Is it abusive and poor?
No ones perfect, and parenting is the ultimate 'make it up as you go'. Could they have done better? Probably. Did they learn from their mistakes? Yes.
No ones perfect, and parenting is the ultimate 'make it up as you go'. Could they have done better? Probably. Did they learn from their mistakes? Yes.
It's fortunate the kid was just dealing with dry skin. Imagine if it was something like OCD where they were dealing with an irresistible compulsion and had no way to express what they were experiencing. Is spanking an acceptable response? How about one or both parents telling them to just stop? Rubbing spices all over their hands so an already terrible experience becomes worse?
Perhaps I'm too invested in this because I grew up with an undiagnosed neurological disorder and was punished similarly. The punishment and derision from my parents took a serious mental toll on me that I'm still unpacking.
Maybe we're just arguing semantics here? For me abuse is a strong word and something that social services should be getting involved with.
The only exception is if that child is eg running at you with a knife seeking to harm you.
In this country I would have made a referral about the school's poor response, and I know that would have been investigated. And I would have made a referral about the response of both parents and I know that would have been investigated.