To wonder about school in the 80s and 90s

[onceawhitetowel]

The reason I am asking is because I have horrific memories of school then.

Yet things on the whole seem better now.

When did things change?

Careers advice for my top girls grammar. Still top 20 in the country but in the 80s.

Nurse, teacher, secretary, hotel manager??? Midlands??? Social worker. That was it

Thinks were definitely different then. I went to primary school from 86 to 93. I remember falling off a horse as part of an adventure weekend. I cut my back badly, was given a antiseptic wipe and told not to cry. Sure things would have better if we'd had the universal cure = the wet green paper towel.

Thanks Seas there's nothing wrong with the 3 tier system. It's just that our middle school system was shite in recruiting good teachers.

I look back now and wonder how the hell anyone actually thought that these people should have been working with children. They just shouldn't.

i went to a terrible middle school from 1978 to 1983. i literally learned nothing for 3 years..

As a teacher who was a student in the 80s and 90s I think yabvvvvvvvu

I wish it were like the 80s and 90s tbh

I was at primary school in the nineties which was fine, and secondary in the 00s which was horrible. There was far, far too much homework which usually had to be in the next day, and quite a few of the teachers (including the headmaster) were bullies who got away with it.

I left school age 17 in 1983.

Generally it was pretty nondescript but a crew things have changed for the better.

1. I have a vivid memory of being spanked by the Head aged about 9. My crime was that I, with fellow pupils, had sheltered in the girls loos in a cold playtime. I was nearest the door so got the flak. The same teacher humiliated me in the staff room one lunch time by shouting at me in front of the teachers, when I told her my mum was picking me up from school early for a hospital appointment. When my mum arrived I was in tears; when she questioned the Head on it was told I was hypersensitive.
2. I went to a girls secondary school. There was a boys school round the corner, which was it's sister school. Our school did not offer 'boy's' subjects such as metalwork or woodwork, not even letting us go to the boys school for it. We had to settle for needlework or cookery.

Crew=few

Oh yeah as a pp said, careers advice was pointed towards nurse, teacher etc. No talk of more make dominant careers at all.

Make =male

I think the way bullying was (not) dealt with was definitely worse, and safeguarding was pretty non existent. Certainly the behaviour I saw as typical as a teenager I would now consider totally unacceptable as a secondary teacher. But I don't know if that's just a difference between the school I went to and those I've taught in.

I think we must have gone to the same high school Op. Mine was horrific! Everything was tolerated. Teachers afraid of kids. A firework was set off in a class once. Fights constantly. I went to an inner city school, surrounded by social housing. It was fucking rough.

Being made to stand and face the wall at lunchtime for Being naughty X

suppose I am assuming everyone experienced similar

But thats very very unlikely, not every one is going to experince the things you did, no where near! Not everyone has the best experince at school, not everyone has the worst experence at school. I very much doubt everyone who had a wonderful time at school had a wonderful time af school for tje same reason, like wise not everyone that had a horrific time at school will feel thar way for the same reasons.

Racism was so common, still is, rasism isn't getting much better, look at the popularity of the far right. Children pick up on parents views and repeat it in the playground.

sexism too yep that still happens too, boys are often favoured by male teachers etc
Having to get changed in front of the boys at what age? Most primary school children get changed in the class room except year 5/6 but then i was year 6 in 91/92 and nor did our year.

Being sexually abused by a teacher and not being able to say anything

Well tjis one isnt that common then or now, and im very sorry it happened to you, but equally it still happens. Yes there are much tighter protection and safe gaurding but sadly some still fall victim

bullying, name calling even as a victim of very servre bullying chewing gum im muly hair every thing i acknowledge bulling hasnt magically stopped. Indeed at least when i got home tje bullying stopped, these days the bullying enters the kids homes, they have no pease because of social media/texting/emails etc
physical chastisement, sarcasm this is the only one that prehaps has got better, i waa only smacked once by a teacher in 1988, which given it was made illegal in 85. But certianly had a smart alec teacher that was put in his place by my father when my brother started at high school and there after marked me and my brother out as trounle and went down the humilitation method of getting revenge i hear less of it now but it may still happen.

I should say school was a horror show for me, 85-97, undiagnosed aspergers, shit poorly trained old fashioned teachers, who struggled with the neuro typicals let alone me , badly bullied massively, struggled with dyslexia, divorced parents (fairly rare at 2 of my 4 primary schools) and i remember a teacher saying to an inspector who was looking at my books "thats naught we dont teach her" (the same teacher that hit me) but then the National Curriculum was new, there were no SATs etc, no pressure on children who shouldnt be sitting what are effectively exams, i used to love the new projects etc

But then tbh in was happy, and secondry school was some of my happiest times. Yes the bullying got worse. But i had a brilliant head teacher and Senco, who both without a diagnosis tried their best to make school as accessable for me as posiable. I spent hours and hours talking to the head teacher about my interests, course work was often adapted so i could connect it to my interests. Most of the teachers were encourging they were so proud of me when i got my GCSEs

Oh yeah. Also, mass canings in Friday assembly. Was like public hangings. We all really looked forward to them

^

Sorry but

I went to school in the mid eighties through to 1999
I'm in Ireland, primary school was great regardless of the crazy nuns who would come to our class once a week and tell us stories lies about how they met St Peter and jesus himself!

Secondary school I fell behind massively
It was such a shock but then I didn't have support at home... education wasn't encouraged
There were a few pervy teachers.
I started going to pubs and nightclubs at 14, school became a joke after that.
Thankfully no bullying or violence from teachers
So many teachers who shouldn't have been teaching though!

I think those replying who were bright, popular, clever, had good memories. I had a lot going on and so don’t.

I finished school well after & bullying was still rife, except we had 'no tolerance' posters up & teachers who did FA to intervene.

I probably would have loved a selective school, the kind that emphasises education & becoming well rounded. Instead I graduated from the same place as my siblings where plenty of people fell through the cracks

And yeah I would have hated being around with social media. We all got Facebook pages by the time I graduated but it was in its infancy and only a couple of people had camera phones

Would've been unbearable to have snapchat, insta, YouTube videos of fights and so on... was bad enough getting a nasty email from a classmate

Lunches were bad
Bullying was ignored . No one (other than my classmates ) noticed . I read my school
Reports and not a mention

But one girl was making my life hell

As my son approaches puberty I am keeping a very very close eye on him .

But yes thanks to GOD no social media

I’m with you op. I remember watching Grange Hill and feeling envious because it seemed quite genteel compared with our school. The kid on kid violence and intimidation was horrific, I agree with the poster who said it was like the hunger games. There was a lot of underage sex on school grounds, fights every break time. Fights in the classroom. The teachers just turned a blind eye. I would say there was probably less low level disruption in class but no interest whatsoever in what went on outside it.

6th form by contrast was lovely, although the teaching wasn’t great. I think it was much easier for lazy teachers to coast back then. Primary was also lovely.

My daughters education by contrast seems so dynamic and the environment safe. I am quite envious.

All the things you mentioned still happen. It just depends on the school.

I think those replying who were bright, popular, clever, had good memories. I had a lot going on and so don’t

I'm sorry Op did you read my reply? I was bullied had chew gum in my hair, had unduagnosed autism, i was in the bottom set for everything, was called psyco naught by pretty much ever pupil.

I still loved sevondry school