Education authorities in Seoul, South Korea, banned corporal punishment at all schools in the capital last week.
Teachers there are now prohibited from all forms of corporal punishment, including ordering students to do push-ups, run, hold their arms straight above their heads, and walk in a squatting position called a “ducks’ walk,” said Chung Young-chul, a supervisor at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education. Students who violate school regulations instead will be required to take special education classes or conduct in-school and community service, he said.
There are no official data on how common the use of corporal punishment is in South Korean schools, but its practice is believed to be widespread.
