Helping a Generation Redefine Discipline: Conscious Discipline and Saving Brains Grenada

Research shows that corporal punishment hinders the development of executive functions associated with academic achievement, life success and overall well-being. Yet for some families and cultures, corporal punishment has been practiced for generations and is seen as the only effective way to discipline children.

Calisha Hyacinth, a social worker and substance abuse specialist in Grenada, is using Conscious Discipline alongside a program called Saving Brains Grenada to help families and caregivers replace punitive discipline with healthy connections. She says, “[Caregivers] see that there is another way of disciplining a child and it definitely makes a difference in who we become as adults.”

Because Conscious Discipline is brain-based and uses natural daily interactions as its curriculum, it is relevant and effective for all cultures and communities. The nonprofit organization Saving Brains Grenada brings Conscious Discipline training to Grenada to teach positive discipline methods as an alternative to corporal punishment, improving outcomes for children and families. Through the work of people like Calisha, adults across the nation are learning new strategies and building more loving bonds, leading to demonstrated improvements in cognition for Grenadian children.