Ruel Reid, president of the JTA, says his organisation is opposed to corporal punishment. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer

Most Jamaicans believe that corporal punishment, although illegal in some cases and definitely frowned on by the authorities, should be allowed in schools, to punish children deemed to have behaved badly.

In fact, 28 per cent of Jamaicans are adamant of giving teachers the right to physically punish students, and they help to make up the 60 per cent in favour of spanking and caning in the island's schools.

This finding by pollster Bill Johnson, in a survey completed for The Gleaner last month, comes at a time of heightened debate in Jamaica about the rights of children and increasing complaints about physical and other abuse. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus three per cent.

Set guidelines

Jamaica's Education Act is silent on the matter of corporal punishment in schools, officials say, but the Education Ministry has set guidelines on how the physical disciplining of students can be done. For instance, children 12 and over should not be caned.

However, the Child Care and Protection Act (2004) prohibits corporal punishment in institutions and the Early Childhood Act (2005) outlaws its use in early childhood institutions.

Yet only slightly more than a third (37 per cent) of Jamaicans said they were opposed to corporal punishment, of the group a mere 13 per cent were strongly against it.

There is, however, a divide between public attitudes on the issue and teachers who would have to administer corporal punishment.

Ruel Reid, outgoing president of the Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA), said that organisation was opposed to spanking, canings and other forms of physical disciplining, saying it was an inappropriate way to deal with behaviour problems.

"We do not support corporal punishment from a policy perspective," Mr. Reid said. "We believe that in the 21st century there are more progressive approaches to behaviour management."