The injunction shook the walls of many French homes. “Go to your room! “, ended up letting go of many parents to find a way out during an argument with their child. But were they right to send their offspring in this way? According to Le Figaro, this method called “time out” is no longer in the odor of sanctity and the Council of Europe, seized by NGOs, is preparing to remove it from its texts. False, replies the institution.
Since 2008, the “time out” has figured in the literature of the Council of Europe. At the time, the Council of Europe’s Children’s Rights Division created a collection of tools for education and awareness-raising on non-violent parenting which compiled good practices applied in member states.
She advises, for example, to “react to bad behavior with an explanation and, if necessary, a non-violent punishment such as time-out, to give less pocket money…rather than through harsh punishments”.
“We are not saying that we are for or that we are against”
Behind the English word hides the good old “Go to your room” or “go to the corner”, used by some parents in case of conflict. “We are not saying that we are for or that we are against, it is an example of what is used in the Member States”, assures the Council of Europe today, contacted by the Parisian.
The method, however, divides. Caroline Goldman, psychologist and author of “File in your room” is made the cantor. Asked by Le Figaro, she believes that “no scientific study describes as harmful the fact of sending a child to his room”. “Putting a child in the corner can give the adult the impression that he is being obeyed. It’s useless, the child did not fully understand what he did and how to do otherwise. It is a measure of exclusion”, nuance for her part Agnès Florin, professor emeritus in child psychology and education at Nantes University.
An old page
Associations have therefore alerted the Council of Europe on this subject. “We asked the Council what their definition of time-out is because some of their supporters rely on it as a punishment. It should also be remembered that the time-out can also be the exclusion of the parent, which we support more, “says Céline Quelen, founding president of the Stop VEO association, Childhood without violence..
“Discussions are underway with civil society”, confirms the Council of Europe. They would have, according to Le Figaro, already led to a big change. The newspaper says that it has had access to an email where Regina Jensdottir, current head of the children’s rights division, assures that the “time out” page is “obsolete” and will be “reworked”.
But if the page is very “old”, we concede to the Council, “we have not had any particular activities on this theme for several years (…) and we are not currently working on a reissue of this brochure “. The debate is therefore still open.