There are increasing calls for the universal implementation of human rights education into the curriculum of schools of social work flowing from international directives including the recent Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development Commitment to Action. With these directives as backdrop, we use, as a case study, the issue of child physical punishment with particular reference to the Caribbean region. The article discusses the prevalence of child physical punishment, social factors supporting its use, human rights agreements, and current research. Child physical punishment is one example of the breach between international human rights promises and lived realities.