Photo courtesy of Chief Writing Wolf
Tae Hong
Opinions Columnist
If you’ve ever been grounded, you know it’s horrible. On top of feeling bored, you also feel isolated and left out. It’s not a good feeling.
Different parents have different methods of disciplining their children. In most situations, this includes taking away privileges. Some privileges include phone time, driving, going out, etc. Kids are usually grounded after they do something their parents don’t want them to do—but does grounding really change behavior for the better?
“I think grounding is only effective in certain ways. If you restrict your child so much, you are just teaching them how to get away with stuff instead of building trust, and the best way to discipline your child is through trust rather than distrust,” said Maya Mohanti, a junior at South.
“I’ve only been grounded once, and my parents realized it doesn’t help the situation. As long as I’m doing well in school, they trust me because it shows I can show responsibility. And they don’t determine if I’m a good person by my juvenile decisions, but more with my actions and who I am as a person,” she added. Mohanti explains that teens often make rash decisions that do not determine their worth. In her personal experiences with her parents, she is trusted when she shows responsibility through academics.
Juniors Anna Mueller and Julia Mirvoda have similar ideas. “I think grounding is ineffective and teaches your kids to lie better and keep things from you rather than having an open relationship with [parents],” Mueller stated. “I’ve never been grounded—my parents don’t believe in that,” she concluded.
“Grounding isn’t going to discipline your kids. It just teaches them to lie and keep things from you and find ways to sneak around,” Mirvoda agreed.
Students share the common idea that grounding kids may not stop them from repeating the same mistakes. What’s worse, teens might continue to make the same poor decisions in more secretive and possibly unsafe ways.
It is understandable that parents just want to keep their kids safe. But maybe this protective nature can blind them from the bigger picture. Parents may also think that their kids will see their bad decisions lead to consequences, teaching them to stop.
Regardless, grounding is an effective form of punishment, but not a way to learn or grow.
