Adults Are Revealing Things Their Teachers Did In ’80s And ’90s That “Would Not Fly Today” And There’s A Lot Going On Here

Let’s be honest: School was operated very differently back in the day, as teachers and students got away with a lot of things that absolutely would not fly today. So when we asked the BuzzFeed Community, “Do you have a story about a teacher from the ’80s or ’90s that would not fly today?” so many people shared their experiences below:

1. “5th-grade teacher. Every year, the class would take a field trip to his house. We would ride bikes. We would watch The Longest Day, then jump on his trampoline. This was in 1990. No parents came; just us and Mr. C. His wife would be waiting for us with homemade peanut butter and jam sandwiches.”

—catschelin

2. “One of my favorite teachers (anatomy class) was fired for exposing himself, and by exposing himself, I mean pulling down his shirt no more than two inches to show his collarbone. The part of the body we were studying that day. Ridiculous.”

—MourningGory

3. “We had a sleepover at my 4th-grade teacher’s house on the last day of school. She lived right by the beach and bought us all pizza, and we watched Jurassic Park. She was the coolest.”

—kanelflixka

4. “When I was about 15, there was a girl in my year who went out of her way to make my life hell. Never anything physical, but underhand, psychological, mental bullying that was hard to prove or witness, so nothing could really be done, but my form tutor knew and believed me. At parents’ evening, she told my mum that if, one day, I snapped and punched the girl, there would be a dozen witnesses in the staff room to say I was nowhere near her. Unorthodox, and I never actually did, but it gave me a major confidence boost to know that she had my back.”

—emmak26

5. “’70s high school, I had a poli-sci teacher who also taught government. I worked in catering at the Hyatt, and on the first day of the new quarter, I was super hungover. I told him my co-workers and I snatched a case of champagne from the walk and spent the night chugging it in one of the rooms the front desk manager blocked for us. He said if I could get him a case of champagne, he would give me an A in both classes, and I never had to come to class. The next morning, he pulled his car up next to mine in the student parking lot, we opened our trunks, and transferred the case of champagne from my car to his. Never attended a day of either class, and when report cards came out, there they were: 2 A’s. One for each class.”

—boompow

6. “We had a substitute in 3rd grade who was genuinely nice and loved chatting with the students. Somehow, the conversation turned to horror movies, and she rambled on and on about how much she loves Friday the 13th. At one point, she actually put the movie on for us. 3RD GRADERS. She skipped the sexy parts but let all the gore and swear words slide. She told us not to tell anyone. We never saw her again after that.”

—Moaning Lisa

7. “I had a high school history teacher who would mess with kids whenever they fell asleep. Some of his methods were: tipping over your desk, smacking a gavel on your desk, or BLOWING A DANG AIR HORN next to your head.”

—tylerh4d6cfe736

8. “My preschool teacher held me down and force-fed me applesauce in the early ’90s. It’s been 30 years, and I still can’t eat applesauce.”

—Sarah

9. “When my dad was a biology teacher, he would often bring our two dogs to school. The school didn’t care, and the students loved it. For his class, as a special treat, two students who scored the highest on a quiz/test or who were generally well behaved for that day got to take the dogs for a walk for the last 15 minutes of class. This was high school, and every student did their best so they could earn the honor. He was also just a great teacher, as he loved teaching and really encouraged his students to learn; he was voted best teacher among the students every year. He was also the golf/basketball/ski coach. Unfortunately, we lived in another county, so my siblings and I never had him as a teacher, but when we were young, he would sometimes take us when our schools were closed for some reason. I miss you, Dad!! RIP.”

—lunallee212

10. “During the early ’90s to 2000 at my grade school, during PE class, our teacher would lead the class in stretching to the Boys II Men song “I’ll Make Love To You.” Doubt that would fly today.”

—meh_sheen

“At our middle school dances (7th grade), they’d play ‘Me So Horny,’ and no one batted an eye.”

—catsarefriendshaped❤️

11. “I had a wild history teacher in 7th grade. We were all convinced she came to school drunk all the time. One time, she got mad and threw scissors across the room, and they got stuck in the wall. Another time, she was walking around the classroom during a test, and she snapped a girl’s thong that was sticking out of her pants.”

—tylerh4d6cfe736

12. “My mum was a secondary school teacher in the 1970s. When she was just starting out, she got really sick of a group of 15/16- 16-year-old bullies who would constantly wait outside the classroom for the younger kids (think 11/12 years old) to rough them up. So one day, she went outside, kicked them all in the shins, and asked if they still thought it was funny. Apparently, they never picked on the kids again.”

—oneangryavocado

13. “Let’s see, both of these are from high school. My freshman English teacher would throw bits of chalk at students if they were talking or being little shits, etc. And she had great aim and a heck of an arm. Then there was the band teacher. We were doing the fundraiser selling cases of oranges and grapefruit, and when it was all delivered, we stacked them in maze form in the band room, then proceeded to wad up god knows how many newspapers and have an epic newspaper ball fight running through the stacks. Music on the sound system, etc, just an all-out good time.”

—cailian13

14. “In elementary school (the ’80s), it was normal to be sent to the principal’s office. He had a paddle with holes in it hanging on his wall. He would have you put your hands on his desk and spank you, hard, and then send you back to class. It was universally condoned by the parents. Also, my first-grade teacher duct-taped me to a chair for standing up in class. She totally embarrassed me in front of the entire class.”

—redtail373

15. “We had a smoking area outside the cafeteria for the students. You had to be 18 or older or have a permission slip from your parents allowing you to smoke. Since the drinking age was 18 at the time, when we had our prom, we could sneak over to the hotel bar and get hammered while the prom was going on.”

“A footnote: When we had our 30-year reunion, it was at the same hotel. We drained their legs and just about cleared out their hotel bar. Then the elevator got stuck at 2 a.m. because all the drunks wanted to use it at the same time.”

—allief8

16. “My 3rd-grade teacher was punishing me for talking. Instead of sending me to the hall, she would send me to the janitor’s closet/room. There were chemicals, and the light would shut off due to no movement. The worst part was she forgot about me for over two hours.”

—lndsm

17. And finally, “We had a maths teacher who, when you got an ‘easy’ question wrong (usually because you weren’t listening), would make you stand in the bin and say, ‘I am rubbish.’”

—What I Did In The Shadows

Do you have a story about a past teacher who did something that would absolutely not fly today? If so, tell us in the comments or anonymously in the Google Form below.