Cruel, maybee. Unusual, absolutley.

This is not a good way to punish children with special needs. This can make their already existing problems go from bad to worse.

These children need to be nurtured not nur-turd.

I think the person involved in this act should at least loose his job at the school.
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A man who farts in church, sits in his own pew.

Having been knee deep in shit before I can honestly say it wasn't fun. Also wasn't literal. It wasn't Christian discipline either.
I am somewhat conversant with the contents of the Good Book, but I can't for the life of me recall where it say "thou shalt stand the wicked in shit."

"Troubled" does not equal "Special Needs". Special needs, in my book, equals kids with Downs syndrome, cerebral palsy, etc...

This punishment wouldn't work on special needs kids: the Downs kids might think the poop pit was funny, and you couldn't send CP kids down there, since their wheels would get stuck.

OMG. I'm totally kidding.

Anyway, "troubled" more often is a euphemism for "disobedient disrespectful dishonest irresponsible pain-in-the-ass punk".

But hell, I wouldn't make them wade into a manure pit!

I'd push them in when they weren't looking.

What the hell so cruel about that? People do that for a living. It's no worse then making them clean the side of the highway or clean toilets. Mommy and daddy couldn't raise them right to begin with, but they are going to raise all kinds of hell that they made them clean shit. Puh-leese!