I grew up in small southern town in the mid 70s. Our elementary school used corporal punishment, and back then it was never even given a second thought. When I was in 6th grade, my homeroom teacher was Ms Landrith. She was nice and fun but also very serious about learning. I was a class […]

I went to a Catholic school in the 70s and early 80s, where the teachers still believed in corporal punishment – and believed in it fairly often. Usually, about once a week, someone was taken either to the principal’s office or out in the hall for a spanking. I was a very quiet kid but […]

I was in the seventh grade at the time, Mrs Williams’ pre-algebra class. I was usually a good student but when I wasn’t, there was always Marisela, my best friend. She sat next to me and didn’t mind showing the answers if I didn’t know them. We didn’t think of it as cheating – didn’t […]

As a boy in secondary school, I went in fear of the tawse, which was administered with enthusiasm by the deputy head. I should add that this was a school in Walsall, in the West Midlands of the UK, not a Scottish school. At the time, I was under the impression that only boys got […]

I was raised in the rural south of the United States, when paddling was an everyday event at school. I was fascinated with the women doing the paddling for as long as I can remember. I never thought about the fact that the boys were the only ones getting paddled – until one day in […]

I was 10 years old when I first started home school. Actually, I was taught by Mrs Tennison, a lady who lived up the street from us. We had just moved to Miami, and my mom didn’t like what she had heard about the public school system there. So Mrs Tennison, a retired school teacher, […]

I grew up in South Africa, where corporal punishment was common up until a few years ago. There was a geography teacher by the name of Mrs Botha, who was very strict and often caned both the boys and girls. On one occasion, I received my workbook back with the message: “See me!” I duly […]