Corporal Punishment at school.

Run_to_da_hills

Anyone brought up during the 60's and early 70's would have experienced the leather or a slap from a ruler. We had one teacher in Dalkey National who would grab you by the ear and bring you up to the top of the class. Just reading here how a teacher got 90 days jail for doing just that and has since resigned.

How things have changed.

http://english.pravda.ru/news/society/17-09-2010/114980-teacher-0/

paddyland

I remember a teacher in the mid eighties who would do just that, grab you by the ear and twist it, an excruciating experience. But not just that, he would lift you up in the air by said twisted ear, and you would climb onto your seat, and then onto the desk, with him still lifting you by the ear...!

Aglomerado

Our old parish priest used to pull the ears of boys from the local estate, he was an insufferable snob and dared not touch the wealthy farming families who might put more in the collection plate on Sunday. Corporal punishment was banned at that time but he seemed to be exempt!

kelle

I remember a teacher twisting my ear that was badly infected after being pierced and I screamed the place down, then the b**tard called me a "crybaby"! And because I couldn't remember the answer to one question. As if that would make me remember.

There were a few children who were bullies, but he never punished them.

I know a lot of older people say schools are a lot more unsettled since corporal punishment was abolished, but the wrong kids were punished.

Bottle_of_Smoke

kelle wrote: »

I remember a teacher twisting my ear that was badly infected after being pierced and I screamed the place down, then the b**tard called me a "crybaby"! And because I couldn't remember the answer to one question. As if that would make me remember.

There were a few children who were bullies, but he never punished them.

I know a lot of older people say schools are a lot more unsettled since corporal punishment was abolished, but the wrong kids were punished.

Think you're right but I wish there was a happy medium. When I was in school (leaving cert 2003) people disrupting the class drove me mad and many teachers couldn't command respect.

Maybe a shock button or a pellet gun would be appropriate. Something needs to change what's a teacher to do nowadays when a pupil won't stop misbehaving and the principal says the teacher can't kick them out.

mailforkev

Aglomerado wrote: »

Our old parish priest used to pull the ears of boys from the local estate

They got off lightly if that's all he pulled.

My third class teacher (would have been 1987ish) used to have a metre stick that he hit some kids across the legs with. The man had anger issues I think.

I recall hearing a few years later that he had gotten into some serious trouble over something similar after I left primary.

topper75

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

Something needs to change what's a teacher to do nowadays when a pupil won't stop misbehaving and the principal says the teacher can't kick them out.

Honest question there.

I taught for a little while and used to fantasize with staffroom colleagues about a grid of switches connected to shock prods on each desk.:D

Seriously though, you can isolate bad individuals to some extent and work on their behaviour, but some classes have a critical mass of bad attitude and that can be very hard to combat. A lot of the kids are extremely aware of the teachers inability to respond with an effective punishment.

Corporal punishment was abused when available to teachers to administer willynilly with no accountability. I would like them to look at the parents' income. A good income-deduction system would eliminate abuse but still get results.

ynul31f47k6b59

Some teachers just have serious anger problems - or they did when I was at school. One (who we used to call the Megab*tch), slammed my head into another girl's because we were talking. I was wearing one of those old hard plastic headbands with the teeth and the fking thing dug right into my scalp and made it bleed, never forgot that. (mid 80s)

Another teacher once held a pound up to my face and bet me I wouldn't get a Maths problem right - course I didn't, I was rubbish at Maths, but instead of helping, he was one of the teachers who just seemed to thrive on humiliating kids and showing his power at any available opportunity.

As Kelle said - I don't support corporal punishment at all, especially as a parent, but I don't necessarily think that children are any better disciplined now. Rightly so, the corporal punishment was outlawed - but what replaced it? This supernanny pussyfooting around crap, that ends up with teachers afraid to raise their voices at students. (My friend is a teacher, 6th class, and was informed by one of her students "I'll call fkin childline on ya, ya b*tch"). I'd like to see something non-violent, but solid.

bullets

Had a teacher in Primary school that used to throw chalk at
poeple, and Dusters, Saw a teacher in the 80's hit a kid,
in primary school before but the fecker deserved it, By 6th class in the late 80's the most you would get is to sit on your hands for a half hour with your knuckles facing down towards the wooden seat.

Secondary school there was a teacher and his son was in our class. He was oldschool and you always thought he would loose it and hit someone, a few times when it came to PE class in shool when his son was getting changed you could see purple marks across his back as if his old man had leathered him with the belt. the PE teachers in the early 90's tended to be assholes too, they would grab kids by the ankles and whip them upside down, Grab their shorts and pull them down in front of the girls to humiliate them.

~B

Run_to_da_hills

We had a primary teacher Mr C**** who was a right bo**ix, thought nothing of clipping anyone across the ear or humiliating them in front of the class.

One day plumbers were contracted in to sort out the central heating system and were busy working at the back of the class. About an hour later the teacher completly forgot about them and proceeded on with lessons. We could hear the rattle of pipes from the guys working.

The teacher then shouted, will those two bloody rats at the back of the class please stand up and proceed up to my desk, the two plumbers stood up and walked up to the teachers desk, the whole class cracked up, teacher was as red as a beatroot.

Ann22

I was hit on the hand regularly with a ruler and on the knuckles with a pen by my 1st class teacher. My 5th and 6th class teacher didn't hit us but she was a malicious woman. She often picked on one child and ridiculed them for ages for silly reasons. Like for instance, this girl hadn't money with her for something or other one day, and the teacher gave out fcuk to her and spent ages trying to get her to say why she hadn't brought the money in. The young one was in tears, eventually she said 'me mammy wouldn't give it to me':(.

drakshug

I thought the EU banned it in 82 or 83.
Primary school was a ruler across the knuckles or a spanking on the arse.
Secondary was the tawse with two or three tongues. The teachers had it under their robes over their shoulder (Scotland).
The there was the well aimed duster. To tell the truth, getting the belt was better than post CP when they gave you detention or lines.

Bearhunter

I was in school in the 70s and early 80s and it was rife then. Not for any particular reason, just random, casual violence in the classroom, corridor or yard. The Christian Brothers variously had the leather, the leg of a chair (the Board of Education, he called it), their fists. I remember one lad being lifted off the ground by the short hairs by his ears and shook until the tufts came away in the Brother's hands. I had my head smacked into a wall for talking and even the lay teachers were savages. I was punched to the ground by my religion teacher, FFS...Thank god I survived school, if I ever went back I'd bring a rifle.

Worst part was when you'd go home and complain about getting hammered and your Ma would say "You must have earned it..."

stovelid

I moved here when I was 11 (from England) and got the shock of my life when I realized that the teachers/brother could strap (with the those black strap things) you in my new (Christian Brothers) school. One in particular always went out his way to strap me because I was English.

minister poxbottle

There's nothing christian about those fcuking cnut's, i left school after my inter in 78 because of them imbred fcuks, but i did get the satisfaction of beating one evil bastrad to within a inch of his poxy life. It makes want to go out and kill one of them .

Rant over.

Bearhunter

minister poxbottle wrote: »

There's nothing christian about those fcuking cnut's, i left school after my inter in 78 because of them imbred fcuks, but i did get the satisfaction of beating one evil bastrad to within a inch of his poxy life. It makes want to go out and kill one of them .

Rant over.

I know what you mean. I always thought that if a Christian Borther was murdered you'd have around 250,000 suspects.

telecinesk

OP I know the school and teacher you had. Be happy hes long buried,that I well know. Am suprised this subject is treated as all things retro. This forum is usually light hearted and kind of cool.
Also had the unChristian brothers experience. I wait in the long grass for that lot to feel a bit of retribution. I witnessed a few hair raisers in early 80s. Managed to avoid such fun contact sport luckily. My satisfaction was knowing that school closed down and said people out on their ear. Happy days? Like fk.

Run_to_da_hills

telecinesk wrote: »

OP I know the school and teacher you had. Be happy hes long buried,that I well know. Am suprised this subject is treated as all things retro. This forum is usually light hearted and kind of cool.
Also had the unChristian brothers experience. I wait in the long grass for that lot to feel a bit of retribution. I witnessed a few hair raisers in early 80s. Managed to avoid such fun contact sport luckily. My satisfaction was knowing that school closed down and said people out on their ear. Happy days? Like fk.

Curran Cake is brown bread about 20 years now, if not more. When I had him for three years he was driving an Auston A40. I left the Harold in 5th class and moved on to Holy Ghost Fathers, some of the staff there were no better.

WindSock

telecinesk wrote: »

. Am suprised this subject is treated as all things retro. This forum is usually light hearted and kind of cool.

Yep, going to move this over to somewhere more suitable, I don't think it fits in with the forum here.

harr

had a brother that taught us in the mid to late 80s he used hop the **** out us daily ,i was never that bright in school so i got a good going over.i remember one day we had a new lad in class a big lump of lad turned out he was a traveller and this was his frist time in school this was 5th class within the hour the brother took the head off him with a slap sent him flying.he got up kicked the **** out of the brother it took 3 other teachers to pull him off him.never seen the brother from that day just left no reason or anything. if he is dead i hoped he died a slow and painfull death.

Cróga

This video sums up school for me

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWTYP6rcn30

Mary Hairy

When I was at school there was plenty of corporal punishment, but a lot of it is now being exaggerated.When they had proper punishment in schools there was no messing with drink and cigarettes at discos. Girls went to discos in their best denim jeans and didn't drink themselves stupid.

d22ontour

Corporal punishment was nothing more than a legal term given to child abuse as that is all it was.Unfortunately i am old enough to have seen and received it when i could barely tie my laces together....It's alleged purpose coincided with strict religious beliefs in this country at the time and thankfully both waned.
Now the shoe alas seems to be on the other foot as violence in schools is directed the other way which is just as deplorable.

Truley

d22ontour wrote: »

Now the shoe alas seems to be on the other foot as violence in schools is directed the other way which is just as deplorable.

Everybody seems to say this but I have strong doubts if it's the issue that people make it out to be. I have never witnessed it in all my time in school (and I went to a rough school.) Nor in my time working with other disadvantaged schools, including liasing with teachers, students and youth workers. If it does happen, it certainly isn't done to the extent teachers used to do it to pupils.

Whatever the case, the common agrument that teachers should be allowed hit students because otherwise students will attack teachers, seems extremely counter-productive. From my point of view anyway.

d22ontour

Truley wrote: »

If it does happen, it certainly isn't done to the extent teachers used to do it to pupils.
.

Of course not, to think that would be quite foolish imo.Teachers,principals had free license to abuse children until it was removed.The abuse that teachers receive now is minimal compared to then.The point isn't about the amount but the fact that physical abuse in schools is now directed the other way.

caseyann

I got the ruler on the hand lol was sore but didnt effect me in anyway bad.
I dont agree with anyone slapping someone else's child.Avoiding slapping is needed.
Although in school some of them needed a ruler on hand.

AudreyHepburn

Personally I think any form of violence against a child is wrong. I don't even like the idea of a mother slapping a child for being naughty.

Nothing gives a grown man or woman the right to raise your hand to a child imo and the only thing it will teach them is that violence is the way to deal with people who annoy you or hurt you.

Surely in this day and age we can find more appropriate, affective and less potentially damaging ways to discipline our children?

topper75

AudreyHepburn wrote: »

Nothing gives a grown man or woman the right to raise your hand to a child imo

I disagree. Children are not adults. If children misbehave and ignore verbal corrections, then a gentle slap is a physical restoration of a parent's authority. The child is not the equal of the parent. The child is a person and merits respect yes, but they are not above a slap when they persist with misbehaviour.

AudreyHepburn

topper75 wrote: »

I disagree. Children are not adults. If children misbehave and ignore verbal corrections, then a gentle slap is a physical restoration of a parent's authority. The child is not the equal of the parent. The child is a person and merits respect yes, but they are not above a slap when they persist with misbehaviour.

So you see a child as inferior or less of a person than an adult then?

You don't think they should have the same respect shown them, the same rights afforded them?

You do realise how awful that sounds right?

topper75

AudreyHepburn wrote: »

So you see a child as inferior or less of a person than an adult then?

You don't think they should have the same respect shown them, the same rights afforded them?

You do realise how awful that sounds right?

I see them as inferior in terms of authority yes. I mean they are only kids. How can you honestly see them as being equal to adults with an equal say in matters? You can't pretend that they know themselves what is best for them. To do so sounds 'awful' to me!

A toddler will often test the authority of the parent and persistently defy the instruction of their parent e.g. throwing food on the floor, screaming for sweets at the supermarket etc. At the point where the child refuses to be reasoned with, a slap is an effective way of letting them know that they have gone too far.

I am talking of a soft slap, appropriate for a child, on the hand or buttocks as a parent's right. It's role is more symbolic than anything.

The anti-slapping viewpoint often links slapping with brutality. Tackling physical brutality towards children is another matter. Confusing the two is unhelpful.

dvpower

topper75 wrote: »

I see them as inferior in terms of authority yes. I mean they are only kids. How can you honestly see them as being equal to adults with an equal say in matters? You can't pretend that they know themselves what is best for them. To do so sounds 'awful' to me!

A toddler will often test the authority of the parent and persistently defy the instruction of their parent e.g. throwing food on the floor, screaming for sweets at the supermarket etc. At the point where the child refuses to be reasoned with, a slap is an effective way of letting them know that they have gone too far.

I am talking of a soft slap, appropriate for a child, on the hand or buttocks as a parent's right. It's role is more symbolic than anything.

The anti-slapping viewpoint often links slapping with brutality. Tackling physical brutality towards children is another matter. Confusing the two is unhelpful.

And elderly people?
You know the way they get confused sometimes and do silly things that get them into potentially dangerous situations, like forgetting to turn the gas off or leaving the front door open.
A little slap helps to remind them the importance of these things.