“Consequences” and Academic Freedom

A curious thing came of growing awareness of the ways mistreatment of children was too often tolerated so long as it was passed off as ‘punishment.’ First came a growing discomfort with the very idea of punishing children, and then, in time, to a shift to talk of first natural, and then logical ‘consequences’ as an alternative. The idea, to be very brief, was that children learn to manage their behavior better when they are allowed to suffer their unenjoyable results. Let the world be the heavy here, parents were told, thereby sparing yourself the burden of knowing you are using your authority to impose your will on vulnerable youngsters by punishing disobedience. Keep reading…