Wednesday, August 21, 2013

School Days - August 15, 2013

School Days as publshied in the White River Current - Thursday August 15, 2013 School days, school days, Dear old golden rule days, Reading and, ‘riting’ and ‘rithmatic Taught to the tune of a hickory stick. You were my queen in calico, I was your bashful barefoot beau, And you wrote on my slate “I love you, so” When we were a couple of kids. So goes the chorus of a bouncy tune written over a century ago by Will Cobb and Gus Edwards. We had a 78 RPM recording of this song that I used to play often on our old wind-up Victrola when I was a little boy. Byron Harlan recorded a version of this song in 1907. You can listen to it on YouTube while you are getting the kids ready for another school year that begins next Monday at least in Arkansas and Missouri. When I was growing up, school started the day after Labor Day in Calico Rock. Some schools started earlier, some later. Now, because of state law, everyone starts on the same date but ending dates may vary somewhat. All of my schooling, from grades one through twelve, took place in the old two-story building that served the Calico Rock area for many years. Grades one through six were on the first floor with the other six grades on the upper floor. Miss Hattie was my first-grade teacher who started me off in the right direction as she did many others in the 40-plus years she taught in the Calico Rock system. Mrs. Wilkerson was my teacher in the second and third grades, Mrs. Brummit in the fourth, Mrs. Leola in the fifth and Mrs. Tarkington (or was it Mrs. Toothaker? Anyway, began with a “T”) in the sixth grade (I’m sure Shelby will straighten me out on this). I graduated from CRHS with the class of 1947. I have a lot of memories of my school days, some good and some not so good. But since I am on the subject I will comment on a few. The “hickory stick” mentioned in the above song makes reference to the corporal punishment that was widely administered in schools several years ago. The tool that was ordinarily used was called a paddle and was commonly hand made but could also be purchased commercially in several sizes, sometime highly decorated. The paddle was usually placed in plain sight in the classroom and served as a not-so-subtle reminder to the students to “behave” or suffer the consequences. Each teacher was given the task of defining an act of improper behavior and administering the penalty for an infraction, which could be as small as “talking out loud: two licks.” I was warned by my parents to always behave at school and that if I ever got a spanking I could expect another when I got home. I confess that I did receive two or three spankings (underserved, of course) at school but in each instance I forgot to tell my parents. If they ever found out about it, they never mentioned it. However, I did receive some spankings at home but they were not administered with a paddle. In these instances a small limb from the peach tree (called a switch) was usually used. The back side of a hair brush also worked and, on one memorable occasion, the razor strap came into use. I think this type of punishment is no longer used on rowdy school kids because of the liability threat and that may be a good thing. Several years ago, when I was a school board member, the parents of a young teenager and their son appeared before the board with a complaint against a male teacher for overly harsh treatment of the boy. They even had him lower his pants and exhibit the blue marks on his buttocks which they complained were caused by “beating” (they claimed) he had received by the teacher. I don’t remember the terms of the resolution of this complaint, but I think that might have been the last case of corporal punishment in the Calico Rock school system. I may have some other memories that I would like to pass on to you, but I will wait for a later date. That’s all for now. Thanks for tuning in. See you in two weeks. Bye, Bye!!

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