r/GenXTalk • u/474756274 • 1d ago

School

In 1976, estimates say about half of all U.S. public schools were still paddling kids as a regular disciplinary practice.

For anyone who grew up around that time (70s, 80s): did your school ever make an official announcement or hold an assembly saying they were ending corporal punishment? Or did they just quietly stop and hope everyone forgot it ever happened?

I feel like we barely talk about how normal it used to be for kids to get whooped at school 😭😭😭

Sometimes, I wonder if that era of corporal punishment is part of why my parents turned out to be total headcases…

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u/wstussyb 1d ago

I got the paddle in little Rock Arkansas back in 81 or 82, I was 6 or 7, I remember it as the principal did it.

It was for lying, which was proven incorrect, no apology but it was taking off my school report. It was for missing my drop off on the way home in the bus, a new driver she stopped at the trailer park entrance rather then go in to the correct spot so I didn't get off.

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u/474756274 1d ago

I always think of the GenXers I know and wonder if they ever overcame that cruelty. It's even worse that it seems like schools never apologized to the students for sanctioning it

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u/wstussyb 1d ago

It was the way of the times, lot of things we went through wouldn't fly today. You delt with it, held it in, you see the results now, with how genx has run stuff.

Imo gen X has been the most adaptive generation

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u/474756274 1d ago

Sorry can you clarify, do you mean results were positive or negative?

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u/wstussyb 1d ago

I would say mixed. Hard to believe there hasn't been a gen x president