I grew up on the island of Jamaica and entered Grade 5 at the age of 10 in September 1979 at a rural primary school. My class teacher was Ms Cheryl Lawson, then 34 years old, 5 ft. 10 ins. tall, of medium weight. She hung her cane of discipline beside the blackboard. It was three and a half feet long and over half inch thick. One morning during the first term I had forgotten to bring my math homework to class and got six strokes on the palms of my hands. Another day I was caught talking away in class and got six strokes on my thighs. But the usual site was on the hands (that changed some months later). Each stroke of the cane brought severe pain.
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One day during a math test this gier seated beside me was having a hard time so I offered her some help by jotting down my answers on a bit of paper and slipping them to her. As soon as I had stuffed the paper into her hand Ms Lawson caught us and called us both up. She explained to the class what we had done then reached for her cane. With all her might, she gave me five strokes on my belly. She caned the girl on the hands.
Another day I got five strokes in the belly and five on the hands for excessive talking.
Yet another day I had forgotten my Civics textbook and Ms Lawson dealt me five strokes in the belly and five on my hands. My enemies were amused by the welts and bruises on my belly.
The girls in our class would cry after being caned, but most of us boys never did. Nobody was ever sent to the principal. We were always respectful to our teachers. Everybody always wore the proper uniform to school. Our parents had nothing but praise for Ms Lawson who was viewed as a pillar of our community. She was pleased with our consistemt high scores in our tests and assignments (all A’s), but if I turned in incomplete homework, came to class after the bell rung, or erred otherwise, she’d get irate and the cane would be flayed leaving painful welts and bruises.
The cane scars on my hands and arms would vanish within a day, but those on my belly remained, and by July 1980, there was a criss cross pattern of black cane scars on the front of my belly. These black scars or stripes intrigued the other kids in my neighborhood. One pretty girl, for instance, told me, ‘”Fatty, these are like scars of battle; you are my knight” as she rubbed them.
To my mom and other adults they were evidence that a diligent school teacher was efectively managing her class. Everybody from that class has attained success in life today. 1o years after leaving Ms Lawson’s class I received my Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, then later I obtaiined a PhD in Pharmacology, and I am a pharnacist and college professor today.
I agree with you, but here in America, things have gone too far. I would not trust today’s teachers and administrators to administer corporal punishment fairly and properly.
I’ve read this before. Troll much?
It Was an effective way to reinforce knoledge and how to be prompt while doing work but now kids are starting to go insane and carry weapons like switch blades and guns into schools. If i was a leathal kid gangster and some s**** @** b**** hit me with a cane i would be pissed off and might shot her or stab her but that is not me. Plus there are all these new child abuse laws and some over protective parent will file a lawsuit against schools who promote “physical” reinforcement. Kids nowadays are becoming A** h**** because they are not put in their place. They follow examples of bad people and relese their psychotic behavior in school. Without “physical reinforcement” they will most likley turn out to be burger flippers of beach hobos because all their life they were pampered by their parents and will not take any individuality. I think it is a good method in making kids into individuals and inteligent people.
She sounds like a truly wonderful teacher. We need more like her and need to ease these crazy laws so people like her can teach without fear. My only criticism would be that she should have whipped only on the behind and not on the palm or belly.
if anyone ever tried this with my kids, they would get the following from me, promptly:
I would first club them over the head to knock them unconscious…and when they awoke, they would find their wrists bound and their body stretched from a rope fixed to the ceiling…they would then be tortured…first with a cane, then electrodes and finally a good whipping…punished to within an inch of their lives…then i would unleash a colony of fire ants at their feet for good measure.
The next day, I would ask them if they had learned their lesson and if they had, they would be released and told that if they ever put a hand on my kid again, they would come to know the meaning of real pain.
DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? There is no place in the world for folks that initiate this sort of antiquated behavior…but a real need to give them a taste of their own medicine when they do.
If I do my job right as a parent, no one should need to to lay a hand on my kids. Heaven forbid if they ever do.