Child-rights compliant behavior management in a child care center post corporal punishment era

M.A.The child and youth care system in South Africa was transformed on recommendations of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on the Transformation of the Child and Youth Care System in 1996. The South African Constitution, The Bill of Rights and the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 and its amendment Children’s Act 41 of 2007 ensure that the best interest of children is paramount in all services to children. Corporal punishment was abolished as a method of disciplining children because of its punitive nature and the negative effects it had on children. The motivation for this study arose from the need of the researcher to find out what has replaced corporal punishment, if anything, in the rights-based post corporal punishment era. The objectives for the study were: to explore what was perceived as challenging behavior by the children and child care workers, to establish what methods were used to manage what was perceived as challenging behavior, to explore what training was received by the child care workers to assist them in managing challenging behavior and to make recommendations on the findings. An exploratory, descriptive qualitative research design approach was found to be suitable for this qualitative study. Focus groups were conducted as a means of collecting data. Findings from the study indicated that not much had changed with regards to the methods used to discipline children in the institution post the corporal punishment era. From the study it could be deduced that there is still a lot to be done in terms of alternatives in managing challenging behaviour of children. The study makes recommendations that will involve all significant role players including children in managing challenging behaviour in places of care