I went to public school in the late 70's and 80's, and no corporal punishment was allowed then. Detention was the most popular form of punishment, and that could be followed by expulsion if you were really bad.
I don't think my little retarded boy had Down Syndrome because he didn't have the facial characteristics, but he was developmentally disabled (to be more politically correct) in some way. Poor kid.
We had student council (with a president, VP, treasurer, etc.) in high school, but they had nopower over other students, and no privileges above us. Not sure what they did, to be honest.
I don't recall any "bad" classes or concentrations of bad kids anywhere. There were occasional ineffectual teachers, but even the "good" kids had no respect for them, so those classroom behaviors were definitely situation behavior on the part of ALL of the students. But few were actually disrupted -- we tended to just be sullen or disinterested, not throwing things or yelling.
I remember the punishment of having to write lines on the board or on paper, but that was way back in early elementary school, and I never saw it again later. _________________ An apple a day....
I believe my high school had very few serious discipline problems. It was a magnet school for academic excellence (how the hell did I get in there?), which probably had something to do with it. I remember something I read in the yearbook one year -- there was only one fight on school grounds the entire year, and that was staged for the Legal Club.
What exactly is a magnet school? I read the term recently while doing some research.
A magnet school is a public school that offers specialized curriculum, usually with high academic standards, in order to attract students from a broad urban area. When I went to school, I thought they were just schools where all the super smart kids went, I didn't know that the historical purpose behind them was desegregation.
Well I must confess that I wasn't much of an overachiever back in high school. I was in the AP and honors classes but I rarely studied and played hooky alot. My saving grace was that there were several girls in class who'd do my homework for me, let me copy their notes, or spoonfeed me the details on books and assignments we were supposed to read. When it came time for studying for exams, I took a pretty lackadaisical attitude towards the whole process, which would piss off my then-girlfriend at the time because she would be up all night cramming and stressing out over it and I'd still score higher than she would.
The downside to my appalling behavior was that my many absenses and tardies got me several U's on my report cards and kept me off the football and baseball teams.
Uriel wrote:
I went to public school in the late 70's and 80's, and no corporal punishment was allowed then. Detention was the most popular form of punishment, and that could be followed by expulsion if you were really bad.
Yup, detention, parent conferences, suspension, and expulsion were the only courses of action for handling the bad students in my school. The main issues we had were the Latino vs Armenian fights that would sometimes escalate into knife or gun violence, death threats, and cops being called in for some serious ass-whooping. The tension got even worse the years after I had graduated.
Location: San Francisco, Noord-Kalifornië, Noord-Amerika
Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 11:28 pm Post subject:
Julian wrote:
A magnet school is a public school that offers specialized curriculum, usually with high academic standards, in order to attract students from a broad urban area. When I went to school, I thought they were just schools where all the super smart kids went, I didn't know that the historical purpose behind them was desegregation.
I called Lowell a magnet school because that's what it's called now. But before that (and while I was a student there from 1964-1967), Lowell was referred to as a college preparatory school. It had that reputation long before the Civil Rights era, so historically it doesn't fall into the magnet school category.
Julian, I was labeled an underachiever (as were so many) in school, though I was more of an underachiever than most.
Quote:
The main issues we had were the Latino vs Armenian fights that would sometimes escalate into knife or gun violence, death threats, and cops being called in for some serious ass-whooping. The tension got even worse the years after I had graduated.
While I was in high school, there was a racially-motivated killing at a San Francisco high school that caused such rioting in the other high schools that within a couple of days, every high school in the City had to shut down...all except Lowell, that is.
Location: San Francisco, Noord-Kalifornië, Noord-Amerika
Posted: Mon May 21, 2007 12:54 am Post subject:
Julian wrote:
Deborah wrote:
Julian, I was labeled an underachiever (as were so many) in school, though I was more of an underachiever than most.
Heheh. Well, I was definitely an underachiever and looking back at it now, I think the root of my problems was that I was smoking too much weed.
I think my problem was mainly that I had recently decided that I wanted to be a dancer, and thoughts of dance kept everything else out of my head -- except for languages, that is. I almost always managed to get an "A" in my language classes.
More about Lowell H.S. -- it was like a magnet school in that you could live in any part of SF and attend it.
A friend of mine from college taught muscial theater dance (that is to say, musical comedy) in a performing arts magnet school in the Norfolk, Virginia area.
I cna't imagine that you would be an underachiever at all!!!!! As you said, probably it was because you thought only about ballet and languages.
julian wrote:
Well, I was definitely an underachiever and looking back at it now, I think the root of my problems was that I was smoking too much weed.
LOL!!!
at my school there's no violence or fights, it's okay. At the school where there are more vocational subjects, there's violence, much more drugs etc..The differences are similar with those of the schools Benjamin has described I think.
Benjamin, you've a boyfriend!!!! It's great that the people at your new school accept that you're gay. At my school as well it wouldn't be a problem.
I havn't a boyfriend Recently he LOL!!(who i want to be my boyfriend) invitded me to a restaurant, but after I discovered it was for the birthday party of our friend. at least he isn't her boyfriend!!! I was worried he would be when he organised the party!!!
My primary shool was less multicultural than my kindergarten (lots of immigrants - not the friendliest types). There were only some Gypsies, some Greeks, half-Russians and German-Hungarians (or Hungarian-Germans). I was in a class which was specialised in fine arts. We had loads of art subjects and most of us didn't give a toss about "normal" school subjects. I was a pretty good student but I had some serious problems in the beginning. I was a strange sort... Funnily enough, I was quite conversant with Greek mythology but hopelessly mistook page numbers for numbers of exercises! As a result of this, I was disdained as, well, if not a "dummy" but a "misfit".
There were two types of classes: the art class and the "plain" class. Most of the pupils in plain classes originally wanted to gain admittance to the art class but they didn't manage to. So, most of them were disappointed underachievers and teachers treated them accordingly. Only few children whose parents didn't have the slightest intenton of sending them to an art class felt quite annoyed.
Although pupils in art classes had better results in general, most "elite" parents realised that attending this school is not a surefire way of gaining admittance to a prestigeous university in the foreseeable future. Most of these parents sent their children there out of snobbery because going to an art school sounds classy. However, they didn't even dream of the possibility that art subjects would outnumber normal basic school subjects which are necessary for an entrance exam. So, these parents took their children to elite eight or six form secondary schools or private shools. It wasn't too pleasant an experience to hear teachers say "Talented pupils have gone, all who stayed are underachievers". (FYI, I stayed.)
Anyway, I had quite a good time there, espcially after those snooty girls and boys left. I am critical of them because they deserve it. Most of them were good students but tragically lacked talent as artists. When others, including me, won a prize at an art competition, they were extremely jealous and took the liberty of bashing us in front of others.
Not just these snobby rich children were there but the other extreme as well: the Gypsies. There was a Gypsy community right next to our school. They lived (an still live) in a big house which is an eyesore as it is dirty and worn-down. About fifty people lived in one house in squalor, filth and horror. Some children from the community went to the so-called "plain" class. One of them, called Anita, was bullied by the others because of her shameful past, to be more precise, the dismal condition her family lived in. Once we were asked to tell something about our family, what our parents' job is. When it was Anita's turn, the poor lass stood up, and said: "Well, I don't know what exactly me mum's job is, but some strangers, you know, men visit her and she also visits them regulary. Me mum says to me, don't scare them men off, they give us money. Without them we are lost." The teacher was dumbfounded and couldn't say a word, the children bursted out in laughter. It wasn't funny, though.
PS: I was familiar with Greek mythology at such an early age because my father used to tell me stories from the Greek mythology instead of fairy tales when I was a little child. (Of course, he told my fairy tales as well but those were my grandma's favourites.) I enjoyed them very much...I kept on begging "Please, daddy, the Cyclops-story once again!". Strange families, strange children. _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Last edited by Liz on Tue May 22, 2007 2:41 pm; edited 1 time in total
Most of these parents sent their children there out of snobbery
i hate snobs.
Quote:
It wasn't too pleasant an experience to hear teachers say "Talented pupils have gone, all who stayed are underachievers". (FYI, I stayed.)
It's terrible!!! stupid as well. I think that teachers mustn't never tell someone that the person is an underachiever. If you can't do as well as the others you feel stupid and liek a failure, so you need some encouragement: the opposite of to hear you're underachiever!!!
Quote:
Anyway, I had quite a good time there, espcially after those snooty girls and boys left.
Good
Quote:
One of them, called Anita, was bullied by the others because of her shameful past, to be more precise, the dismal condition her family lived in.
I hate bullies.
Quote:
Once we were asked to tell something about our family, what our parents' job is.
it's not correct to ask such personal questions. For example the children who live in another place (not with their/ a family ) etc.. i can't remember that at school I had to tell those sort of things. The teacher must learn to pose some questions what are more general, for example, where you live is there a person who like music / gardening / sport /cooking etc..
Quote:
When it was Anita's turn, the poor lass stood up, and said: "Well, I don't know what exactly me mum's job is, but some strangers, you know, men visit her and she also visits them regulary. Me mum says to me, don't scare them men off, they give us money. Without them we are lost." The teacher was dumbfounded and couldn't say a word, the children bursted out in laughter. It wasn't funny, though.
It's absolutly the oppsoite of funny. For Anita it's trauma when all the class laugh at her also about her mother. What a stupid teacher why it's necesaary to ask such a thing in front of all the people? There was a girl in my primary school whose parents are very old, and a teacher asked her one day about those grand-parenst. i foudn it very stupid and embarrassing because I knew that they were her parenst. One day my grand-mother went to my primary school for collect me during the day and they told me go home now, someone was arrived. She was my grand-mother but they didn't say (maybe after the teacher made the mistake with the other girl they didn't risk to say it). It's worser what the teacher forced Anita to tell that the mistake of parents /grand-parents, but I can't understand why must teachers be so bossy, stupid and want to knwo those things absolutly not their business.
What the teacher told the class after? Can you remember?
Lol, I never was. It was essentially my way of trying to convince myself that I wasn't gay.
Liz wrote:
There was a Gypsy community right next to our school. They lived (an still live) in a big house which is an eyesore as it is dirty and worn-down. About fifty people lived in one house in squalor, filth and horror. Some children from the community went to the so-called "plain" class. One of them, called Anita, was bullied by the others because of her shameful past, to be more precise, the dismal condition her family lived in
There was this girl at my previous school who was a few years younger than me — I got to know her a bit because she was also a librarian. She was always very dirty and she smelt awful — her clothes hadn't been washed for a long time; her glasses were dirty; her hair was matted, had insects crawling in it, and looked as though she hadn't washed it for a very long time. Needless to say, she was bullied. I always wondered why she was so dirty and what sort of conditions she lived in — I don't know if she was a Gypsy or an Irish Traveller or anything like that. But, of course, I didn't like to ask.
I don't remember what the teacher said after the incident as I was totally paralysed. Quite frankly I'm happy to not know it...If that teacher said anything, it certainly did much more harm. She was woefully ignorant of childrens' psyche...and of human psyche in general.
Sadly enough, it was pretty normal back then to ask children such personal questions. What's more, our parents' workplace was listed in our grade books. I find it stupid, too.
My form teacher and my peers often made fun of my parents' job. My mum is a music teacher and we went to concerts and occassionally to the opera, so they automatically labelled my as a snob. Besides, they thought of me as being old-fashioned, and were absolutely flabbergated when it turned out that I know something about popular music, and that I do listen to it, too.
My dad worked that time as an executive (i.e. a high-ranked civil servant) in the army. The Hungarian word for this job bears close resemblance to "chief shop assistant". So, everyone took my dad for a chief shop assistant and thought I just mispronounced the word. When I started to explain what it means in fact they (even my form teacher) claimed that this job didn't exist. When it came to the army thing, they exclaimed "Oh, then your father is a soldier!".
Our conversation was something like that:
Teacher: Then your father is soldier.
Me: No, he isn't.
Teacher: But he works for the army, doesn't he?
Me: Yes, he does, but he isn't a soldier. He is a civil servant.
Teacher: Hasn't he got a rank then?
Me: He does.
Teacher: What?
Me: A lieutenant.
Teacher: So he is a soldier.
Me: No, he's a reserve officer. He's a civil servant. He wears his uniform once in a blue moon. He is an executive.
Teacher: There isn't such a job.
Me: Ask my father.
I got a *bit* nervous but I wasn't in a position to show it.
Then all the pupils and my form teacher accused me of not knowing what my dad's job is. Aarrrgh!!!! _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Last edited by Liz on Mon May 21, 2007 7:33 pm; edited 1 time in total
Lol, I never was. It was essentially my way of trying to convince myself that I wasn't gay.
There's no such thing as asexual anyway! I know some people who define themselves as such...I've always wondered what it was like.
Benjamin wrote:
There was this girl at my previous school who was a few years younger than me — I got to know her a bit because she was also a librarian. She was always very dirty and she smelt awful — her clothes hadn't been washed for a long time; her glasses were dirty; her hair was matted, had insects crawling in it, and looked as though she hadn't washed it for a very long time. Needless to say, she was bullied. I always wondered why she was so dirty and what sort of conditions she lived in — I don't know if she was a Gypsy or an Irish Traveller or anything like that. But, of course, I didn't like to ask.
That's disgusting!!!!! Poor girl. Did anyone hep her find her way out of misery? Anita wasn't like that...she didn't have those nice insects crawling in her hair.
Irish travellers and Gypsies are usually alike...but there are different types of Gypsies.
At primary school I was fequently asked if I was a Gypsy girl because of my not exactly snow-white complexion. As far as I'm aware I'm not. That might be the Spanish blood in me. Sadly enough, I don't speak Spanish ...but it's never too late! _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Last edited by Liz on Tue May 22, 2007 12:05 am; edited 2 times in total
She was always very dirty and she smelt awful — her clothes hadn't been washed for a long time; her glasses were dirty; her hair was matted, had insects crawling in it, and looked as though she hadn't washed it for a very long time. Needless to say, she was bullied.
in such a situation I think that the school must do something to help her. Also, the social services. Havn't the town some people who control the place where children live?
We had student council (with a president, VP, treasurer, etc.) in high school, but they had nopower over other students, and no privileges above us. Not sure what they did, to be honest.
Same here. I don't think they did much at all besides hang out and drink coffee. Well, I do have some vague memories of them making some more or less insignificant announcements in the assembly hall from time to time. I think that they did it mainly to be part of the crew, to be cool.
Location: San Francisco, Noord-Kalifornië, Noord-Amerika
Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 1:56 am Post subject:
I was actually on the student council my first two years of junior high school. For some reason, I was nominated for president of my homeroom my first semester and won, much to my amazement, since it was the beginning of the semester and no one even knew me. The same thing happened the next semester. My second year, I was nominated for president and lost, but was elected vice-president. The first semester of the third year, I was nominated for vice-president and lost. I was nominated for treasurer and lost. I was nominated for secretary and lost. In my last semester, my classmates finally figured out that all I wanted was to be anonymous, and no one bothered nominating me, thank God!
All we did was attend meetings, which meant we got to skip classes , listen to the school officers' reports, and occasionally vote on something.
I was actually on the student council my first two years of junior high school. For some reason, I was nominated for president of my homeroom my first semester and won, much to my amazement, since it was the beginning of the semester and no one even knew me. The same thing happened the next semester. My second year, I was nominated for president and lost, but was elected vice-president. The first semester of the third year, I was nominated for vice-president and lost. I was nominated for treasurer and lost. I was nominated for secretary and lost. In my last semester, my classmates finally figured out that all I wanted was to be anonymous, and no one bothered nominating me, thank God!
All we did was attend meetings, which meant we got to skip classes , listen to the school officers' reports, and occasionally vote on something.
What are school officers?
When I started high school I was chosen to be whatever it was called. My job was to check the attendance of everybody in my class. All I had to do was put marks on a list every lesson and hand in the list regularly. I had no privileges or anything.
Last edited by Walker on Sun May 27, 2007 1:07 am; edited 1 time in total
I wasn't an overachiever socially in high school, but I could pretty much ace any class I took an interest in, with my eyes closed. I rarely studied, and had an excellent memory for trivia. If a class bored me, I might get a B, for simply not trying. Once I walked out of a class whose teacher was a complete bitch and refused to go back -- the F was fine with me. But I still made the National Honor Society, was listed in Who's Who in American High Schools, etc.
Interesting, Liz -- my father was also a civil servant who worked for the army. I guess our system makes life a little easier on us; while they have ranks equivalent to various military ranks like lieutenant, major, etc, they are called something different -- GS-9, GS-11, etc. But it was hard to tell people exactly what he did -- largely because to this day I'm not sure what he did all day besides play golf! _________________ An apple a day....
Interesting, Liz -- my father was also a civil servant who worked for the army. I guess our system makes life a little easier on us; while they have ranks equivalent to various military ranks like lieutenant, major, etc, they are called something different -- GS-9, GS-11, etc. But it was hard to tell people exactly what he did -- largely because to this day I'm not sure what he did all day besides play golf!
Yes, that makes your life easier. There is nothing more exhausting than trying to explain people desperately the very name of the job. What those civil servants actually did is another kettle of fish -- no-one was genuinely interested in that, I mean those who were busy inquiring about my dad's job.
My dad played tennis instead of golf back then. _________________ Az alvástól megéhezem. Az evéstől elálmosodom. Az élet szép.
Good to know that our tax dollars are always firmly at work no matter what the country (or currency)!
Sometimes I would ask myself what exactly it was that he did, but he always said if he told me, he'd have to kill me. (Probably because he had named his 9-iron and his 3-wood and was currently claiming them as dependents on his taxes....who knows! )
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It's great that the people at your new school accept that you're gay. At my school as well it wouldn't be a problem.
LOL!!(who i want to be my boyfriend) invitded me to a restaurant, but after I discovered it was for the birthday party of our friend. at least he isn't her boyfriend!!! I was worried he would be when he organised the party!!!
I think that teachers mustn't never tell someone that the person is an underachiever. If you can't do as well as the others you feel stupid and liek a failure, so you need some encouragement: the opposite of to hear you're underachiever!!!
why it's necesaary to ask such a thing in front of all the people? There was a girl in my primary school whose parents are very old, and a teacher asked her one day about those grand-parenst. i foudn it very stupid and embarrassing because I knew that they were her parenst. One day my grand-mother went to my primary school for collect me during the day and they told me go home now, someone was arrived. She was my grand-mother but they didn't say (maybe after the teacher made the mistake with the other girl they didn't risk to say it). It's worser what the teacher forced Anita to tell that the mistake of parents /grand-parents, but I can't understand why must teachers be so bossy, stupid and want to knwo those things absolutly not their business.
I know some people who define themselves as such...I've always wondered what it was like. 
That's disgusting!!!!! Poor girl. Did anyone hep her find her way out of misery? Anita wasn't like that...she didn't have those nice insects crawling in her hair.
...but it's never too late!