Staff Reports
Once again, the misguided notion of “old school discipline” has landed another so-called respectable figure in hot water. This time, we find ourselves looking at a former Alabama teacher, Randi Nicole Jackson, who seems to have taken her disciplinary methods straight from a bygone era rather than a modern-day classroom. She was arrested for what’s being rightfully described as willful child abuse after she was caught on video allegedly whipping her 12-year-old son with a belt. The abrupt fall from grace is a stark reminder of the perils of unchecked parental discipline wrapped under the guise of nostalgia.
Let’s be clear: no one is suggesting that children shouldn’t face consequences for their actions. However, there is a world of difference between discipline and abuse. Teaching responsibility, respect, and self-control doesn’t require parents to lose control. Yet, somehow, there is still a vocal minority defending her actions, hailing them as tried-and-true methods of yesteryears. They argue that a good belt-whipping is what shaped them—yet they miss the irony of promoting unregulated aggression as a parenting tool.
The threadbare justification by some who cry, “I was raised like this, and I turned out just fine,” only points to the enduring cycle of learned behavior, not to any triumph of character. One might wonder how “fine” they truly are when the default is to defend such glaringly abusive behavior. It’s almost comedic if it weren’t so tragic. These are the same folks who would be aghast if someone used similar logic to justify hit-and-runs just because it was a tradition in a lawless town.
Additionally, consider this: we would never condone children hitting one another out of anger; we don’t accept adults settling disputes with violence. So why, then, is it somehow acceptable when a parent turns their physical wrath on a child? It’s a distorted kind of logic when the smallest and most powerless among us are subjected to the worst forms of misplaced fury. It should be common sense that the very action which would be condemned if directed at a peer or stranger is even more vile when it’s directed at our own children.
In truth, what Jackson demonstrated was not strength or discipline, but a lack of self-control that mirrors the very behavior she presumably was trying to correct. If parents want their children to grow into disciplined, respectful adults, it’s their job to lead by example. Yelling and physical aggression don’t model discipline; they model chaos. The lesson here is simple: display calmness and discipline yourself, and your children are far more likely to reflect those attributes.
In closing, it’s worth reminding readers that effective parenting isn’t about dominance and power; it’s about guidance and teaching. It’s laughable—and rather sad—to think that mastering parental anger involves teaching your child to fear physical retribution. Perhaps it’s time to add a new chapter to the “old school” manual, one reflecting real wisdom: lead with love, not with a belt.
