A Dominie's Log: The Story of a Scottish Teacher
About this book
Excerpt: ...nothing to do with me. He became angry, but he became speechless when I said, " I sympathise with you. Had it been my garden I should have sworn possibly harder than you have done. On the other hand, had it been twenty years ago and my kite, well, I should have done exactly what the boy did. Good morning." Although it was no concern of mine I called the boy out, and advised him to ]xj us to think of other people. Then I addressed the bairns. "You might convey to your parents," I said, " that I am not the policeman in this village; I'm a schoolmaster." I think that mann parents are annoyed at my giving up punishment. They feel that I am not doing their work for them; they think that the dominie should do the training of children.... other people's children, not their own. I find that I am trying to do a very difficult thing. The home influence is bad in many cases; the children hear their parents slight the teacher, and they do not know what to think. The average parent looks upon the teacher as an enemy. If I hit a boy the parents side with him, if I don't hit the boy who hit their boy, they indignantly ask what education is coming to. Many a night I feel disheartened. I find that I am on the side of the bairns. I am against law and discipline; I am all for freedom of action. At last I have attained my ambition. As a boy my great ambition was to possess a cavalry trumpet and bugle. I have just bought both. I call the bairns to school with " Stables " or the ' Fall In," and I gleefully look forward to playtime so that I may have another tootle. The bairns love to hear the calls, but I think I enjoy them most. I try hard to share the bairns' joys. At present I am out with them every day flying kites, and I never ti...