Policy Variables:
* whether or not the punishment is administered according to school system policy. Generally speaking, teachers are to punish students in private with at least one other adult acting as a witness.
* the number of blows a student is to receive.
* the type and severity of particular offences considered to be worthy of corporal punishment. Students may be hit for such things as chewing gum, low scores on exams, failure to finish homework, or missing free throws during basketball practice.
* the number of times a student may receive corporal punishment within a specified time period. Those who support the use of corporal punishment often cite the effectiveness of the punishment while ignoring the fact that all too frequently a rather small number of students are the repeat recipients of the majority of such punishment.
* Corporal punishment statistics consistently reveal that the number of male students, minority students, and students in special education are punished at rates disproportionately higher than other students.
* whether or not corporal punishment is used as last resort after less severe methods have been attempted or has such punishment become a knee jerk response to student misbehavior.

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