The Vice-Chancellor of Sunyani Technical University, Ing. Prof. Kwadwo Adinkrah-Appiah, has called for the reinstatement of corporal punishment in schools. He attributes the increasing incidents of student indiscipline to the Ghana Education Service's (GES) 2017 ban on all forms of corporal punishment.

Addressing the audience at the 63rd Speech and Prize-Giving Day of Sunyani Senior High School, Prof. Adinkrah-Appiah expressed his concerns regarding the lack of discipline observed in many schools across the nation.

He pointed out that this lack of discipline is linked to unchecked deviant behaviors among students, including smoking, alcoholism, armed robbery, and hooliganism.

“The current situation is not helping very much because when the government took away or withdrew corporal punishment from school system, there has been laxity in the system. And the children may do anything and go scot-free. So I believe that government should look at corporal punishment again. I’m sure many people have mentioned it in the past.

“But government needs to reconsider its decision on corporal punishment and bring it back but monitor it that it should become the last resort. Bad characters are due to peer pressure. How do we monitor and guide the children in school before they complete,” The Vice-Chancellor of the Sunyani Technical University queried.

Vice-Chancellor of Sunyani Technical University, Ing. Prof. Kwadwo Adinkrah-Appiah

In 2019, the Ghana Education Service (GES) issued a directive that prohibited teachers from using corporal punishment, primarily caning, on their students. The ban on corporal punishment by the GES mandated all schools to implement a revised disciplinary approach and alternative disciplinary measures for addressing behavioral issues among pupils and students in educational institutions.

The toolkit indicated that “apart from the physical pain corporal punishment inflicts on children, this approach also causes significant emotional damage. Some of the lasting effects of this method of disciplining school children include physical scars, emotional scars (trauma, fear, timidity etc.) and violent behaviour.”

Ghanaians and key stakeholders in the education sector had diverse responses to the subject, which garnered national attention due to the debates surrounding its advantages and disadvantages.

The National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) advised its members to adhere to the Ghana Education Service's (GES) directive, which prohibits them from administering corporal punishment to students. The association emphasized that strict compliance with the order would be in the best interest of teachers, helping them avoid any potential punitive actions by the GES.

Angel Carbonu, President of NAGRAT, who supports the use of corporal punishment for disciplining students, urged teachers to be cautious regarding the potential consequences that the GES might impose in cases of non-compliance.

According to Rt. Rev. Samuel K. Osabutey, Diocesan Bishop of Accra, Methodist Church, Ghana, Ghana faces a significant risk of deteriorating discipline in schools and society as a whole if the Ghana Education Service continues to ease restrictions on caning, also known as corporal punishment. Rt. Rev. Samuel Osabutey believes that implementing a complete ban on caning would be counterproductive and have severe consequences on overall student discipline.