BRAESIDE PRIMARY, GLASGOW_1967
I wonder if any our Milkies recognise any of the wee rascals in the piccie?
I am trying to recall the Lady teachers name, but to my eternal shame it eludes me. I ended up in this lovely lassies charge after making The Auld Greybags life misery for a few months. The change of class was a breath of fresh air as this lassie was a real wee gem, both kind and pateint. I think her main forte was that as a music teacher, but like most lady primary teachers in those days they did just about everything and were good at it too, with the odd exception or twa.
Oh deary me, now moving onto Miss Grey, a wee tale lies herewithin and is not for those of a nervous disposition.
Miss Grey was, to put it mildly, a severe crone with her own unique and unorthadox views on teaching and discipline. These days, she would have been secreted away in a senior persons holiday home for an indeterminate period. Rumour had it she acquired her talents whilst training in a German PoW Camp.
If you can conjure up an image of a vertically challanged female Frankenstien akin to a cross between; Joan Sanderson, Ena Sharples and our beloved Margeret Thatcher, with the temperament of a rabid pitbull wi a banger up its erse, yer not too far aff the mark.
She always presented herself in a worn oot purple tartan tweed twin set and sensible shoes, for erse kicking duties. Many of the weans were quite feart of her due to her frequent verbal outbursts and desk thumping antics when ye messed up yer one times table or got yer spelling wrang during her seemingly constant dictation lessons. This Lady did little to ensure that the learning was a pleasant process. Whilst in her gentle care I learned two things.
1) The Square Root of nothing = Zero.
2) Exponential curves. Think of this as a negative curve plotted as Knowledge Gained v Time spent in her class.
Complicated stuff for a wayward 10 year old. Come tae think of it they still do ma hied in.
Fortunately, my long suffering classmates were spared the bulk of her delightful attentions as I was normally the subject of those; a ruler across the hands, slaps across the back of legs or erse were not uncommon and I was usually invited to the front of the class to receive these, cheap entertainment for my class assocaites. The scene would elicit giggles from the lassies, evil mares!
Oh and just to rub it in and atone for my sins, I had to thank her. Nothing wrang with wi a wee bit of good manners, ah suppose.
I cannot recall Miss Grey ever using the strap, she was certainly a more "hands on" type of person and was not backward at doing so. She was not all bad really, she did have her more human moments.
She was a brillaint orator and deid brainy at History and delivered this subject with great imperturbability and clarity. I always remember her tale of Barlass Kate and Kate's attempts to prevent the assassination of King James 1st of Scotland. Judging by Miss Grey's seniority, this was quite possibly a first hand account of those events.
