Editor,

RE:"Motivation: Is the carrot enough to stimulate performance?” (The New Times, September 20).

Happily not one of the people interviewed supports the idea that corporal punishment is acceptable.

In fact, the article is incorrectly titled as it is really about how best to motivate students, which is a most worthy subject and about which there is a wide range of strategies. But it should be clearly stated that any adult working in a school who physically strikes or psychologically abuses a child should be immediately terminated and any head teacher or board of directors who allows such practices should be investigated for possible criminal charges.

Rhett