Do any of you remember these days?

When this was the norm at your school?

You have had to be of a certain vintage to experience it. When did such end at your school?

In reply to Casper

My parents sent me to do extra lessons by a teacher someone recommended for Common Entrance Exam in the early 80's . It was at the school he taught in his classroom on evenings, he was a mixed African and Chinese man named Mr Awong probably in his 40s-50 at the time, kinda looked like Farrakan a bit , he was a chimney and seemed tense and stressed at all times, he even smoked right at the doorway to the classroom too and the second-hand smoke was there for all to smell all around and on his person, only the scent of spirits was missing for the complete rum shop experience, and I'm sure he had that covered also after work .

It was maths lessons, so I was delivered there the first evening after my regular school, never met the man before but I was optimistic, his teaching style struck me immediately, it was either you catch on quickly or face 'cutasstrophe' as he called it from his whip (name called) , he had a special whip made from rattan cane and wrapped in electric tape and yes he had a name for it which escapes me at this time .

He hurriedly gave us a snap test, when we were finished to my horror he was sharing one stroke for every one you got incorrect, it was fractions not my strongest of sums at the time, as he called students up one by one and checked their work he would hold them by one arm as if dancing with them in circles while striking as hard as he could with the cane on their backs and buttocks delivering one blow for every wrong sum.

My turn came and I went up, I knew I didn't do well, I knew I got many wrong, maybe the majority, but I thought to myself this is my first day, this man never met me before and surely he would attempt to assist me to attain his high standards before qualifying me for his whip , I was so wrong, he didn't possess the reason and rationale as my 11 year old self and proceeded to endlessly whip me from my back to my buttocks till this day I'm not sure if he gave me a few short or a few extra as X's dominated my work sheet and the strokes seemed endless and excessive .

I've never been whipped like that in my life, I never returned to that mad man's classes . My back buttocks and forearms were waled from the lashes.

I've also witnessed at my own primary school fellow students being danced and whipped at assembly in front of the whole school first thing in the morning by the head master at the time Mr.Trotman.

He even experimented with paddles resembling oversized table tennis bats, probably to lessen the marks of abuse that were common with the thinner whips .it was on a commercial scale I tell you, part and parcel of the profession at the time , on the other hand there were some teachers that never touched students and were great people who really encouraged you to learn with their style of teaching .

In reply to bravos

Casual child abuse. Children should not be beat, there are enough studies to show that beatings have life long consequences but it's much worse when somebody you don't even know can beat you without mercy and a young child has to accept it.

There were some vicious teachers in those days. At some school worst than others, and in some schools word would get around about certain teachers and the reputation they had. As was the norm in Bim in those days, students had special nicknames for them.

This corporal punishment started from elementary school right through high school, and as you indicated some teachers had more of a propensity for it than others. And, as the article implied, probably got some kind of sexual satisfaction from it.

I recall in elementary school we had to line up every morning before class started for checks on your grooming. We had to stick our hands out to be inspected and to see if any dirt was under our fingernails. The whipping would start there even before entering class.

There was this tree in Barbados, we as kids would call the “mile tree” because it grew to great heights, as in the imagination of a kid - any Bajan here might have the proper name for it - but its limbs was a usual source for punishment to be meted out.

I also recall in the elementary school there was this kid, who as I would think now of as having some kind of attention deficit. He did not come not from best of areas ( that’s how as kids we thought) and was very disruptive in class. He was beaten every day and some days more than once. I often wondered what became of him. His treatment drove other timid ones like me to be on our best behaviour.

I would assume that across the Caribbean such punishment is outlawed. Actually, I don’t even know the current status in Barbados.

In reply to bravos

Wow Pal, this was horrible, surprised you Dad didn't set his arse straight.

I have stories from the early 40's that I will share soon.

In reply to Casper

Yes it was outlawed in T&T during the Panday administration in the later half of the 90s while Kamla was Minister of Education. She pushed for it .

In reply to Emir

I got lashes in primary school, looking back now I realize how silly it all was.
Anyway, they were doing the best they knew how to, a great example of how
humans can be limited by being exposed to limited environments.
In San Francisco I met a brilliant Pastry Chef who shared with me some of his dad's life story.

Dad was from one of the 'lesser' ethnic groups Basque I think and he grew up in an orphanage.
Just as in colonial days where the majority of our forebears left school at 15 and had to find their
way so too one had to leave the orphanage. Most were apprenticed with a tradesman but the only
person who came for his dad was a rural farmer. Farmer came in his horse-drawn cart and a whip.
Man said dad thought he was going to ride on the cart and whip the horse only to find out that
the he had to walk alongside the cart and the whip is for him!

Abuse is in the DNA of those who had might and ruled us. After centuries it just seemed the norm.
I hope someone does seriously deep research to see the extent to which ancient societies physically abused
'chilluns' The Bible mentions 'Don't spare the rod and spoil the child' so dat is long time business it seems.

In reply to Emir

No one really made it a big issue , actually I had to convince them not to send me back !!

And my dad never laid a hand on me ever !! And on the occasion mom did I had it coming.. but yeah they asceded to their son's wishes in the end. At that time many parents would've sent you back though .

In reply to conman

Yep in retrospect it was horrible..many in T&T maintain that society went downhill after it was outlawed though. I suppose that could be debated..

They had different types of whips and paddles etc and they were most times named, decorated wrapped painted treated soaked etc..

You were at the mercy of those people and their volatile emotions...


Oh and I remember Mr. Trotman the principal stank of drink at times.. When you were sent to his office prepare to dance and boy it was possible to get whipped inadvertently because he was always prepared and eager to whip when you entered his office, as if he thought automatically if you're in the office you were sent to be whipped. You had to tell the drunk , no no Miss sent me for chalk or a duster etc..

And then there were the black board duster pelters !!

In reply to bravos