Corporal punishment is banned in schools in more than 130 countries and has long been prohibited in U.S. prisons. Yet in 2024, 17 states continue to use corporal punishment — defined by the U.S. Department of Education as “paddling, spanking, or other forms of physical punishment” — as a means of disciplining students. Within these states, school districts may voluntarily adopt policies that prohibit or restrict the practice.
During the 2017-18 school year (SY), nearly 70,000 American public school children received corporal punishment from K-12 school officials.1 Seventy thousand may be a small percentage (0.14%) of American public school students, but given the evidence pointing to corporal punishment’s negative physical, psychological, and developmental impacts and its disproportionate use against Black students, Indigenous students, and students with disabilities, the continuation of this practice in U.S. schools warrants further attention.
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