School - Did You Enjoy or Despise It?

Fandymo

Loved school. Still friends with my schoolmates. Easiest time of my life. Biggest issue was saving €10 for cans, and then using money from part time job to hit the local night club at 15/16. Was some laugh.

JupiterKid

It's sad to see a common theme of bullying in so many of the posts on this thread. 😥 And for other posters who were not bullied, the cliquishness and social exclusion from these cliques and groups can also be very hurtful.

My heart goes out to anyone who had to endure the misery, fear and terror of CBS schools and the like in the days of corporal punishment. The ending of Church control of the primary and secondary education sectors cannot come a minute too soon.

It really does seem that the early years of secondary school are the absolute worst for bullying (as happened to me and many others) - these days schools are obliged to have an anti-bullying strategy in place - so things have come a very long way in the 30+ years since I was in school.

Here's a parents and teacher guide to bullying and how to address it: https://www.tusla.ie/uploads/content/Teenagers_coping_with_bullying_d5.pdf

Of course, schoolchildren face a host of issues these days that myself and others didn't - mainly the internet, social media and cyber-bullying. Social isolation of students and refusing to go to school seem to be growing problems from what I've heard from wider family and friends who have kids in school.

Esho

I went to a CoI school in the 70s. So glad to see the prejudice has changed since.

Or maybe the hobkneads now just victimise non-white people now.

airy fairy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118594574#Comment_118594574

Unfortunately, schools can have all the anti bullying policies they like, it is still down to BOM and principals to actually do something about it. There is also a fear that if schools tackle a child of a non Irish background, the racist card is pulled out by the parent. That's from my experience, and a few others who have, unfortunately, had their children bullied too. I've had 2 children, with 4 years between them, both bullied and excluded within the school environment. Teachers were powerless. Trying to introduce a positive enforcement to said culprits rather than a good telling off. Principal refused to take active action, instead, weekly appraisal of bullies. As I said, child 1 first, finished primary after approaching and trying to solve it for 2 years. My child 2 stuck it for a year and I moved primary.

We've now come full circle, that in my opinion, schools are afraid to tackle bullying now.

Mad_maxx

Liked primary but not secondary as a girl I fell in love with from day one never gave me the time of day

cj maxx

I didn't mind school, I just refused to do anything. Homework, obey rules, go to school etc. Constantly being sent to headmasters office for punishment. Till one time , for a caning, I spluttered out NO! "Capital punishment " was done away with 🤒. When I didn't wear my uniform on the last day of the leaving the headmaster came over to me , smilingly called me a Rebel and wished me luck. So school was grand but sadly I wasted it

BaywatchHQ

I have left school 11 years now, I liked primary school but hated secondary school, I was there 7 years. I was bullied all the way through and was a complete loner for the final 2 years, I had to eat lunch alone, etc, traumatic stuff for any 17 year old.

I went to a very good school though, in fact it had the highest grade performance in Ulster in the late 2000s. The bullying I received was from high IQ people who would be successful people now, not the typical rough youths. It wasn't physical bullying, it was mostly laughing at me and taunting me whenever the teacher left the classroom. I stood out like a sore thumb at school as I had hit puberty a couple years before my peers. I suspect I am an autist, I looked up my old school online and they seem to be very "autism friendly" nowadays. There was no mention of autism when I was there in the late 2000s, my old study hall is actually a hub for the disabled pupils now to play board games, etc.

Kalimah

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118586805#Comment_118586805

I started school in 1967 - convent school where we were mixed with boys until First class. I must say I loved school as I was a very fast learner. My first teacher was a horrible woman - many years later I found out that my father in law know her and her husband very well! I don't remember her hitting anyone, though I do remember being slapped for nodding instead o saying yes, with the comment " only donkeys nod". Didn't put me off school though. I found secondary much more competitive and challenging which I liked. I was a bit lazy though as I found everything very easy, and I wasn't inclined to work hard at stuff I found boring - like Maths! I got a great education I think from some very dedicated teachers.

I'm still waiting for the college experience which I'll get to when I retire I hope!

Lewis_Benson

Did any of you ever hit back at bullying teachers?

Not me, but a lad in my brothers class there was one teacher who contlstantly picked on and hit students, usually went for the smaller lads, a pure coward I'd say.

One day one of the bigger lads was sitting down the back and the teacher was laying into some small lad, bigger lad gets up and roars at the teacher to stop being a bully, the teacher squred uo to him and tried to hit him, apparently the big lad thumped the hell out of the teacher and no one was ever touched in his class again, not sure how true it is, but I heard years later the teacher was fired because he hit some young fella, who's patents arrived in with guards and were taking the school to court.

freshpopcorn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118596109#Comment_118596109

A very big lie that in my experience that is told is that bullies aren't successful later in life!

Donald Trump

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118593707#Comment_118593707

Well, to be fair, the student population of the college was probably over 10-12k, no? If you couldn't find anyone to be friends with then that was probably something you might have needed to work on for yourself

cj maxx

One funny thing happened, not in school, but òn the bus.

Fees were introduced for school buses and as a protest parents decided to hijack the bus. Remember this is mid 80's on the border . So sure enough the bus was stopped , not sure how, but it was great craic. Sandwiches and tae in huge flasks, a set of pins for road bowls. Think there were a few musicians as well.

Sgt Hartman

I was quite shy, weird and awkward in both primary and secondary school so I was naturally a target for bullying and social exclusion. Christ, there was some horrible people in my secondary school class. I haven't seen most of them since leaving school and I don't want to see them ever again. I suppose my awkwardness done me no favours. There was a handful of really decent lads in my class though that I still get on well with to this day.

The teachers in secondary were a mixed bag. My English and Biology teachers were amazing, and we had an excellent maths teacher for Junior Cert on 3rd year who actually managed to help me enjoy maths. My German and Art teachers were c**ts for want of a better word. Condescending bullies! I never picked up a painting brush again after my Junior Cert art exam finished, she destroyed what love I had for the subject. PE was pretty good also with a mix of soccer, swimming, indoor hockey, badminton and basketball. The school closed down ten years ago but I don't particularly miss it though 😅

black & white

Primary school was mostly fine except for the Principal, huge man who believed strongly in hurling, church and Irish Language. Very handy with a stick and loved wielding it, only to the boys and only to those boys whose fathers were ordinary workers or unemployed.

Secondary school was as a boarder, plenty of bullying, casual violence and corporal punishment. The worst beating I ever got in my life was from the junior Dean when he accused me of making noise after lights out one night and beat me to a pulp. I googled him earlier and he's the head of the order in Ireland now. Bas*ard.

neris

primary school was enjoyable and had some nice teachers and friends in school. 1st-3rd year I hated. Ended up in aan all boys school and class was full of scumbags and skangers and was 3 or 4 of us who would have been quieter and timid had a very hard. Most of the teachers were pricks aswell with 1 of the older teachers whod been there during times of corporal punishment being a sadistic prick who everyone was afraid of and had a fear hed get violent with them. I wanted to leave school after the junior cert or move school, so parents agreed to move me to smaller mixed school which I really enjoyed and had some good friends there at the time and got on well with the teachers and was a totally different world to what Id been in before.

Teacher2020

Loved primary school and the first 4 years of secondary. Had a large group of female and male friends for first 4 years. I shifted one of the boys in the group at a disco but refused to be his girlfriend after because I didn't want to. Resulted in me being an outcast from the group with only my best friend sticking by me. Those last 2 years were awful - I was jeered every time I saw that group in the corridor for being a 'frigid' or a 'snob' or a variety of other slurs. Looking back I know it was the best thing that happened as I really found out who my true friends are and my best friend is still my best friend today even though we only see one another once or twice a year due to location.

Ray Palmer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118600129#Comment_118600129

I remember watching from the side lines of people being kicked out of the social circle they were in. It was quite interesting to to watch. Some were in a bully group and suddenly got a taste of their own medicine which was always amusing. One in particular was hilarious where the group had abandoned one guy for not being a good enough bully. He had always been a loud mouth and normally with his posse, he was picking on this quite guy so they agreed to meet for a fight after school. Quite guy beat the hell out of him and during the fight bully tried to get his friends to jump in. They were all fully aware of the people about who would have beaten the hell out of them if they did.

So they kicked him out of the group and everybody in the school would laugh at him about not being tough like he claimed all the time. He ended up getting into more fights and not winning which was even funnier. I think in 5th year a 2nd year beat him up. He is a raging alcoholic now and it turns out so were both his parents growing up so he actually had a pretty horrific life

jrosen

I liked school, average mixed local primary school. Loved some of my teachers, others were tough but fair.

Secondary all girls convent school, had some nuns for teachers but mostly regular teachers. For the most part it was fine. Cant ever say it was the best years of my life like some. College was grand.

I look back now and kinda feel lucky to have had the experience I did. There was no nonsense tolerated, if you misbehaved you spent the class stood outside on the hallway. Teachers definitely seemed to have more say in how their classrooms were run to the benefit of the class. Its a bloody free for all now to the detriment of the class these days.