KEEPING DISCIPLINE

Does corporal punishment work?

Many people believe that a good old smack never hurt anyone and actually gets the message across, but there are others who think that hitting a child will either escalate into child abuse, or it doesn't do that, then turn the child itself into a criminal. The truth is somewhere in between. Research has shown that corporal punishment is ultimately self-defeating, but the absence of it alone doesn't guarantee a crime-free society.

Many parents will admit to having smacked their children when they felt there was no alternative. Some people will say that it works, others that they just felt so bad themselves that they would never do it again.

Punishment is the presentation of an unpleasant stimulus after a response. It makes the response less likely to occur in the future. To stop a behavior, punishment should be given right away and given every time. It should serve be severe enough to be worth avoiding, but not so severe to prolonged that it causes other undesirable behavior.

MIND YOUR MANNERS CHILDREN - 2

Children love to take after their parents, and if their parents have good manners, their good manners will usually come naturally. On the other hand, no one can expect a child of two of three years of age to act exactly like a grown-up. Certainly, they may forget to say, "thank you" once in a while, or they may be sloppy from time to time when they are eating at the table. Occasional forgetting of good manners is expected in a small child and is almost always forgiven quickly.

It is funny, but some children at four and five years have better manners than they do when they get to be six, seven or eight. Them to forget all the good things their parents taught when they were young. But it really isn't true. Actually, they neglect their good manners when they get to be six, seven or eight in order to show their parents that they have become independent. It's almost as if they were saying, "Mother, I have always acted and behaved exactly as you told me to when I was little. But now, I'm grown up and I can do what I please.

Ref: Good and Bad Manners

ANNOYING BEHAVIOR

Sometimes we find our co-workers showing annoying and unacceptable behavior. It is so hard to pretend not to notice the attitudes of our colleagues, whether we share a good relationship or just a formal one, situation arises either because one does not care or because his manners are already bad.

Whatever is the reason, such behavior must be confronted to ensure that others do not learn from it. Should we really confront a co-worker for bad behavior? We are for sure in a dilemma if we do so. What measures do we take to ensure that we won't be misunderstood? There are guidelines on how to tackle a badly behaving co-worker, but the most important thing is the honest and sincere expression of your willingness to help.