I have vivid memories of elementary school and corporal punishment. The small town in Ontario in which I grew up was very much in favor of corporal punishment for students that broke the rules. The use of the strap was definitely condoned and in fact encouraged in the correction of misbehaving unruly students.
My 7th grade teacher, Mrs. Worthington was legend in the use of the strap. She was a firm disciplinarian and the strap was frequently used in her class. In previous years each teacher had his or her own strap and it was spontaneously used usually in the hall outside of the room away from the sight of other students. With changing times and controlling principals these individual straps were no longer in use and the discipline strap was kept in the principals office.
I can still remember the dread her command would instill in me: "Robert, go to the office and get the strap and wait for me in the hall".
Mrs. Worthington's procedure was always the same. The miscreant would be sent to the office to fetch the strap and he or she would have to wait for Mrs. Worthington to come from the classroom.
When the strap was handed out at the office the punishment book was consulted and a note was written to indicate if this was your first strapping or if you had been strapped before. If you had been strapped previously it stated by whom and how many strokes were given. This would ensure that if strapped previously this strapping would certainly be more severe.
It was very embarrassing if you were standing in the hall holding the strap along with the note and recess occurred, as you had to stand there while everyone went out and came back in. The occurrence of a strapping was never wasted on empty classrooms when children were playing outside. Upon conclusion of recess with children back in the classrooms discipline would be administered; hushed students could hear the crack of the strap as well as perhaps the wailing of the punished individual.
When she came from the classroom she would always leave the door open so the class could hear and march the individual over to Mrs. Morton's 1st grade room. I would then have to knock on her door. If a student answered the door I would have to tell them I needed Mrs. Morton to witness my strapping and this would be relayed to her otherwise it was a direct request - "Mrs. Morton can you please witness my strapping?" Her answer with a small smile was "Robert, of course I can but will I?" With that the door was left open and we would step away from the door out of the sight of her students. These first grade students would hear the strapping and be afraid this would happen to them should they be disruptive.
At this point Mrs. Worthington would ask me for the strap and the note and instruct me to stand up straight. She would consult the note and after pocketing it flex the strap in her hands and lecture me about talking out of turn and class disruption.
"I see that you were strapped in the spring by Miss Williams and that she gave you three on each hand. I believe that you have forgotten this lesson so I will increase the 'dosage'".
When the lecture was over she told me that she was going to give me five strokes on each hand and that I was to hold my hand out flat with fingers bent well back. If there was any cupping or squirming it would certainly result in extra strokes.
With that she would call for my hand to be held out and she would grasp my wrist in a vice like grip and apply the strap smartly; the first stroke was like an electric shock across my fingers and the second was scorching blow on my outstretched palm before calling for my other hand which received two similar cracks.
At this pause in order for the sting to be better felt she again lectured me about my shortcomings and explained that this strapping hurt her more than it did me. I could see out of the corner of my eye Mrs. Morton smiling at this remark but I stayed focused on the strokes to come. With the lecture over Mrs. Worthington called for my hands alternately and applied the strap with great vigor while holding my wrist in her vice like grip. Each stroke burned and stung greatly and I was squirming, pulling away resisting the last stroke. Much to my dismay I was told there would be an extra on each hand. When the strapping was over I had to thank Mrs. Morton for taking time from her class and then I was told to return the strap to the office and tell them that Mrs. Worthington would be over at lunch to sign the punishment book and enter the number of strokes given as well as a description of my deportment.
Nearly all strappings were carried out in this manner and throughout the school year the crack of the strap resounding through the halls could be heard quite often.
An exception to this procedure would be if the student were kept after dismissal and their attitude "won' them a trip to the office of the principal. If this were the case the teacher would march him or her to the office and the principal would witness the administration of the strap or perhaps the principal would apply the strap. In any case this would be a severe strapping sure to make the recipient cry out they were sorry and that they would behave in the future.
I returned after class one day to retrieve a book and heard one such strapping:
The recipient was a girl and she wailed after receiving four strokes (I stood mesmerized listening) and after the seventh crack she was crying and blubbering vowing to be good in the future and with that the strapping was concluded after only eight strokes.
After listening to this punishment and the discussion between teacher and principal I realized the strap had been administered by the principal and I cautiously made my exit undetected.
Unfortunately I found myself in the same situation a few weeks later.