Abstract:
The purpose of the study was to explore implementation challenges of the ban
on corporal punishment in public basic schools in the Cape Coast Metropolis.
A qualitative approach with a phenomenological research design was adopted.
Purposive sampling technique was used to select 25 participants for the study
comprising 15 teachers, five headteachers and five School Improvement
Support Officers (SISOs). An interview guide was used to collect the data. The
interview data was analysed thematically. The study revealed that teachers and
headteachers viewed the ban of corporal punishment as the cause of increase in
discipline among pupils while SISOs viewed it as a good initiative to stop
physical, psychological, and emotional abuse on pupils. It was also found that
teachers and supervisors used corporal punishment such as weeding, and
fetching of water as Tools for Positive Discipline (TPD). The key challenges
teachers and supervisors faced in using the Tools for Positive Discipline are:
lack of parents’ cooperation and unavailability of professional school
counsellors. Based on the results of this study, it is recommended that the Ghana
Education Service should sensitise parents, teachers, and supervisors on the
policy on ban of corporal punishment and the TPD through training workshops
and seminars. The Ghana Education Service should recruit and post
professional counsellors to schools to provide counselling services to pupils to
help curb indiscipline among pupils.
