Searchlight Logo
special_image

    • News
      • Front Page
      • News
      • Breaking News
      • Press Release
      • Features
      • Special Features
      • From the Courts
      • Sports
      • Regional / World
    • Opinions
      • Editorial
      • Our Readers’ Opinions
      • Bassy – Love Vine
      • Dr. Fraser- Point of View
      • R. Rose – Eye of the Needle
      • On Target
      • Dr Jozelle Miller
      • The World Around Us
      • Random Thoughts
    • Advice
      • Kitchen Corner
      • What’s on Fleek this week
      • Health Wise
      • Physician’s Weekly
      • Business Buzz
      • Hey Rosie!
      • Prime the pump
    • ePaper
    • Obituaries
      • In Memoriam / Acknowledgement
      • Tribute
    • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Letters To The Editor
      • General Contact Information
      • Contact our Webmaster
    • About Us
      • Privacy Policy
      • Interactive Media Ltd
      • St. Vincent & the Grenadines
    • Subscribe
    • News
      • Front Page
      • News
      • Breaking News
      • Press Release
      • Features
      • Special Features
      • From the Courts
      • Sports
      • Regional / World
    • Opinions
      • Editorial
      • Our Readers’ Opinions
      • Bassy – Love Vine
      • Dr. Fraser- Point of View
      • R. Rose – Eye of the Needle
      • On Target
      • Dr Jozelle Miller
      • The World Around Us
      • Random Thoughts
    • Advice
      • Kitchen Corner
      • What’s on Fleek this week
      • Health Wise
      • Physician’s Weekly
      • Business Buzz
      • Hey Rosie!
      • Prime the pump
    • ePaper
    • Obituaries
      • In Memoriam / Acknowledgement
      • Tribute
    • Contact Us
      • Advertise With Us
      • Letters To The Editor
      • General Contact Information
      • Contact our Webmaster
    • About Us
      • Privacy Policy
      • Interactive Media Ltd
      • St. Vincent & the Grenadines
    • Subscribe
Barrouallie: Tales of different eras
February 1, 2013

Educational Tales cont’d

I am convinced that a large number of our children today have no chores to do. Many of them, I believe, are living life “at the touch of a button”.{{more}} There are many though, who are not so privileged; for these children, their existence is a daily struggle and, they understand the sacrifices which their parents have to make.

Those who are ambitious vow to work their way out of the cycle of poverty, by ensuring that they “take in their education”.

Here in Barrouallie, “back in the day”, life for “estate children” wasn’t a “bed of roses” either. Their parents ensured, however, that they sent them to school in order to “get an education”. Some of these children attended Ms Mandeville’s school. The building in which teacher Joy Davis and her family currently reside was the location of Ms Mandeville’s school.

Here the children learnt their ABCs et cetera. One elderly resident recalls how the cotton planters on Zion Mountain heard the children as they recited daily and how the teacher instructed them to “say it louder”. Then there was “old school” which had Teacher Sandy at its helm. The elderly residents here use one word to describe Teacher Sandy: disciplinarian, a no-nonsense man who wanted the children to learn. He, I was told, was from the Windward area.

They remember his mode of dress was mainly a khaki suit with two big pockets on the jacket. One of the pockets was used to conceal the feared “rod”. Most seemed to have made their assessment of his dress code and they concluded that the “cocoa brown suit” was the one which spelt trouble.

Many of the children of yore were well disciplined though and knew exactly what was expected of them. Some parents had to leave home before dawn in order to work on the estates. Their children had to, in many instances, make two trips to Peter’s Hope estate; firstly, to go for the fresh cow’s milk which was used as part of the morning’s breakfast and secondly, in order to take breakfast to their parents. All this was done before school started, so you can imagine how early they had to get out of “bed”…whatever bed was. In addition, these children had to do the daily house chores and tend animals.

One Barrouallie-born resident who now resides in New York remembers that in his era, he was taught a song which goes in part:

“Oh, good children rise up early and do your home duties”.

This tells us that punctuality was taken seriously and there was really no excuse for being late. Compared with today, too many of our children are late too often. After doing their chores, youngsters long ago found the rivers/ streams and the sea in order to get a bath.

They had to hustle in order to get to school on time. Many made it to assembly. For those who didn’t make it, they encountered closed doors; Teacher Sandy was on the inside with the “early birds”. He was definitely in charge. Those who were late obediently lined up on the steps and waited; I can only imagine that they waited with bated breath. At assembly one could hear, in addition to the hymns, the lusty singing:

“Good morning to you

Good morning to you

Good morning dear teachers

Good morning to you”

All this while, the late comers wondered what their fate was. Think about it, they must have quaked when they heard:

“Little children must be seen with their hands and faces clean clothes in order…”

That meant inspection by time as the wooden door was swung open. Each late comer was asked to give the reason why he/she was late. Because Teacher Sandy lived within the community, he knew the children whose parents made a living on the estates and very often they were excused, but it should not be a daily occurrence.
 

Children’s hair was inspected. He used his pen or chalk and “ran” it through the boys’ hair. He also inspected their nails. The rod was then used. The children, however, devised a way of getting past the “licks”, so books were used as padding in their shirts. Teacher Sandy was just as smart and discovered their “trick”; so at inspection, each boy’s shirt was pulled from his pants and, lo and behold, the evidence fell to the ground.

Ah, he knew each student by heart. He made a note of the absences and made his way to the wharf on afternoons. As he stood there, he took note of the children who were away from school for the day yet found time to frolic in the sea in the afternoon. Those children, I supposed, could not turn up next day, with an excuse thus: ”me bin sick”.

All of the children kept a straight face when they were in the presence of Teacher Sandy, but, I understand they had their say on the way from school, with each child saying his/ her piece. We shall follow those yesteryear children into their classrooms next week, God’s will.

Angelic_boldeyes@yahoo.com

  • FacebookComments
  • ALSO IN THE NEWS
    Villa woman in  hospital after being stabbed over 20 times
    Front Page
    Villa woman in hospital after being stabbed over 20 times
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    Police are said to be carrying out investigations into the stabbing of Rafia Sardine, a 20-year-old female of Villa. Reports are that Sardine, a FLOW ...
    RSVGPF most hacked of gov’t agencies
    Front Page
    RSVGPF most hacked of gov’t agencies
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    In St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), an analysis has found that the most hacked government entity was the Royal St Vincent and the Grenadines Polic...
    Event staged locally to mark Africa/ Caricom Day
    Front Page
    Event staged locally to mark Africa/ Caricom Day
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    Leaders of Governments and institutions from countries of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and the continent of Africa, gathered at the weekend for ...
    PM, proud of his constituents
    Front Page
    PM, proud of his constituents
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, is proud of the persons in his constituency who continue to aim for higher education. Dr Gonsalves is the parliame...
    Van conductor to be sentenced for beating pregnant ex-girlfriend
    Front Page
    Van conductor to be sentenced for beating pregnant ex-girlfriend
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    A van conductor, who beat his five- months pregnant ex-girlfriend after she refused to get back with him, has been remanded pending sentencing. Onez J...
    King selected again for the ULP in West St George
    News
    King selected again for the ULP in West St George
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    To the haunting timeless reggae melody of Jimmy Cliff’s classic ‘Journey’, Curtis King, who was selected as the candidate for the Unity Labour Party (...
    News
    King selected again for the ULP in West St George
    News
    King selected again for the ULP in West St George
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    To the haunting timeless reggae melody of Jimmy Cliff’s classic ‘Journey’, Curtis King, who was selected as the candidate for the Unity Labour Party (...
    Steel wielding Lowman’s Hill man to be sentenced tomorrow
    From the Courts, News
    Steel wielding Lowman’s Hill man to be sentenced tomorrow
    Webmaster 
    September 9, 2025
    A Lowman’s Hill man who struck another villager in his head with a piece of steel will know his fate tomorrow, September 10, 2025. Kevin Roberts, 25, ...
    Minister of Information Technology  emphasises the importance of Cybersecurity
    News
    Minister of Information Technology emphasises the importance of Cybersecurity
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    Robust cybersecurity must be at the heart of the digital transformation that is currently taking place in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) says Min...
    Entities team up to boost disaster communication capacity
    News
    Entities team up to boost disaster communication capacity
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    The Climate Change Resilience Network (CCRN) in collaboration with the Youlou Radio Movement (YRM) recently embarked on a disaster preparedness initia...
    Ministry of Health to get more dialysis machines
    News
    Ministry of Health to get more dialysis machines
    Webmaster 
    September 5, 2025
    The Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment, is to obtain three more Heamodialysis machines as part of the revolution in the healthcare secto...

    E-EDITION
    ePaper
    google_play
    app_store
    Subscribe Now
    • Interactive Media Ltd. • P.O. Box 152 • Kingstown • St. Vincent and the Grenadines • Phone: 784-456-1558 © Copyright Interactive Media Ltd.. All rights reserved.
    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok