Does Public Shaming Teach Kids or Scar Them?

A 12-year-old boy in Spring, TX, is the latest child to gain unwanted attention from unique punishments.

Dylan had to stand on a street corner in a Houston suburb for three hours with a sign that read, “I was suspended from school for cussing out my teacher," USA Today reported Friday.

A close family friend said the punishment was because Dylan had cussed at two teachers on two separate occasions. She made the sign with the blessing of the boy’s mother and then sent him to stand on the street corner for three hours.

USA cataloged several other instances of children being publicly disciplined—from an 8-year-old girl who had to wear a shirt that read “I steal” to a 15-year-old who had to hold a sign that said she sneaks out with boys.

But many parents are appalled by such public shaming. On Tuesday, blogger Heidi Stone described watching an acquaintance who “ranted and railed in a fit of maternal frustration and helplessness” at her teenaged son. Stone said she resolved at that moment to never shame her public in child again. 

“Public shaming is awful and is nothing less than societally sanctioned parental bullying,” she wrote. “Especially harmful to the young people against whom it is used as a weapon, the ramifications will resonate throughout their lives. They aren't as tough as we pretend we are.”

Patch wants to know what you think. Does public shaming teach recalcitrant children lessons when other methods fail? Or is it just bullying that leaves emotional scars? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.