, training soldiers who follow the Army Core

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Enrichment Activity cont.

Values is also an essential part of the resocialization process. The seven core values are loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and courage. During the course of their ten weeks in training, the army has desocialized recruits by removing symbols of their identity, dividing them from their former peer groups and presenting them with a new one, separating them from the influence of their families and the media, and controlled all aspects of their daily lives. The army has also resocialized them by substituting new significant others—like their drill sergeants, platoon leaders, and commanders—for old ones, rewarding good behavior while punishing poor behavior, and teaching a new code of values. It is a radically transformative process.

Questions

Directions: Using the information from the reading, answer the following questions.

1. Making Predictions A new recruit to the army is preparing in advance for Basic Combat Training. What sorts of activities might he or she engage in? How is this an example of anticipatory socialization?

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2. Analyzing The army severely limits the means of communication between recruits and their families and friends. Cell phones are not permitted, letters are limited, and the Internet is not available. Why is this an important part of the desocialization and the resocialization process?

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3. Applying Think about a person you know who joined the military or a fi ctional character if you are not familiar with anyone in person. How did that person change as a result of their time in Basic Combat Training? Could you see evidence of how they had been resocialized?

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4. Exploring Issues In the United States, judges sometimes allow some criminals to choose military service instead of jail time. Why do you think they do that?

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5. Comparing and Contrasting This activity has focused on Basic Combat Training used by the army. Research to discover how the basic training programs for the navy, marines, air force, and coast guard diff er from army training. What do you expect to be diff erent or similar? What did you discover in your research to be similar or diff erent? Write your answer on a separate piece of paper.

2 Sociology and You


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netw rksSocial Structure and Society

Readings and Case Studies Activity

Reading 5

Why Are People Overconfident So Often? It’s All About Social Status

What is the difference between confidence and overconfidence? How does confidence—and overconfidence—correlate with competence? This selection examines the relationship between overconfidence and inflated social status. Attainment of a higher social status works as positive reinforcement for those displaying overconfidence, continuing the trend as a cycle. The article details several studies examining this relationship. Why are the studies important? What implications do they have for the business world and beyond? Read the following passage to answer these questions and learn more.

Researchers have long known that people are very frequently overconfident—that they tend to believe they are more physically talented, socially adept, and skilled at their job than they actually are. For example, 94% of college professors think they do above average work (which is nearly impossible, statistically speaking). But this overconfidence can also have detrimental effects on their performance and decision-making. So why, in light of these negative consequences, is overconfidence still so pervasive?

The lure of social status promotes overconfidence, explains Haas School Associate Professor Cameron Anderson. He co-authored a new study, “A Status-Enhancement Account of Overconfidence,” with Sebastien Brion, assistant professor of managing people in organizations, IESE Business School, University of Navarra[; and] Haas School colleagues Don Moore, associate professor of management, and Jessica A. Kennedy, now a post-doctoral fellow at the Wharton School of Business. . . .

“Our studies found that overconfidence helped people attain social status. People who believed they were better than others, even when they weren’t, were given a higher place in the social ladder. And the motive to attain higher social status thus spurred overconfidence,” says Anderson. . . .

Social status is the respect, prominence, and influence individuals enjoy in the eyes of others. Within work groups, for example, higher status individuals tend to be more admired, listened to, and have more sway over the group’s discussions and decisions. These “alphas” of the group have more clout and prestige than other members. Anderson says these research findings are important because they help shed light on a longstanding puzzle: why overconfidence is so common, in spite of its risks. His findings suggest that falsely believing one is better than others has profound social benefits for the individual.

Moreover, these findings suggest one reason why in organizational settings, incompetent people are so often promoted over their more competent peers. “In organizations, people are very easily swayed by others’ confidence even when that confidence is unjustified,” says Anderson. “Displays of confidence are given an inordinate amount of weight.”

The studies su ggest that organizations would benefit from taking individuals’ confidence with a grain of salt. Yes, confidence can be a sign of a person’s actual abilities, but it is often not a very good sign. Many individuals are confident in their abilities even though they lack true skills or competence.

The authors conducted six experiments to measure why people become overconfident and how overconfidence equates to a rise in social stature. For example:

Sociology and You 1


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Readings and Case Studies Activity cont.

In Study 2, the researchers examined 242 MBA students in their project teams and asked them to look over a list of historical names, historical events, and books and poems, and then to identify which ones they knew or recognized. Terms included Maximilien Robespierre, Lusitania, Wounded Knee, Pygmalion, and Doctor Faustus. Unbeknownst to the participants, some of the names were made up. These so-called “foils” included Bonnie Prince Lorenzo, Queen Shaddock, Galileo Lovano, Murphy’s Last Ride, and Windemere Wild. The researchers deemed those who picked the most foils the most overly confident because they believed they were more knowledgeable than they actually were. In a survey at the end of the semester, those same overly confident individuals (who said they had recognized the most foils) achieved the highest social status within their groups.

It is important to note that group members did not think of their high status peers as overconfident, but simply that they were terrific. “This overconfidence did not come across as narcissistic,” explains Anderson. “The most overconfident people were considered the most beloved.”

Study 4 sought to discover the types of behaviors that make overconfident people appear to be so wonderful (even when they were not). Behaviors such as body language, vocal tone, rates of participation were captured on video as groups worked together in a laboratory setting. These videos revealed that overconfident individuals spoke more often, spoke with a confident vocal tone, provided more information and answers, and acted calmly and relaxed as they worked with their peers. In fact, overconfident individuals were more convincing in their displays of ability than individuals who were actually highly competent.

“These big participators were not obnoxious, they didn’t say, ‘I’m really good at this.’ Instead, their behavior was much more subtle. They simply participated more and exhibited more comfort with the task—even though they were no more competent than anyone else,” says Anderson.

Two final studies found that it is the “desire” for status that encourages people to be more overconfident. For example, in Study 6, participants read one of two stories and were asked to imagine themselves as the protagonist in the story. The first story was a simple, bland narrative of losing then finding one’s keys. The second story asked the reader to imagine him/herself getting a new job with a prestigious company. The job had many opportunities to obtain higher status, including a promotion, a bonus, and a fast track to the top. Those participants who read the new job scenario rated their desire for status much higher than those who read the story of the lost keys.

After they were finished reading, participants were asked to rate themselves on a number of competencies such as critical thinking skills, intelligence, and the ability to work in teams. Those who had read the new job story (which stimulated their desire for status) rated their skills and talent much higher than did the first group. Their desire for status amplified their overconfidence.

De-emphasizing the natural tendency toward overconfidence may prove difficult but Prof. Anderson hopes this research will give people the incentive to look for more objective indices of ability and merit in others, instead of overvaluing unsubstantiated confidence.

Credit: Why are people overconfident so often? It’s all about social status. University of California–Berkeley, Haas School of Business, August 13, 2012. All rights reserved.

2 Sociology and You


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1. Identifying According to the article, what are some benefi ts of overconfi dence and higher social status?

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2. Speculating According to the article, what is one negative result of overconfi dence in a business setting? How do you think the negative might be prevented?

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3. Analyzing How does the relationship between overconfi dence and social status imply correlation, but not causation?

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4. Making Decisions Do you believe overconfi dence can elevate social status? If so, give an example of this phenomenon from your own life. If not, give an example that contradicts the fi ndings of this study.

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Sociology and You 3


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netw rksGroups and Formal Organizations

Readings and Case Studies Activity

Reading 6

Behind Bullying: Why Kids Are So Cruel

Bullying has been a problem for children and adolescents for many years. In the past few decades, the media have studied and discussed the problem at length. Some recent instances of bullying have resulted in the targets of bullying committing suicide or retaliating against the bullies. This passage discusses studies detailing the causes of bullying and those who are likely to become bullies or targets. Why does bullying happen? How can it be addressed effectively? What social and peer pressures cause bullying to be widespread? Read the following passage to learn more.

According to reports by fellow students, the last few months of 15-year-old Phoebe Prince’s life were filled with unrelenting torment.

Classmates at the Irish immigrant’s Massachusetts high school called Prince [derogatory names] students said. They defaced her school photo with obscene drawings, sent her threatening text messages and whispered—or shouted—insults in school hallways. On Jan. 14, witnesses say, she was taunted by a group of classmates in the library and hit with a can of Red Bull thrown from a moving car. That afternoon, Prince went home and hanged herself with a scarf.

Nine students have now been charged with harassment and other bullying-related crimes, spurring national debate about the role of the justice system and the culpability of the school administration. But Prince’s case raises another, more elemental question: Why are kids so cruel?

Research into bullying didn’t start until the 1970s, when psychologist Dan Olweus began to study the phenomenon in Norwegian schoolchildren. In fact, much of the study was triggered by the suicides of several young victims of bullying, said René Veenstra, a sociologist at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.

Since then, decades of research have shown that the power differential between bullies and victims is a crucial component of the interaction.

“Bullies go for admiration, for status, for dominance,” Veenstra said. Unlike friendly teasing, he said, bullying is long-term, unwanted and doesn’t occur between social equals.

Despite their aggressive behavior, bullies also want affection, Veenstra said. His work has shown that bullies care about the approval of their own in-group, so they strategically pick victims they know few other classmates will defend.

Other researchers have found evidence that kids who are already socially awkward are more vulnerable to bullies. But there’s no one thing that makes a child a target.

“There’s actually no good reason,” said Young Shin Kim, a professor at the Child Study Center at the Yale School of Medicine. “One day, they just don’t like a kid because that kid will wear pink, and the next day they might not like other kids because they’re wearing blue, or they’re tall, or they’re small, or they wear glasses. . . It’s just not really, systemically, that there’s some kind of reason or motivation. It’s more like a cultural thing.”

A recent study found gay and lesbian teens get bullied two to three times more than their heterosexual peers.

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For some kids, bullying behavior is just the tip of the iceberg, Kim said. These children have other problems with aggression and control and may be abuse victims themselves. But there are also many otherwise well-adjusted children who just “think it’s a cool thing to do,” she said.

Indeed, 85 percent of bullying cases happen for the benefit of an audience, Veenstra said. Bullies want their behavior to be noticed. That means the reactions of bystanders is another essential piece of the bullying puzzle.

“There are often defenders to the victims, but there are certainly more bystanders,” Veenstra said. Other children have a difficult time intervening without the support of teachers and authority figures, who are sometimes too quick to dismiss bullying. And adults don’t always set good examples. Take driving: Grown-ups often tailgate slow drivers in an effort to intimidate them, Kim said. That’s a page right out of the bully handbook.

When it comes to bullying, Phoebe Prince’s case was almost textbook. She was a new girl, different from her classmates, who dared to date a popular upperclassman, which allegedly drew the wrath of other popular kids who wanted to put her in her place. Bullying is often used to maintain the social pecking order, Veenstra said.

And while suicides by victims are rare, bullying does increase suicide risk. It can also cause poor school performance, depression, and low self-esteem that persists for years.

Bullies, too, fall victim to their own behavior. They have higher risks of delinquency, substance abuse and psychological problems. One study of Korean schoolchildren found that all female students involved in bullying (whether as bully, victim, or both) had higher rates of suicidal thoughts and behavior.

“Bullying experience is not something that you overcome without consequences,” Kim said.

Bullying is also not inevitable. Anti-bullying programs work, researchers say. The Scandinavian countries, which implemented widespread anti-bullying curricula in the 1970s and ’80s, now have some of the lowest bullying rates worldwide.

The key, says Rosalind Wiseman, author of “Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and the New Realities of Girl World” (Three Rivers Press, 2003) and creator of the anti-bullying curriculum “Owning Up,” is that anti-bullying messages must be consistent and widespread.

“Please don’t waste anybody’s time by doing a 45-minute bullying assembly, and then putting on some piece of paper that you have a zero-tolerance policy for bullying,” Wiseman said. For the message to take, she said, teachers must be trained to respond to bullying on a daily basis, and the culture of the school must reinforce that bullying is not acceptable.

In the end, Kim said, one of the worst mistakes adults can make is to shrug off blame on the younger generation.

“We grown-ups have to be much more active, proactive and responsible and do something about it,” she said. “It’s not kids’ problem. It’s our problem.”

Credit: Behind Bullying: Why Kids Are So Cruel by Stephanie Pappas. LiveScience, April 9, 2010. All rights reserved.

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1. Identifying According to the article, what are some reasons bullying occurs? For what other reasons, not mentioned in the article, might bullying occur?

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2. Making Connections What anti-bullying programs, if any, has your school implemented? Do you believe they are eff ective? Why or why not?

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3. Analyzing How has bullying changed or evolved with the Internet and social networking in everyday use? What methods are currently used to combat cyberbullying?

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4. Speculating How are bullying behaviors and cliques related? How are cliques and bystander apathy related? Describe an instance in which you observed bystanders not stepping in to stop problematic behavior.

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netw rksDeviance and Social Control

Culture Studies Activity

Reading 10

Corporal Punishment in Schools

While some American parents spank their children at home, it is also legal in many states for schools to use corporal punishment. Some parents and teachers across the nation believe in the advice, “Spare the rod, spoil the child.” The following article examines the debate about corporal punishment used as a disciplinary measure in one elementary school. Is corporal punishment responsible for the school’s turnaround? This reading illustrates the concepts of deviance and sanctions discussed in Chapter 7.

The wooden paddle on principal David Nixon’s desk is two feet long, with a handle wrapped in duct tape that has been worn down by age and use. He found it in a dusty cabinet in his predecessor’s office at John C. Calhoun Elementary in Calhoun Hills, S.C., where Nixon has been the principal since 2006. He has no idea if the old principal ever used it, but now it sits in plain view for all visitors to see, including children who have been dismissed to his office. As punishment for a “major offense,” such as fighting or stealing, students are told to place both hands on the seat of a leather chair and brace. . . . Before he begins, though, he sits the child down for a quiet talk about why he, or she, is in trouble. He tries to determine if a deeper issue, such as a problem at home, might warrant a meeting with a counselor. If the child shows remorse, Nixon will often send him or her back to class without a spanking. . . . If the child is a girl, then a female administrator does it. Some of the kids cry. Some are silent. Some want a hug. And after the child is sent back to class, still stinging, Nixon sits alone in his office and thinks about what the child has done, and what he has done. “If I could burn that paddle in my stove,” Nixon says, “I would. This is the worst part of my job.”

Before Nixon took over “John C,” student behavior had gotten so bad that one teacher described it as “chaos.” . . . And yet Nixon has managed to turn John C around. . . . Not everyone agrees with his methods, but most parents and teachers will tell you he couldn’t have pulled off such a turnaround without his wooden paddle. . . .

Thirty minutes into his first day of school at John C, a father walked into Nixon’s office and said, “I want to give you the authority to whip my son’s butt.” Nixon was surprised, but after he thought it over, he decided to give every parent the same option. The year before he arrived, students made more than 250 visits to the principal’s office; order had to be restored. While suspensions take kids out of the classroom for days, paddling could be done in 15 minutes. “What are we here to do? Educate,” Nixon says. “This way there’s an immediate response, and the child is right back in the room learning.” According to school statistics, referrals to the principal’s office have dropped 80 percent since 2006. So far this school year, there’s been fewer than 50. “I’ve had parents say ‘thank you for doing this’,” says fifth-grade teacher Devada Kimsey. “And look at the behavior charts now—there’s nothing on them.”

. . . Most education scholars consider [corporal punishment] abusive, helpful only in the short term and even predictive of future violence. “This is not a practice for the 21st century,” says Nadine Block, executive director of the Center for Effective Discipline. . . . “An atmosphere of fear is not going to increase learning. . . .”

Nixon’s policy does not have universal support at John C. On the permission form he sends to parents about paddling, a few have checked “no.” “I was spanked as a child,” says Deniece Williams, 36, who has a son at John C. “I want to go a different route.” The school’s mental-health counselor, Heather Hatchett, is equally concerned. “I’m not crazy about it,” she says. “A lot of these kids come from violent homes, and kids see this as another violent act.”. . .

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Yet the majority of parents see Nixon’s paddle as a deterrent, not a weapon. “I agree with the policy,” says Tim Rhodes, 42, who has two children at John C. “Kids know if they do something wrong, they are punished.” In Fran Brown’s first-grade class last month, a brown-haired boy spat on a fellow student. Miss Brown strode to her computer, drawing a loud “oooooh!” from the class. She typed an e-mail to Nixon, who came right away. “I don’t think it’s right for kids to take away from the instructed time,” says Brown. After a conversation in Nixon’s office, the child was paddled at home. . . .

John C isn’t as bustling as typical elementary schools. The hallways are hushed as kids move wordlessly between classes, lined up single-file on the right side of each hallway, though they do bop and sashay in muted, youthful excitement. A severe budget crunch means the school will almost certainly have to let some teachers go. Still, John C is in much better shape than the state’s woefully underfunded schools. . . .

Nixon has instituted many reforms over the last three years, and he’s leery of focusing too much on paddling as a “fix-all.” “The best form of discipline,” he says, “is praise.” He brings pizza for classes that perform well on tests, and he’s plastered the teacher’s lounge with statistics on each student’s performance. . . .

Kids at the school say the paddle definitely makes them think twice about acting up. Asked if he’s afraid of it, second-grader Nathan Hoover says, “Yes! It really hurts.” The policy, he explains, is three strikes and you’re struck. “I know if I got [paddled at school],” Nathan says, “my mom would whip me, too.” Hoover’s mother says she would give Nixon permission to paddle her child—parents only get the form if their child commits a major offense—but she’s relieved that corporal punishment is only a “last resort.” “Some kids see too much of that at home,” Hoover says. They’re no longer seeing much of it anymore at John C. According to Nixon, the last time he paddled a student was more than a month ago. . . after a fourth-grader swore in the cafeteria. Corporal punishment, it would seem, has worked so well at John C that perhaps the need for it no longer exists. Given Nixon’s ambivalence toward the practice . . . could it be that he’s already delivered his last whipping? “I hope so,” he says. . . .

Credit: The Principal and the Paddle by Eric Adelson. Newsweek, April 24th, 2009. All rights reserved.


1. Describing What procedure does principal David Nixon follow for deciding whether or not to paddle a student sent to him for discipline?

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2. Summarizing Diff erent parents quoted in the article have reacted to Nixon’s decision in diff erent ways. What reasons have parents given for being for or against the policy?

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3. Explaining What forms of social sanctions are used at John C. Calhoun Elementary school?

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4. Evaluating The executive director of the Center for Eff ective Discipline and the school’s own mental-health counselor criticize the use of corporal punishment. What reasons do they give for their criticism? Do you consider these sources to be more valid than the children’s parents? Explain your answers.

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Thinking Like a Sociologist

5. Explaining What is your personal stand on corporal punishment? Do you think American schools should be legally barred from using corporal punishment as a form of discipline? Explain your answer.

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Topic for Research

6. Researching Research magazines or Internet sites for information about corporal punishment in other countries. What countries have banned corporal punishment as a form of discipline in schools?

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Culture Studies Activity netw rks...netw rks Socialization Culture Studies Activity Reading 6 “We Were Weirdos” From 1972–1976, Margaret Heidenry and her three siblings (Mary,