NRS-16671 | Punishment Books [Cessnock Public School]

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Regulations under the Public Schools Act of 1866, adopted by the Council [of Education] 27 February 1867 regulated the punishment of children in schools by stipulating: “In the government of the pupils, all degrading and injurious punishments are to be avoided. The Teacher’s discipline must be mild but firm, his manner kindly, his demeanour cheerful and calculated to gain the confidence of his pupils, and his language marked by strict propriety. While he should overlook no offence, his aim should be to prevent the necessity for punishment by the improvement of the offender.”

In relation to corporal punishment the regulations continue: “Corporal punishment should be inflicted in extreme cases only, and then as a last resource; and the teacher must keep a record of the time and place at which pupils were corporally chastised, the amount of such punishment and the nature of the offence.”

Uniform stationery soon evolved to enable compliance with these regulations. These punishment books are registers of all cases in which corporal punishment was given to pupils. The information it details includes: the pupil’s name; age; nature of offence; amount of punishment (i.e. number of strokes); by whom sent; the date of the punishment; and by whom the punishment was inflicted.

The present series is represented by a single volume, which records instances of corporal punishment meted out in the Boys’ Primary department at Cessnock Public School during the years 1931-1956. From 1954 onwards, many of the boys' offences are described at some length. From the 26th February, 1954, this volume is also used to record warnings issued to offending boys before actual corporal punishment was resorted to; some of these entries have been countersigned by the offenders themselves. Inserted in the back of the volume are two signed acknowledgements by boys concerning their offence, and a parent’s letter of complaint against two others.

It is noticeable in this volume that, although there are no years in which no punishments are recorded, there are nonetheless marked fluctuations in the frequency of punishment over time. ‘Peak’ years for corporal punishment appear to have been 1932, 1946 and 1949, with contrasting low-incidence years at 1934 (only two cases recorded), during the war years 1940-1944, and in the early 1950’s.