is not the same as punishment. Punishment is one technique used in discipline. Punishment can be physical, such as hitting and slapping and verbal abuse or it can be psychological as in disapproval, isolation, loss of privileges or shaming. While such punishment may seem to get fast results, in the long term it is more harmful than helpful. Physical punishment can discourage and embarrass children and develop low self-esteem in them. Some experts argue that it also promotes physical aggression in children by showing them that violence is acceptable. Punishment focuses on past behavior and does not always teach a child the lesson that needs to be learned when making your own mistakes. My personal experience with discipline and punishment goes from one extreme to another. As a small child, to age nine, I was spoiled and allowed to do what I wanted. My mother would allow me to stay out of school, stay up late and not complete my homework whenever I whined for long enough. The Catholic School that I went to was very strict and used physical punishment and guilt to get students to behave in class. After my parents died, from nine to sixteen, I was disciplined through strong physical and verbal abuse. My aunts and uncles became so enraged at times that I was never sure what I was in trouble for. These situations were definitely absent of a lesson learned. Needless to say, my parental role models method of punishment was not something I chose to use as part of parenting techniques. Instead I chose to use discipline (on most good parenting days!) Discipline means to teach. It should be a positive way of helping and guiding children to achieve self-control, self-esteem and confidence. Children need discipline for many reasons some of that are protection, to get along with others, and to understand limits. Discipline helps children understand the logical consequences of their actions and learn common rules that everyone must live by. It can help ...
