Comments on: My unhappy schooldays! http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/ I am not a has-been. I am a will be. Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance Sat, 20 Mar 2010 00:26:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: Paddy Bloggit http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-6217 Paddy Bloggit Wed, 16 Apr 2008 21:45:49 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-6217 Thanks for the share Grannymar .... indeed eye-opening. Thanks for the share Grannymar …. indeed eye-opening.

]]> By: Grannymar http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4623 Grannymar Wed, 27 Feb 2008 08:42:33 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4623 WWW, thank you for your kind words. Don't mention uniform or you will start me off again! WWW, thank you for your kind words. Don’t mention uniform or you will start me off again!

]]> By: Wisewebwoman http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4622 Wisewebwoman Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:36:36 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4622 GM: Thank you so much for this post. My education was a mixed bag, full of the worst of nuns and the best of nuns. Physical punishment was standard but the belittling was the worst, particularly of motherless girls whose fathers couldn't cope with laundering of uniforms, etc. There was an innate snobbery in the school I attended. I was lucky, unlike you, in that a bunch (6) of us stuck together and provided moral and compassionate support for each other as we couldn't complain at home at all and we were target practice for some of the more vicious nuns. . Your burdens made you strong today and you are a gifted writer. I published one time an article on the eccentric teachers I had and I had more than my fair share, let me tell you! I applaud your courage! XO WWW GM:
Thank you so much for this post. My education was a mixed bag, full of the worst of nuns and the best of nuns. Physical punishment was standard but the belittling was the worst, particularly of motherless girls whose fathers couldn’t cope with laundering of uniforms, etc. There was an innate snobbery in the school I attended. I was lucky, unlike you, in that a bunch (6) of us stuck together and provided moral and compassionate support for each other as we couldn’t complain at home at all and we were target practice for some of the more vicious nuns. .
Your burdens made you strong today and you are a gifted writer.
I published one time an article on the eccentric teachers I had and I had more than my fair share, let me tell you!
I applaud your courage!
XO
WWW

]]> By: Grannymar http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4620 Grannymar Tue, 26 Feb 2008 22:11:39 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4620 Betty thank you for the compliment. Ian you raise a valid point. In my early school days there were no shortage in entrants for the religious orders. I big gripe was that many of them were encouraged to enter at age 16. What did they know of the world outside? I know that several of my teachers were TOLD as postulants what training they would be given. One of the teachers wanted to be a nurse but there were no spaces left in nursing so she was pushed into teaching. If this happened on a large scale, is it any wonder the students suffered. Betty thank you for the compliment.

Ian you raise a valid point. In my early school days there were no shortage in entrants for the religious orders. I big gripe was that many of them were encouraged to enter at age 16. What did they know of the world outside?

I know that several of my teachers were TOLD as postulants what training they would be given. One of the teachers wanted to be a nurse but there were no spaces left in nursing so she was pushed into teaching. If this happened on a large scale, is it any wonder the students suffered.

]]> By: Grannymar http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4619 Grannymar Tue, 26 Feb 2008 21:59:31 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4619 Les Plant ~ Welcome to my blog, the topics are not always as grim at this one. Stephen & Judy I will include you here also. I started school aged four in 1951. Punishment by cane was the norm, but only when necessary and it did NOT have the venom or appearance of sadistic pleasure that I witnessed and endured from 1960 to 65. I found the sarcasm and belittling behaviour more hurtful than any corporal punishment. My self esteem suffered for years. We had four teachers among our Aunts and Uncles. My Aunt was a primary school teacher (mentioned above for awakening my love of needlework) and the men were all in Religious Orders at secondary level. All totally different characters each, like the rest of us, with good and bad points. In later years our paths crossed with former pupils of these men. At times their stories showed my uncles in very different light. I have known many whose stories were very different from mine. One girl was a boarder at another school and the ‘cold cocoa’ every evening was her only dislike! Some of my friends really enjoyed their schooldays and referred to them as the happiest days of their lives. How fortunate they were. Stephen thank you, for putting the ‘good’ side of religious in education, I do know it is out there and some do Trojan work in helping young folk reach their potential. May God bless them in their work. Judy, Addison’s disease may have been considered fatal in 1960, but my dad lived or limped through ill health until 1981. Les Plant ~ Welcome to my blog, the topics are not always as grim at this one.

Stephen & Judy I will include you here also.

I started school aged four in 1951. Punishment by cane was the norm, but only when necessary and it did NOT have the venom or appearance of sadistic pleasure that I witnessed and endured from 1960 to 65. I found the sarcasm and belittling behaviour more hurtful than any corporal punishment. My self esteem suffered for years.

We had four teachers among our Aunts and Uncles. My Aunt was a primary school teacher (mentioned above for awakening my love of needlework) and the men were all in Religious Orders at secondary level. All totally different characters each, like the rest of us, with good and bad points. In later years our paths crossed with former pupils of these men. At times their stories showed my uncles in very different light.

I have known many whose stories were very different from mine. One girl was a boarder at another school and the ‘cold cocoa’ every evening was her only dislike! Some of my friends really enjoyed their schooldays and referred to them as the happiest days of their lives. How fortunate they were.

Stephen thank you, for putting the ‘good’ side of religious in education, I do know it is out there and some do Trojan work in helping young folk reach their potential. May God bless them in their work.

Judy, Addison’s disease may have been considered fatal in 1960, but my dad lived or limped through ill health until 1981.

]]> By: Ian http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4618 Ian Tue, 26 Feb 2008 21:54:41 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4618 I spent a year working in England with one of the nuns who then moved to St Anne's in Roscrea, they were a marvellous order, but their vocation was to work with people with special needs. I think there were huge pressures in some of the other orders - I think it must have become a very competitive environment as schools with falling rolls sought to market themselves and the sisters would naturally have wanted to show parents how "well" all the girls were doing. I wonder how qualified some of them were to teach in the first place? How many of them had received third level education? I spent a year working in England with one of the nuns who then moved to St Anne’s in Roscrea, they were a marvellous order, but their vocation was to work with people with special needs.

I think there were huge pressures in some of the other orders - I think it must have become a very competitive environment as schools with falling rolls sought to market themselves and the sisters would naturally have wanted to show parents how “well” all the girls were doing. I wonder how qualified some of them were to teach in the first place? How many of them had received third level education?

]]> By: Betty http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4617 Betty Tue, 26 Feb 2008 21:42:53 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4617 I skip those cluttered, busy advertisement blogs, too. They load too slowly, for one thing. By the way, I think you have an excellent grasp of the English language. I skip those cluttered, busy advertisement blogs, too. They load too slowly, for one thing. By the way, I think you have an excellent grasp of the English language.

]]> By: kenju http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4616 kenju Tue, 26 Feb 2008 21:20:59 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4616 I know many people have probably had similar situations in school Grannymar; thanks for laying it out. I had a cousin with Addison's Disease; she was in the medical books for getting pregnant 3 times and apparently, it is hard for women with Addison's to get pregnant. I know many people have probably had similar situations in school Grannymar; thanks for laying it out.

I had a cousin with Addison’s Disease; she was in the medical books for getting pregnant 3 times and apparently, it is hard for women with Addison’s to get pregnant.

]]> By: PaddyAnglican http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4615 PaddyAnglican Tue, 26 Feb 2008 21:00:13 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4615 Grannymar - A moving and honest post and worthy of wider publication - thank you for it. As a parent of a child with special needs I can only give thanks for the wonderful services and dedicated staff of St. Anne's School Roscrea - which is incidentally still under the chairpersonship of religious sisters. I know that there were some pretty rotten religious but I feel it important to record good where I find it and it is the particular vocation of these sisters to 'special children' which I am sure and certain is responsible for the beautiful learning and affirming environment that our son enjoys. None of this to deny the reality of what you experienced but I suppose just to emphasise that there are some very fine religious communities still out there. My own schooling began and ended in a convent (co-ed) and it was a very possitive experience - not least because in the case of the latter the ratio was 6 girls to every boy! With those odds even I could not fail ;-) Grannymar - A moving and honest post and worthy of wider publication - thank you for it. As a parent of a child with special needs I can only give thanks for the wonderful services and dedicated staff of St. Anne’s School Roscrea - which is incidentally still under the chairpersonship of religious sisters. I know that there were some pretty rotten religious but I feel it important to record good where I find it and it is the particular vocation of these sisters to ’special children’ which I am sure and certain is responsible for the beautiful learning and affirming environment that our son enjoys. None of this to deny the reality of what you experienced but I suppose just to emphasise that there are some very fine religious communities still out there. My own schooling began and ended in a convent (co-ed) and it was a very possitive experience - not least because in the case of the latter the ratio was 6 girls to every boy! With those odds even I could not fail ;-)

]]> By: Les Plant http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4614 Les Plant Tue, 26 Feb 2008 20:52:32 +0000 http://www.grannymar.com/blog/2008/02/26/my-unhappy-schooldays/#comment-4614 Grannymar As A visitor to Ian's blog I had to read about your experience. I am blown away what an awful experience for a child. Going to primary school in the 60's to a small village school in the Somerset countryside was great compared to your school. A bullying dinner lady pales into insignifigance. Grannymar

As A visitor to Ian’s blog I had to read about your experience. I am blown away what an awful experience for a child. Going to primary school in the 60’s to a small village school in the Somerset countryside was great compared to your school. A bullying dinner lady pales into insignifigance.

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