Is it permissible for a teacher to strike students as a form of discipline? And is it permissible to strike the face?

The questioner : The teacher sometimes resorts to using striking to discipline the student; so is it permissible for the teacher to strike the student in the first place? And is it permissible to strike him on the face in the second place?

The Shaykh : As for striking the face, it is not permissible, according to a single opinion, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): . As for whether it is permissible to strike the student in general as a form of discipline?
The answer is: We must observe in this the well-known saying of the Messenger (peace be upon him) in the authentic collections: . In this hadith is evidence that the student—pardon me; rather, the child, even if not a student—his guardian is not permitted to strike him for his negligence in following his orders until he reaches the age of ten, .
And there is no doubt that any knowledge a teacher wishes to present to the students will not have the ruling and importance of prayer. If the Messenger (may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon him) forbade the boy’s father from striking him for his negligence in the prayer his father ordered him to perform until he reached the age of ten; then it is even more so that it is not permissible for guardians other than the father to strike the children for anything other than their leaving prayer, for a matter that is far less than prayer, until they reach the age of ten. So, for children up to the age of ten, it is not permissible for the teacher or instructor to strike them, even if they do not obey him in prayer; so what about matters other than prayer that have importance like prayer?
And I mention now, on the occasion of this hadith, the point I referred to earlier in the answer to the previous question; the Messenger (peace be upon him) says in this hadith: ; children of ten, ; why? Because the instinct begins to move while he has not yet reached the age of accountability; so this confirms that we must study the state of those who are at the age of ten: what predominates in them? Is it this sensitivity to gender as they say today, or not? If the first state predominates, then it is what we mentioned earlier; otherwise, it is permissible for the female teacher to enter upon these boys who have reached the age of ten.
And on this occasion as well, I mention that the age of puberty for young men and young women differs greatly in some countries from others. I know from my general reading in scientific magazines and others that in hot countries, gender matures and reaches the age of accountability years before in cold countries. So these are issues that must not be taken as a general principle, but rather the situation of students in their age, for example this age of ten, must be studied in each town or, more precisely, in each region: has the attention to gender matured in them, or are they still on their childish fitrah? So, based on what appears from this study to be the predominant state, the ruling is given negatively or positively.

Another questioner : Shaykh, the issue of female teachers teaching is the issue of transvestism; meaning that the boy assumes the personality of a woman, and this is happening now.

The Shaykh : How does he assume it?

Another questioner : I mean you find that he imitates the movements of women, the behaviors of women, unlike if he were raised with a man, he would assume the personality of a man.

The Shaykh : By Allah, this is something we are actually benefiting from for the first time now, but I want to understand: is every age like this, or is it within certain limits? Based on this observation, the prohibition also applies if this is a predominant reality among the students; is it in every age, or is it the age of ten and nine?

The questioner : It is approximately this age.

The Shaykh : Good; this confirms then what we said earlier; that if there is sensitivity that has reached this extent as I mentioned; then this confirms that [female teachers] should not enter upon such boys at this age.

Another questioner : Regarding striking, if this boy misbehaves or strikes?

The Shaykh : There is no striking, there is no striking at all; there is guidance, there is discipline, there is a manner of speaking; sometimes speech affects the child more than a lot of striking, and striking may not benefit some people at all, rather it causes them to continue in their disobedience more and more. The important thing is ; so the child is not to be struck as long as he has not reached the age of accountability.
Even on this occasion, I take from the educational progression mentioned earlier in the hadith: to the end of the hadith; I take from it that it is an error what I see in many fathers, that he orders the boy to pray before he reaches the age of seven; this is contrary to the command of the Messenger (peace be upon him): ; therefore, it is not befitting for the Muslim to advance to this limit that the Messenger (peace be upon him) set initially, but rather, if there is no obstacle for him, he should allow him to go down to the mosque with him and pray with him and imitate him to the end. As for saying to him: come, or stand and perform wudu and stand and pray, and so on, while he has not reached the age of seven, this is contrary to this hadith, so I wanted to remind you of it.

The questioner : Regarding the number of strikes in the hadith... is the striking only ten strikes?

The Shaykh : Yes, may Allah guide you. In discretionary punishment, there is an authentic hadith stating that in the matter of discretionary punishment, it is not permissible to flog with a flogging. And I do not think it is correct for us to say that the teacher flogs the boy or the youth with a flogging, but rather he strikes him with a non-severe strike. The flogging that falls under discretionary punishment is not permissible to exceed ten, by the explicit text of the authentic hadith. But this flogging does not apply to the matter of raising a child.

Another questioner : The last one with...

The questioner : Regarding hanging the stick.

The Shaykh : Yes?

The questioner : As is mentioned in the hadith: .

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner : Can we hang the stick in the classroom or something like that?

The Shaykh : Yes, it is possible, why not? As long as the Messenger of Allah said this, it is permissible, but hanging it, not using it.

The questioner : But, Shaykh, regarding hitting, some students come from home without being raised properly; I mean, even guidance and kind words do not benefit them. Does this fall under the category of dire necessity where you hit them?

The Shaykh : There is no dire necessity. What is the dire necessity?

The questioner : That is it.

The Shaykh : Do you know that hitting will educate him? The One who created him said: Do not hit them until they reach the age of ten.