How Does a Parent's Absence Affect Teens? There was a greater consensus that good manners were more important in society back then and this impacted how people disciplined their children. Schools increasingly deployed police officers to monitor their halls. The 1950s are often considered a period of conformity when parents conformed to their assigned mother and father roles and pursued the "American Dream." At the same time, most children were too busy helping their families survive to express the same type of defiance kids often do today. At length le grand moment arrived. I promised myself when I was a teenager in high school that I would never say that to a child because at that time I didnt believe they could possibly be the best years of your life. Teachers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, family friends, adults in story books they all dished them out. Youths became independent, which was seen through certain shocking . Personal judgments of individual teachers waned; their power from "in loco parentis" died. Children were also sold as prostitutes. I'm sure there are many more you'd be able to find, but ten is a round number. For them, life was as dreary as ever, and even more complicated. Sexual abuse of children was common in both Greek and Roman societies. However, research that came later seemed to prove that this was not the case. Kids in the 1950s were given more freedom to do as they pleased. . As far as sex goes, most 1950s teenagers were shy virgins. However, elders who look back at what life was like in the '50s see a lack of morals in todays society that affects how children grow up. In the 1930s, two parenting experts brought the idea of positive discipline to the United States from Vienna, where they had theorized and tested it 1. It was quite common for a disruptive child to be rapped over the knuckles, on the . Manners and etiquette was just a part of the 1950's lifestyle, it was more disciplined, you wouldn't see so much rubbish in the Street, you would find it hard to find untidy front gardens, people wanted to show others that they had things sorted, they were leading a decent life, did the right thing and the Children's manners were one way of showing this. Nevertheless, there does seem to be a census among eyewitness accounts of what it was like to be a child in the '50s that discipline produced a greater fear of authority than what exists today. The gruesome picture above is especially for my sister who still has both her thumbs! The studies that came out of institutionalised environments for children at this time also suggested that mothers should be with their children 24 hours and that anything else could prove damaging for the child's development. They should tell their children they were special, feed them when they were hungry, put them to bed when they were tired, and discipline them with words rather than corporal punishment. Under zero tolerance, a student who violated school rules faced mandatory penalties, adopted from the "broken windows" theory of policing. On the bus, it was expected that boys would give up their seat for a woman or anyone senior in age and also give up their places in line for the bus. Many of the jobs I fancied as a child (fireman, for one!) That started to change around the turn of the century. In the '50s, teachers and parents thought that punishing children reduced bad behaviour. However, the suburbs also reflected socioeconomic and racial homogeneity. From Puritanical subjugation to laissez-faire families, physical punishment to positive discipline, the best method of parenting has long been a debate. How Does Family Structure Impact Language Development? Detention was given for many misdemeanours, and children were never meant to speak back. From Puritanical subjugation to laissez-faire families, physical punishment to positive discipline, the best method of parenting has long been a debate.. Take it from the Old Testament, strict corporal punishment has been a popular form of discipline for a long time. He once knocked me down and threatened me with a stick. You would also offer them your place in a Queue when alighting a Bus. They produced films such as High School confidential, Blackboard Jungle, Teen Rebel, The Wild One, Rebel Without a Cause, and more, which fed 1950s teens' rebellious spirit. 40+ Spring Letter Board Quotes to Refresh and Renew. Male children were expected to be strong, responsible, and assertive, but also mischievous. While people certainly ended their marriages in the 1950s and '60s, there was a deeply-ingrained social stigma against divorce that has undeniably lessened in the decades since. But when the first generation of Spock-raised babies turned into the rebellious teens of the 1960s and 1970s got to the scene, Dr. Spocks ideas took a hit from the stricter, more regimented experts. Source: Youtube. Between 1890 and 1918, high school enrollment increased by 711 percent. 6. These were known as moral tales. At school, the teacher would have a bell made of nickel sitting on her desk, and whenever she rang it, she expected to garner the full attention of the class. Childhood Memories of growing up in the 1950s and 1960s. The popular 1955 film Blackboard Jungle depicted teenagers run amok in the classroom. A 50-year study of Swedish families showed that from 1958 to 2011, parenting roles changed significantly, shifting to more equal parenting, according to the Journal of Marriage and Family 2. Wiley Online Library: Journal of Marriage and Family: Have Authoritarian Parenting Practices and Roles Changed in the Last 50 Years? Although 1950s parents saw their teenagers behave in ways that shocked them, such as listening to rock-and-roll music, new risque dance moves, and their overall self-determining and defiant mindset, compared to 21st Century teens, these teens were extraordinarily innocent. Wait until your father gets home. Blended Family Statistics: A Deeper Look Into the Structure, Blended families, also called stepfamilies or remarriage families, are one of many modern family types in the world. This left the domestic tasks to the wife-mother. From "rod and reproof" to trusting in children. Going back to Buses and Trains and even walking down the Street, if you saw a Lady struggling with her Shopping, you would offer to help, even if that meant going out of your way to take them to he home. Updated date: Mar 27, 2020 7:37 PM EDT. Clean-cut boys and girls living life in the suburbs, seemingly without a worry in the world, became teenagers who were independent, interactive, pleasure bound, and rebellious. Generation Ministries: Trends in American Child Rearing Practices to 1950, Ruth Baird Shaw: Going To School in the 1930s. Copyright 2023 Leaf Group Ltd., all rights reserved. // Leaf Group Lifestyle, Child Rearing Beliefs & Practices in Indian Culture, Beliefs, Values and Customs of Chinese Parents, How Parents Discipline Their Children in Africa, The Effects of Parents Being Absent From the Home, Child-Rearing Practices in Different Cultures, The Parental Influences on Children's Identity. According to Shaw, this system was never questioned by parents, and schools came under very little criticism for their techniques. With the establishment of the Federal Housing Authority (FDA) and the Veterans Administration (VA) home loan programs, many white middle-class American parents found it easy to borrow money from a bank and move out of cities and small towns into newly built homes in the suburbs. These tips can help you simplify your family's life! So, the phrase "when your father gets home" was used by housewives frequently across the country when they tried to discipline their child. Fewer children were being raised by divorced and single parents in the 1960s. Girls were not groomed or encouraged to attend college, and if their parents did provide them with higher education, it was with the expectation that they'd meet a suitable husband and have a career they could fall back on. Today, many look back at the '50s and see the corporal punishments that adults inflicted on children as unnecessary and unfair. . Teaching children how to act has been on the minds of parents and authorities since the written word. It is best write how things were back in the 1950's by just giving examples and the 'rules' which existed, most of which are long forgotten I'm afraid. Spare the Rod: Reforming School Discipline, Illuminating Journalism from American Public Media. So make sure to leave this parenting advice in the past because we all know spanking is not a good way to discipline your children. All rights reserved. my mum used to say China, Im sure adults used used a variety of countries! Beatings like these were part of the background noise of a 19th-century childhood. 5 Horrifying Acts Of Child Abuse That Used To Be Totally Legal. Similarly, while just 9 percent of children were raised by a single parent in 1960, 34 percent were in 2013. John Locke, the English philosopher and physician who is commonly referred to as the Father of Liberalism, wrote parenting guidelines that at the time werent popular, but foreshadowed many of the positive discipline methods we see today. In fact, children were often meant to be "seen but not heard." There was one collection of stories written in the 19th century which contained a dozen or so such stories. . The studies that came out of institutionalized environments for children at this time also suggested that mothers should be with their children 24 hours and that anything else could prove damaging for the childs development. Schools increasingly deployed police officers, zero tolerance didn't succeed in making schools safer. The traditional one-room schoolhouse gave way to multiple, stratified classrooms and a principal who oversaw them. Cunha is also completing her master's degree in mass communication. The debate has been how it should be achieved. In these bleak times, disciplining children was just an afterthought, says Ruth Shaw, an 88-year-old who chronicles her past in blog and book form. In the 1950s, the trend towards dads as care-givers hadn't even begun to take shape. The same aunt later locked him in his room to punish him for hitting her own child (who was biting Augustus). The after-effects of the Second World War were still ongoing, for instance many goods were still being rationed in the . Even in the Medieval era, an age that put heretics on the rack and subjected adulterous women to breast rippers (yes, thats the technical title), physical harm to children was far more controversial than violence towards adults. Parents had little time for fun or family activities, and the prevailing science of the decade heralded children as "self-regulating," meaning that . Even as children, girls felt family and societal pressure to focus their aspirations on home, husband, and children instead of higher education. In the 1890s groups campaigned against child cruelty, but few people argued that . Eat your crusts or your hair wont curl. In the 1940s and early 50s we were brought up and disciplined quite differently to the way that most children are today. They encouraged their sons to excel in school, in athletics, and to attend college. Rock-and-Roll became a mainstay due to 1950s teens. Parents had little time for fun or family activities, and the prevailing science of the decade heralded children as "self-regulating," meaning that left to their own devices, children would regulate themselves in such a way to perform as necessary in society. Today, many look back at the '50s and see the corporal punishments that adults inflicted on children as unnecessary and unfair. By subscribing to this BDG newsletter, you agree to our. Some people are all business or just a little more buttoned-up. The average household had gone from making $2,300 a year to making just $1,500, according to the University of Houston's Digital History, and by 1932 more than 12.5 million people were out of work. Among the group that grew up in the 1950s, approximately 40 percent of respondents said that they were able to walk to school alone starting in just 2nd and 3rd grade. In the '50s, teachers and parents thought that punishing children reduced bad behaviour. Kids were . And another, from a magazine interview years later with a man named John Birley: [An overseer named] Frank once beat me till he frightened himself. A stitch in time saves nine. They were also wildly popular and considered just one of those things, which makes you wonder what sort of things were doing to kids today that will horrify those kids grandchildren. 2020 by kidsofthe50sand60s in 1950s, children, families, Uncategorized Tagged 1950s, 1960s, Books, . If you gave a child a clip round the ear nowadays, they'd probably sue you and put you up in front of the European Equal Rights Committee or something similar! Although the name "authoritarian" wasn't used in the 1950s, the style was. . john's musings and reflections and things that confuse him, Richard Bell's nature sketchbook since 1998. Children were expected to be quiet and well-behaved at school. Just to explain; in my family we werent read these stories as a warning. By the way, those last two totally contradict each other which always puzzled me when I was younger! Things we never even dreamed of in the 1950s. "Teachers wanted discipline to be put in their contracts to be very clear what they were responsible for," Kafka said. Working Class Life - A 1950s Mum and discipline. Children were taught manners and taken to Sunday school or church. google_ad_height = 90; There were grisly stories written for children to shock them into behaving. Some educators have believed in harsh discipline methods like corporal punishment, suspension or expulsion. Here are some of the advantages of the different types for parents to consider. His was one of the first works to . "The truth of the matter is that none of these changes will achieve what we want unless schools are safe and ordely places where teachers can teach and students can learn," he wrote. 5. His mother came from an affluent background and raised six children . There were little league teams, boy and girl scouts, and the Parent and Teacher Association (PTA) at schools. In fact, children were often meant to be "seen but not heard." To discover more amazing secrets about living your best life, click here to follow us on Instagram! It is redolent of eras in the past where the fathers were the absolute head of their households and were quite remote and strict. } Not only do they spend more time with their kids than ever before, they're able to do so while simultaneously working outside the home. Dr. Alfred Adler and Dr. Rudolf Dreikurs called their method "democratic parenting" and urged a kind but firm approach when dealing with child misbehavior. 1. Every morning, when entering the classroom, a teacher would be greeted with a chorus of "good morning sir" or "good morning madam.". When it comes to a child, abuse is something that cannot be taken lightly. Stories as a warning 'd be able to find, but few argued! Style was impacted how people disciplined their children were given more freedom to do as they pleased biting! Later seemed to prove that this was not the case is redolent of eras in 1960s. And reproof '' to trusting in children the 1960s stratified classrooms and a principal who oversaw them never... 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