“No One Should Touch Anyone’s Child”: Yvonne Nelson Speaks Out Against Corporal Punishment in Schools
Ghanaian actress and educational entrepreneur Yvonne Nelson is taking a firm stand against corporal punishment in schools, advocating instead for more compassionate and constructive approaches to discipline. Speaking on The Career Trail with Irene Adubea Aning, Nelson opened up about her philosophy on child discipline, rooted in her experiences both as a former student and as the founder of her own school.
With deep conviction, Nelson declared that no teacher should ever raise a hand to a child, regardless of the circumstances. She believes that discipline should be based on understanding, patience, and communication—not fear. “No one has the right to touch anyone’s kid. We do not do any of that here,” she stated, referring to the practices in her school.
Nelson explained that when children misbehave, there are several effective and non-violent methods that educators can use to help guide them. “If we realize that a child is being too much or they are misbehaving, we have measures, we have things we do. You can give them time out.
Sometimes they just want to walk around, even go to the play area. They are going through something. Just give them some middle space. We counsel, we talk to them,” she said. “The last resort is basically picking up the phone to call their parents. Sometimes we feel that when parents talk to their kids, you know, it works well.”
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While acknowledging the well-known proverb, “Spare the rod and spoil the child,” Nelson clarified its relevance. “Spare the rod and spoil the child is for parents. You can discipline your child at home. You can let them raise their hands, face the wall and all that. But the school has no right. No one should do that. No one should touch anyone’s kid,” she emphasized. “Even when the parents tell you to discipline the child, who are you to touch anyone’s child? You leave that to the parents.”
Nelson spoke candidly about how fear-based discipline affected her own education. As a student, she often skipped classes out of fear of being caned. That fear, she says, had a significant impact on her academic performance.
“There were days you were afraid to go to the class because one teacher is going to beat everybody in the class. That wasn’t helping,” she recalled. “At a point when we were writing our SSCE, I did not go in when we were writing Costing and Accounting. It was that bad. What was I going to write? I didn’t like it. Our teacher was always beating us up and I was always skipping classes. What was I going to write? I cannot balance the sheet.”
Through her platform and educational ventures, Nelson is pushing for a cultural shift—one that puts the well-being and emotional development of children first. She believes that eliminating corporal punishment is not just a matter of discipline policy, but of respecting children’s rights and creating a safe, nurturing learning environment.
Her message is clear and unwavering: “No one should touch anyone’s child.”
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