A woman -- crowned one of Alabama's teachers of the year -- is in hot water with the law after allegedly whipping the s**t out of her child with a belt on video.

Nicole Staples -- who teaches second grade at Cottage Hill Christian Academy in Mobile -- was charged Wednesday with willful abuse of a child under 18, according to the county Sheriff's Office. Mobile County Sheriff's Office

The video is startling ... Staples appears to hit her adolescent son on the backside upwards of 20 times after hurling a flurry of curses at him for not cleaning up after himself. She appears to grab him by the hair before seeming to smack him again.

Even more surprising ... Staples was reportedly named co-teacher of the year in May this year, according to AL.com .

Cottage Hill Christian Academy

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