If you were a student in the 1930s attending a one-room schoolhouse, you’d want to behave well. Teachers had freer rein when it came to discipline, unlike teachers today. Various forms of discipline ranged from minor to major actions. For example, a teacher might pull or twist an ear, give you a pinch, slap your open palms with a ruler or give you a “whooping” with a wooden paddle or razor strap on your backside.
Teachers also made home visits. If a parent heard a bad report directly from the teacher, the parent more than likely would take his own disciplinary action on their child, which could also mean a whooping or added chores.
Another common disciplinary action in the classroom was the “dreaded dunce hat.” Made with heavy paper or cardboard, the dunce hat looked like a long cone with the widest part fitting over the student’s head. A capital “D” was often placed on the front of the hat. If the teacher told a student to come to the front of the class and take a seat on the stool there was a good chance the dunce hat would be planted on the student’s head while the rest of the students had a good chuckle.
So, if you had lived in that time period and had set your mind on creating a ruckus, you would have needed to be prepared for some type of punishment.
Would you rather get a whooping or wear the dunce hat if you were a student stirring up trouble?
Yikes! I'd rather wear the dunce hat -- too cowardly for the whooping! But I'm glad teachers don't do that anymore. Good blog post!
ReplyDeletethanks, Cindy!
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