Corporal punishment in Europe and in the U.S. Not one European country legally condones the hitting of schoolchildren, and nowhere is there any discernible movement within European teachers' professional associations to repeal the prohibition. Moreover, in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Austria, Cyprus and Italy, hitting children, even in the home by parents, is not legally permitted. This prohibition is now being considered by the governments of several other European countries, and the number of nonhitters will likely increase in the near future. All states permit battering by parents. So-called guidelines for the use of corporal punishment in school are vague and unenforced.
Some school districts require an adult witness to be present during a paddling.
One cannot find any other pedagogocal procedure that requires a witness. As for parents, their legal right to use physical violence against their children is enshrined in the statute books of every state. It also includes emotional abuse and sexual abuse . It does not include spanking that is reasonable and age appropriate and does not expose the child to risk of serious injury. Its hypocrisy is inescapable at first glance.