School corporal punishment in China

Three more video clips showing Chinese pupils being caned in school.

Clip 1 of 3 -- Girls and boys caned

Date: 2016
Duration:4 minutes

Most school caning in China seems to be of boys, but in this compilation of highlights we see three or four girls being punished and only one boy.

 The footage comes from a closed-circuit TV security camera in the corner of the classroom. The beneficiaries take turns to stand facing the wall at the front of the class.

 Note that the students, and the teacher, are all wearing their outdoor clothes; maybe the school has no heating. This has implications for the caning process, because the outerwear tends to cover the backside, and that may be why at least some of the strokes look to be aimed lower down, at the back of the legs, although it is hard to be sure because the teacher herself obscures the view. (A better solution would surely have been to require each student to remove his or her outer coat.)

 Although the teacher canes all three girls herself, when it comes to disciplining a boy she summons another male student out to the front to do the deed. His initial efforts are too feeble, and the teacher appears to be urging him to apply the cane more vigorously, causing the only moment of laughter in what is otherwise a solemn and serious proceeding.

HERE IS THE CLIP:

Clip 2 of 3 -- Secondary students caned on the assembly ground

Date: 2017
Duration: 2 minutes

This clip was evidently filmed from the school roof. Male and female students (we are assuming the ones with ponytails are girls) are standing in military-style rows on the schoolyard. As the clip begins, some half a dozen of them have already been summoned to line up, partly out of view, in front of, I think, the building entrance. Each in turn is made to stand out facing the wall and receives a caning across the buttocks, some getting three strokes and some (maybe the girls) just one. The master in charge is a bit shouty and wields a very long cane. The whacks can clearly be heard throughout the film, even over the voiceover commentary which occupies the first 25 seconds. These students then disappear, presumably into the building.

 At this point the master takes out a paper list and reads out the names of another half a dozen students. These come forward and line up to be caned, receiving one stroke each, except for the last two students, who get three strokes.

 The strokes look and sound very vigorous and forceful, but their effectiveness must be greatly reduced by the fact that the students are all wearing their outdoor coats.

HERE IS THE CLIP:

Clip 3 of 3 -- Secondary boys caned for lateness on the running track

Date: 2018
Duration: 40 seconds

This clip extracted from a Chinese TV news report is inexpertly filmed: the camera is wandering about all over the place. But it is clear enough that we are inside a classroom looking out of the window at a running track, where four or five boys are assuming a push-up position to be caned on the backside, reportedly for being late. They appear to be getting three vigorous strokes each with a martial-arts staff. Each student gets up and walks away after receiving his punishment.

 This is in effect a silent film, as the whacks cannot be heard. All that is on the soundtrack is background conversation inside the room.

HERE IS THE CLIP: