Toddler slapped and threatened while learning math -- despite asking to be 'taught lovingly'

A heartbreaking video of a little girl being threatened and then slapped while trying to learn mathematics has sparked outrage online.

The clip, which has since gone viral, begins with the child reciting numbers "2, 3, 4, 5" to a woman repeatedly.

After getting shouted at by the woman, the girl started to break down and implored, "Will you teach me lovingly? My head is going to burst out."

Her various hand gestures further suggest the pain and frustration that she was going through, reported mathrubhumi.com

At one point, she appeared to answer a question wrongly and was met with anger from the woman, who exclaimed, "5?!"

Realising her mistake, the girl backed away and seemingly tried to explain herself, only to be slapped by the woman.

Clutching her cheek, the toddler continued to recite her numbers tearfully.

A Stomper, who shared the video with Stomp, said: "Parents and grandparents who do not know how to teach are ruining the child more than they realise.

"Rote is not learning and adults drumming [the same thing] in is not teaching."

Several celebrities have also spoken up against the video and criticised the woman for her harsh treatment of the girl.

Indian cricketer Virat Kohli wrote on Instagram: "The fact that the pain and anger of the child are ignored and one's own ego to make the child learn is so massive that compassion has totally gone out of the window.

"This is shocking and saddening to another dimension. A child can never learn if intimidated. This is hurtful."

On Twitter, Hyderabad journalist Vamsi Kaka called it "the most disturbing video he came across" online and added, "Innocence and childhood being taken away in the name of education."