The check of the spine was always a routine part of the mandatory school physicals.
I assume that it was mentioned in the medical protocole to follow by the doctors.
Anyway I have a check of my spine each year of school at middle and high school.
It was one of the checks during the examination which were performed very seriously and it lasted what seemed to me a long time.
At middle school, it was performed while I was still wearing a brief but at high school from 14- age to 17-age, I was stark naked in front of the doctor who was a woman doctor, and the female nurse and also during two years a young female student nurse assisting to our physical examination during her training course in the nurse'office of the school.
I was instructed to turn around and to look straight ahead with hands on my sides and the doctor patted slowly my back on a few spots and made her finger slide along my spine until the beginning of the cleft of my buttocks, then I was instructed to bend over until my ankles, and she did the same checks, I had to stand up straight again and to bend over again three times, the doctor and the nurse were looking to my back and spine and checking my move. with the fingers of the doctor on my back one time.
After that, I was then instructed to walk until the wall of the exam room and to stand up face to the wall and then to bend over again and to repeat it three times.
Only when It was finished, I could come again in front of the doctor.
I had a slight lordosis which was less serious than a scoliosis but nevertheless I presume that it could be a reason for why this exam lasted so long, it was mentioned on my medical form and in the letter adressed to my parents for the family doctor.
We had only at middle school at 13 age a check for scoliosis performed apart of the physical examination which took place at the nurse'office.
It was performed in the gym with all the class of 25 boys ( boys only in the school; art that time), there was the school nurse present and our male Pe teacher with the chief of the sport department of the school, and the check was conducted by an other female nurse more aged who was coming in our school especially for that exam and was working in the education and health department of the school district.
We were instructed by the Pe teachers to undress until our white briefs and to line up in the center of the gym and we were called one by one to be checked, it was almost the same exam than during the physical examination but we were not naked, when we were standing back to them, we were just instructed to pull down our brief a little to let them see the lower side of our back, in fact as some boys were reluctant to pull enough their brief down, we were quickly instructed to pull it down at least until the middle of our butts, it was more easy for them than to repeat permanently "lower".
it was a little embarrassing because of the presence of the Pe teachers and the other students but it lasted not so long as during our yearly physical examination at the nurse's office.