Earning a PHD

Earning a PHD

By Daring Diane

As she sat in the headmaster’s office, Christina was relieved.  Christina was completing her PHD in education.  As part of her research, she proposed to observe a 6^th grade class for a minimum of 8 weeks.  The headmaster told her the proposal was fine as long as Christina was not a disruption and as long as she worked within the rules of the school. 

Headmaster Sarah Winters ran the Applegate Academy for Young Women with an iron fist. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina was told that all students, teachers and administrators had to read and understand all of the school rules, methodology and disciplinary procedures.  Christina read and signed the documents.

She would be initially observing a 6^th grade class.  Christina signed a form agreeing to follow the schedule for the 6^th grade students and classes she would be observing.  Depending on what Christina learned, her proposal included an option to work with one of the other grades as her research progressed. 

Headmaster Winters stressed to Christina that she would be expected to dress appropriately and attend all classes for the 6^th grade.  She was never to leave early or arrive late.  Absences would not be permitted.  The Headmaster provided a copy of the school handbook which included the dress code requirements for the teachers and administrators as well as the students.  Christina was told she could follow the administrators and teachers dress code requirements.  She was also instructed to read and understand the entire handbook.

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina, a PhD candidate in Education has been working on the research for her dissertation.  Her research focus has been on success and failure of different methods to incentivize students to perform in the grade school environment.  When she talked to Sarah Winters she explained the overall focus of her research and asked for an opportunity to sit in and observe classes. 

What Christina failed to mention is that she plans to highlight the failure of corporal punishment in the school environment.  And, she selected Applegate Academy because they flaunt their use of corporal punishment.  Christina expects to gather information and expose the failures of corporal punishment in the grade school environment.

But, Christina is afraid that if Sara Winters knew her plan that she would not let her observe.  So Christina fails to mention the specific focus of her research. 

+++++++++++++++++++

The accident

Christina was observing chemistry experiments.  Everyone was trying to be careful as they mixed the dangerous liquids.  Christina looked left while walking and she began to turn.  Her foot caught on one of the laboratory stool legs.  Falling, she instinctively reached out for something to grab. 

Christina caught Margaret’s arm which caused a beaker of hydrochloric acid to spill all over the floor and Christina.  The teacher, who was well trained in emergency procedures, quickly moved all of the other students away from the area.  She moved Christina and the other students in the area into an emergency shower.  They removed their clothes which were placed in a safety barrel.  Christina hit her head on the ground and was a little out of sorts as the teacher and other students helped her. 

The students were escorted to their lockers where they put on their gym clothes.  Christina was taken to the nurse to evaluate the knot on her head. 

After her treatment, the nurse approached her holding some clothing. 

“Christina, I have some spare clothes we keep around for emergencies.  I’m sure you realize that we don’t have a lot of reason for spare clothes.  So take a deep breath and let’s get you into some clothes.” 

Christina was wearing a paper smock and nothing else.  The acid had gotten on all of her clothes.  Christina was very embarrassed by the situation.  She took the full cut cotton panties she was handed and pulled them up her legs.  The knee socks warmed her feet. 

The nurse offered, “We don’t have any spare bras in your size and speaking as a health professional, I’m sure you realize that while it is embarrassing, you are very modestly endowed and this camisole will provide whatever support is needed for now.”

Christina stepped behind a screen, dropped the paper smock and cringing, she pulled the camisole over her head.  She wanted to cry.  Her favorite Wonder-bra was probably ruined and now she was putting on a childish camisole that matched her children’s underwear.  The nurse handed her a white blouse over the screen.  

While the rounded collars were unusual, she felt that at least she was being given real clothes.  She quickly donned the blouse.

Christina must have been out of it from that bump on her head, because it was not until she was handed the plaid pinafore style dress that she realized the nurse was dressing her in the school uniform. 

“Hey why are you trying to dress me in the school uniform?”

The nurse responded curtly, “Do you think I keep a large supply of adult clothing around here?  I typically only see students and the lost and found only has student clothing.  We keep a couple of uniforms on hand for emergencies.  Be adult about this and put on the dress.”  Then she added in smug tone, “or do you need my help to finish getting dressed?”

Christina was upset at her tone. “No, I do not need help.  It’s just embarrassing.” 

As Christina slipped the dress over her head and buttoned it, she stepped from behind the screen.

The nurse was caught off guard.  Catching herself, she sarcastically remarked, “Christina that dress was made for you.”

If looks could kill, Christina’s would have. 

“Calm down.  It’s just that if I didn’t know better, I would have thought you were actually a student.”

This did not make Christina feel better.

Christina gathered her purse and brief case and left to return to spend the rest of her day observing her class.

+++++++++++++++++++

The halls were quiet as Christina walked down the hall.  As she passed a teacher she did not know the woman stopped.

Turning towards Christina she asked, “Excuse me.  Young lady, do you have a hall pass?”

Christina stopped and turned. Indignantly, she responded with too much attitude, “What do you mean?  No, I don’t have a hall pass.  I’m going back to the class room from the nurse’s office.”

“I don’t care why you are in the halls.  The rule is that you have to have a hall pass.  What’s your name?”

Christina tried to argue with her that she was not a student.  The woman did not care.  She told Christina she could talk it over with the staff in the principal’s office after last period.

Christina gave the woman her name and she was given the top copy of a discipline form along with a bright pink hall pass. 

“Give this form and the hall pass to the teacher when you get back to your class.  Now, get going.”  And with that the teacher turned and walked off.

Christina was livid.  But, she tried to hold back her anger and figured she would work this out with Sarah Winters at the end of the day. 

+++++++++++++++++++

When Christina caught up with her class, everyone snickered as she entered the room.  They obviously thought it was hilarious that she was now wearing the same uniform as them.  But, heavy laughter ensued when someone pointed out the bright pink hall pass and what clearly looked like a discipline form in her hand.

The teacher did not understand the situation and Christina explained about the accident in the last class.  The teacher took the forms and told Christina she should go talk to Mrs. Winters at the end of the day to resolve this issue. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Mrs. Moore entered Sarah Winters office snickering as she presented Christina’s discipline form and explained how Miss Watson a teacher in the lower grades had found Christina walking the halls in a student uniform.  Upon further investigation Mrs. Moore had talked to the nurse and gotten the essence of the story. 

Sarah instructed Mrs. Moore to not let Christina know that they were aware of the real situation when Christina showed up at the end of the day.

Sarah pondered the discipline form and thought about Christina’s situation.  She smiled, put the form down on the side of her desk and got back to work. 

+++++++++++++++++++

When Christina approached Mrs. Moore after last class, Mrs. Moore acted like she did not recognize Christina at first.  Then she showed surprise and asked Christina to turn around so she could get the full effect. 

“Why Christina, you look just like any other student in that uniform.  I love the crisp look of a nice uniform.  Too bad about you breaking the rules,” Mrs. Moore kidded.  “You know walking the halls without a hall pass is a spanking offence.”  She smiled sideways at Christina to see if she was getting to her. 

Christina wasn’t sure if Mrs. Moore was kidding or not.  But, she was uncomfortable with the situation and this was getting out of hand.  “Mrs. Moore, you know I am not a student and I should not have needed a hall pass.  We just need to alert that teacher to who I am.” 

Mrs. Moore thought Christina was a little full of herself in her school girl uniform and all.  She pointed at the wooden bench on the wall and instructed, “Take a seat on the bench outside the principal’s office and I’ll let her know you are here.  She’ll let you know if you needed a pass and we’ll see how straight you are walking after your important MEETING.” 

Christina stormed over to the bench and sat down.  The bench was uncomfortable and she fidgeted trying to get more comfortable.

“You know after a discipline session, you won’t be able to sit like that for a long while.  And, stop fidgeting.”

Christina did not like how this conversation was going so she stopped moving and tried to focus on one of the pictures on the wall to take her mind off the uncomfortable bench. 

Mrs. Moore buzzed Sarah Winters and let her know her disciplinary case was waiting outside, on the bench.  Mrs. Winters laughed when she heard her emphasize “the bench.”

“I’ll let you know when I’m ready.  Let’s let her stew for a few minutes.”

Mrs. Moore smiled and hung up the phone.  She observed Christina and noted that she looked just like all the rest of the girls waiting to be disciplined.  The few additional years Christina had on them obviously did not help.  She returned to her work.

Christina was watching the clock now and she had been waiting for over fifteen minutes.  She didn’t want to get into another degrading conversation with Mrs. Moore, but she was getting sick and tire d of waiting.  Unconsciously, she started to fidget again.

“Young lady, I asked you not to fidget.  Sit still like a big girl.”  Mrs. Moore spat forth. 

Finally, the door opened and Sarah Winters looked at Christina.  Like Mrs. Moore, she observed that Christina looked just like any other little girl waiting for the principal.  “Christina, you can come in now.”  As Christina walked into the room, Sarah instructed, “Stand in front of this wooden chair in front of my desk.”

“Christina, please explain to me why I have a discipline form with your name on it.”

Christina quickly told her what had happened.  She told her how the nurse had provided the uniform.  She then described being stopped by the teacher in the hall.  She said the teacher did not care what she said and refused to listen to her perfectly good explanation. 

Sarah observed Christina as she told her story.  If she did not know better, she would have expected the same behavior from any one of her sixth graders.  She thought that was kind of funny. 

“Well Christina,” Sarah began, “you know we take discipline here very seriously.  And, while you found it insulting, I am happy to report that that teacher followed the rules to the letter.  She is not allowed to make a judgment call on your story.”  She paused.

“But, since you are not really a student and since you did not know the hall pass rule, I guess we can make an exception this one time.”  She smiled at Christina.

Christina’s relief was obvious.  She clearly did not know what was going to happen and had been considering what real punishment she might have received.  Sarah noted that, “However, we do have a problem.”

Christina was on edge again, “What problem?”

Sarah considered Christina, “While I may decide in this case to skip the punishment, I can not have this impact my overall student discipline.  Discipline is a strong incentive to control and manage the behavior of the students in this school.  And all those students know the rules.  Therefore, to protect my image and that of the school authority, you will have to follow the other rules as laid out in the school handbook.”

Christina was puzzled, “What rule is that?”

“Christina, when you signed on I told you to read and know the rules.  You agreed.  If you can not live up to the rules, then we should stop this experiment right now.”

Christina was caught off guard.  She did not have time to start another observation program.  She could not lose this opportunity or she would delay her degree by as much as a year or more.  “Sarah, I know I agreed to the rules and I will follow them. I am just unclear what we are talking about.”

“The school rule book says that “When someone is disciplined, they will be issued an Orange discipline ribbon.  It is a simple ribbon with a pin and two dangling inch wide ribbons which are clearly visible.  The discipline ribbon must be worn on the school uniform for the next two days.  This tells teachers and administrators to keep a closer look at the offender and watch for additional breaking of the rules.  If further problems arise, the ribbon is worn longer.  However, any indiscretions while wearing the ribbon are automatically brought to me for discipline during the day.  Can I expect you to follow the rules?  Because, I will expect a person with your background to be able to follow the simple rules we have around here.  And I won’t expect to let you off without discipline during the day.  During the day, other students will be around and I can not give anyone a pass on actual discipline when there are others around.”

“So, you are saying I need to wear this ribbon and follow the rules.  That is no big deal.  Of course I can follow the rules.  I have been since the starting of this project.”

“Christina, you are missing part of the rules.  It says that you have to wear the ribbon ON a School Uniform.  It’s not just the ribbon.  You have to wear the uniform for the next two days.  That is not that big a deal is it?  All the teachers know who you are and it should not affect you observing the classes; Right?”

“You want me to continue to wear the school uniform.  But, I’m not a student.”

“I know, but the rule does not specify a student.  It never considered the situation where a non-student would be disciplined.  The kids all memorize the rules.  They will know.  This is non-negotiable.  Are you agreeable?” 

Christina considered this and reluctantly agreed. 

“You’ve been staying with Mary Martin the fifth grade teacher right?”

“Yes, it was inconvenient to drive back and forth.  Mary heard about my project and offered to put me up.  She drives me back and forth each day and I am staying in one of her daughter’s old rooms.”

Sarah smiled, “That’s great.  Mary should have her daughter’s uniforms from when they attended the school.  She should be able to get you anything you need.  Have a seat and I’ll call her.”

Christina sat on the wooden chair she had been standing in front of all this time.  She felt like a kid being ordered around.

Several minutes later, Mary Martin and Sara Winters entered the office. 

“I found her in the hall.  Mary has the full uniforms and she says you should be the same size as one of her daughters.  So, here is your discipline ribbon.  Pin it on your uniform here.  I’ll let you and Mary work everything out.  And Mrs. Moore has another copy of the school handbook so you can refresh yourself on all the rules.  I expect you to be the model of good behavior.  Don’t force me to regret letting you off today.”

Christina was looking down at her small chest where there was a bright orange ribbon pinned to her left shoulder.  She felt like something was wrong, but she could not figure out what she had done wrong.

Mary was hustling her along and they headed home.

While one of Christina’s main research items was discipline and whether it worked or not, she had not had much of an opportunity to make any observations.  Since she had been here at the school, the class she was observing had had very little in the way of discipline problems.  So, in some ways, Christina saw this as an opportunity to learn more about the rules and implementation of the discipline policies.

On the drive home, Christina inquired regarding the actual discipline procedures at the school.  Mary explained that Mrs. Moore had been kidding her about the spanking.  First offences for discipline usually result in detention.  Detention sometimes consists of doing work around the school or being forced to do additional school work outside of the normal class work but on the same topics and using the same books.  Extended detentions can result in a student spending a lot of time basically writing a long essay or research project to get more knowledge in one of their classes.  These projects are identified by the grade level teachers and all students in the same grade are assigned the same topics.

Students who have been sent to detention are then flagged (with the orange ribbon) and watched for further misbehavior.  Depending on the number of incidents or the severity, extra days are added to detention, and / or a student may receive a spanking.  Spankings are done by the headmaster in the presence of at least one other administrator.  If a student gets into too much trouble, their parents or guardian is required to come in for a discussion with the headmaster and they usually must witness a discipline session.  Spankings may be done with the hand or with a paddle, again depending on the severity of the issue. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina had not really looked too carefully in the closet.  She had hung up a few of her outfits on the right side of the closet and she left her innerwear in her suitcase on the window sill.  Christina had not really looked at the rest of the closet because she did not want to snoop.  She was stunned to find that in the closet there were all kinds of clothes Mary’s daughter had left.  Most were childish clothes you would expect a younger girl to wear.  Along the left side of the closet were three school uniforms, blouses and two gym outfits.  On the floor were the school shoes.  Mary pointed out that there was an underwear drawer and Christina noticed the school socks were on one side of the drawer.  The other side held cotton full cut panties like Christina wore back in school.  She held up a pair and laughed remembering how much she hated wearing them. 

Later, Christina climbed into bed and opened the school handbook to make sure she did not cause any further embarrassment for herself or for Sarah.  Christina browsed the general activity rules and then looked at the uniform requirements.

Uniform section of the handbook:

The handbook laid out the basic uniform, blouse, socks and shoe requirements. 

When in the school uniform, no nail polish or other make-up will be worn.  Ears will have no more than two piercings located only in the lower lobe of the ear.  The lowest hole may have a simple loop or a dangle of no longer than ¾ inch in length.  Second earring holes will be empty when in uniform.  Jewelry for the ears will be gold or silver and may include a diamond, ruby, sapphire or similar single stone.  Costume jewelry resembling such items may be worn.  Jewelry will be understated and it is up to the staff to evaluate the appropriateness of jewelry. 

An Applegate ring is the only hand ornamentation allowed.  Other than previously mentioned earrings or the school ring, no other jewelry is allowed.

Hair may only be managed as follows.  Hair may be held with simple bobby pins, school uniform scrunchies, or the school uniform headband. 

When in uniform, all books and personal items will be carried in your hands or in a school issued backpack bearing the school insignia.  No purses, brief cases or other carryalls are acceptable.

When in the school uniform, individuals with a differential chest measurement of one inch between chest and bandwidth below the breast will wear a school approved brassiere in the appropriate size.  Otherwise, a school approved camisole will be worn under all school uniforms and gym outfits. 

Individuals wearing the school uniform will wear appropriate white cotton, full cut underwear at all times.  The school nurse or Mrs. Moore can answer any questions a student may have regarding whether specific items meet the uniform regulations. 

When in uniform and during school hours, no electronic devices of any kind may be used or in the individual’s possession.  All such devices will be turned in to the office at the start of the day and picked up after school hours.  Laptops for use in class may be allowed as needed.

The incident

Christina donned the school uniform along with her own white bra and matching underwear.  The panties were a high-cut style.  But, Christina assumed since they were white and would be worn under her uniform that no one would see them anyway.  She assumed this was consistent with the uniform requirements and did not actually give it any thought.  Surprisingly, Mary’s daughter’s shoes fit Christina. 

She affixed the stupid ribbon to her borrowed uniform.  After brushing her hair, she pulled the sides back and snapped a clip into the back of her hair like she had done all year long.  She grabbed her lap-top case which was a large bag she carried all her stuff in and left her purse at home.  She tossed her wallet and phone into the case and headed down for breakfast. 

Mary told Christina that her daughter’s old school bag was on the floor of the closet.  Christina told Mary that she needed her notes and her laptop to do the research she was working on and that Sarah would understand.  She was wearing the uniform as expected and she was already embarrassed enough.  But, she still had professional work to do and she would need her things to do that. 

Mary just nodded and shook her head. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina headed straight for the sixth grade homeroom.  She got several strange looks as she walked down the hall.  Upon entering the room, several of the girls immediately pointed and snickered when they noticed the detention ribbon. 

Margaret came over and apologized.  She felt the accident had been her fault.  Christina assured her it was no one’s fault.  Margaret and a few other girls asked about the ribbon.

Christina explained that she had been sent to the principal for detention after the incident in the hall.  The headmaster had taken care of her and told her that since she was in the uniform, she had to comply with certain rules.  And she had been told she needed to wear the ribbon for the next couple of days as required in the rules. 

All the girls nodded. They said they assumed she would have been given an exception.  Christina nodded and said she thought so too. 

As the bell rang, people scurried to their desks and Mrs. Kaufman, the homeroom teacher, entered the room. 

Mrs. Kaufman and the other teachers had been briefed on Christina’s situation and they were told not to tolerate any breaking of rules while she was wearing the uniform or the ribbon.  They were told that this situation was a test for all of them to make sure that the disciplinary structure was maintained since Christina had been wearing a uniform when given a discipline form in the halls yesterday.

Mrs. Kaufman immediately noticed that Christina no longer looked out of place in the back of the room.  She looked just like all the other students.

+++++++++++++++++++

The first two classes of the day were held in the homeroom.  Christina had pulled out her laptop and had done what she did every other day while observing.  As the class ended, she packed her things to move with the class to the next room. 

As Christina was heading for the door, Mrs. Kaufman noticed the hair clip in Christina’s hair.

“Christina, can you please come here for a moment before leaving?”

Christina redirected herself over to Mrs. Kaufman’s desk.  “Good morning.  What’s up?”

“Christina, we were all briefed on why you are suddenly wearing the school uniform and the detention ribbon.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty embarrassing.  But, it’s only for a couple of days.”

“Well, I’m sorry to tell you this.  But, the hair clip you are wearing is not acceptable for the school uniform.  I will have to note this, but I’ll just send a note to Mrs. Moore.  I’m sure it’s no big deal.  I have a school hair band in my desk.”

So Christina removed the clip and dropped it in her bag.  Mrs. Kaufman provided a headband which she slipped on.  Mrs. Kaufman observed that she looked even more like just another student. 

“Christina, one more thing.  I got a note from the office.  You are supposed to stop by the nurse’s office right after lunch.  Here is the note.  You need to have that with you to avoid the problem you had yesterday.”

Christina shook her head, took the proffered note and tucked it into her bag. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina had observed the other students with the ribbons in the past, but now she was on the lookout for them.  There were not that many of them. 

As she moved in the halls between the classes, people pointed and whispered.  She was obviously the hot topic today. 

After lunch, Christina made her way to the nurse’s office.  No one stopped to check on her hall pass.  She was almost disappointed. 

The nurse asked her how she was feeling.

Christina said she felt fine.  She had a mild headache but it was no big deal. 

The nurse asked here to sit up on the table for a minute. 

Christina sat there as she took her pulse and blood pressure.  The nurse then grabbed stethoscope and listened to her heart.  As she did so, she paused.

“Christina, I see you are wearing a bra today.”

“Of course, I am.  Don’t all the women?”

The nurse fumbled trying to phrase this carefully.  “When I helped you yesterday, I noticed that you were wearing a padded bra.”

Christina stared at her, “So?”

“Well, frankly, while you may be older than all of the students here, you have virtually no chest development.  And according to the school dress code, you should be wearing a camisole and not a bra.

“This is crazy.  I agreed to wear the uniform.  I wore white underwear like it said and now you’re saying I can’t wear the bra?”

“I am saying that you have two problems.  The bra you are wearing is white.  But it does not meet the school rules for an allowed bra.  In addition, because you have little chest development, you aren’t even supposed to wear the bra in the first place.  Look, before you get all excited let’s stop.  We all got a memo about your incident and we were told to treat you the same as anyone with a uniform or rule violation.  I will write this up and send it to the office.  They can deal with it and I am sure there is no problem.  Go on to class with what you are wearing and I’ll consult the headmaster’s office.” 

+++++++++++++++++++

Mrs. Moore knocked and entered.  Sarah looked up. 

“My, my, oh my.  It seems we have a few issues with Christina today.”

Sarah was surprised.  “Really!  What kind of issues?”

“Well, the homeroom teacher found her wearing a hair clip which was not part of the uniform.  She gave her a headband and removed the clip.  But Mrs. Kaufman assumed it was no big deal and just sent a note to the office.  Then the nurse was following up on her injury yesterday and found out she was wearing a bra.  Apparently, Christina does not meet the regulation chest size to wear a bra.  It’s all in the bra so to speak.  Again, she sent a note and dispatched Christina back to class.  How would you like to handle this?”

Sarah thought about this and she had devious twinkle in her eyes.  She looked at Mrs. Moore.  “Ask them both to fill out the appropriate discipline forms.  Get them back before the end of the day and then have Christina come to the office after last class.”

Mrs. Moore liked where this was going.  “I can do that.  Should I let her stew for a while when she gets here?”

“Well, of course.  Don’t we always make our discipline problems sit and think about how to do better?  She smiled and laughed.

Mrs. Moore left to get the forms.

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina was again fidgeting on the wooden bench outside the headmaster’s office.  She was beginning to feel like a bad student.  She wasn’t sure why she was here.  The bench was uncomfortable.  And, she wanted to go home and take off this silly uniform. 

Mrs. Moore was enjoying watching Christina get her comeuppance.  She really did look just like any other student sitting there.  And with her little ribbon, she was clearly identified as a problem student.  Sarah and Mrs. Moore made Christina sit on the bench for a good 20 minutes before she was ushered into the office.

Sarah instructed, “Christina, please come stand here in front of my desk.”

Christina stood where she had been assigned.

“I can’t tell you how disappointed I am in how this situation is shaping up.  Didn’t we have a clear agreement on what I expected of you?”

Christina was stunned.  “Of course, we did.  What happened?”

“I don’t know, I thought we would be through with this situation in a couple of days.”

“Well, that is my plan too.”

Suddenly, the headmaster looked at her very seriously, “Young lady, for a person who is supposed to have a plan, and a person who is older and more mature, I would have expected more from you.  If you had this plan, then why do I have two discipline forms on my desk with your name on them?”

Christina was stunned.  “What do you mean?  I have no idea.  What forms?”

“You apparently violated the simple dress code in two different ways.  You wore an illegal hair clip.  And then the Nurse tells my you were wearing a bra when you do not meet the regulations for wearing a bra.  Can you explain this?”

“I think I put the clip in subconsciously this morning.  It is true.  I did not even realize it till Mrs. Kaufman pointed it out.  But, I always wear a bra.  Why would someone not want a woman to wear a bra?”

“Young lady, I went out of my way to accommodate your research requests and this school has gone to great lengths to have clearly defined regulations.  The requirement says if you meet one set of measurements, you wear a bra.  Otherwise, you wear a camisole.  The camisoles are designed to give the correct coverage and they provide enough support for girls who have not begun to develop like you.”

Christina cringed at the insult. 

The headmaster continued, “As I said yesterday, I will not tolerate violations of the rules.  You have earned two new detentions.  I expect you to deal with this like the professional I know you are.  You will attend after school detention for the next two school days.  In addition, you will have to wear the detention ribbon for those days and three days following your last detention.”

“You don’t seriously expect me to go to detention?  Do you?”

“Yes I do!” Sarah Winters said emphatically.  “Or, you can get out now.  There will be no reconsideration and no second chance.  Decide now.”

“What do you expect me to do in detention?”

“Decide!”

Christina was totally flustered.  She thought about the situation.  She couldn’t just drop the project.  With her head hanging she replied, “I’ll do the detention.”

“Fine.  They will tell you what to do when you get there.  Your homeroom teacher, Mrs. Kaufman can tell you where to go.”

For a minute, Christina almost pointed out that she did not have a homeroom teacher.  But, she thought better of it and held her tongue. 

“I have asked Mary Martin to come to the office for a second day.”  She opened the door and Mary Martin came in. 

“Mrs. Martin, did you provide little Tina with a full uniform?”

“I most certainly did.  I provided everything she should need.”  Mary Martin looked at Christina and noticed the headband.

Headmaster Winters sounded like she was getting worked up again, “Well, Tina here was wearing a bra and the nurse says she is all padding and no chest.  She should have worn the school camisole.”

“I showed her the drawer where my daughter kept all her underwear for her uniform.  My daughter’s never had a problem with the uniform code, so if Tina,” She liked that name, “looked in the drawer, she should have everything she needs.”

Christina was getting annoyed by the Tina references.

Turning to Christina the headmaster continued, “Good.  Tina, I expect to have no more uniform violations or any other problems with you.  Do you understand?”

Christina was feeling like a kid being talked about and ignored.  She looked at Sarah and said, “Yes, I understand.  You will have no more problems with me.  I am totally embarrassed to have put you in this situation and it will not happen again.”

Mary Martin could tell that this session seemed to be designed to beat Christina down and she wanted to help so she added, “I hope you do Tina.  While you are living under my roof, you are a reflection on me and my family.  I never had these problems with my girls in the past and I will not allow you to tarnish our family’s reputation.  Do you understand that?”

“Of Course,” Christina answered before really considering the full meaning of the words.  She was embarrassed to have disappointed Mary Martin and now it appeared Mary felt this reflected on her.  Christina resolved to do everything she was expected to.

Christina turned to Mary and asked her, “Mary, I do not want to do anything that would reflect poorly on you.  Anything you think I need to do, you let me know and we will get this whole situation cleared up.”

“Well, why don’t the two of you take off.  I have some work to do here.  Mary, Tina will have detention for the next two days.”

Mary Martin was stunned.  This college girl, trying to get her PhD was getting detention in a grade school.  Something weird was going on. 

As they were driving home, Mary said to Tina, “If you are in detention for the next two days, there will be no TV and no playing on the Internet.  I always made my girls read a history book on nights when they got in trouble.  I’ll get you the book when we get home.  I expect you to be able to discuss your reading during breakfast tomorrow or you can extend your home discipline.”

Christina looked at her, “I need the internet to work on my research.  I’m not a kid…”

Mary cut her off.  “If you are not a kid then why are you going to detention in a grade school for the next two days?  If you are in detention in my grade school and you are living under my roof, you will follow my rules or you can move out.”

Christina realized she was in a losing battle.  She loved to read and she could put her research off for a day or so till this blew over.

+++++++++++++++++++

Mary Martin walked with Christina into the library/office at home.  She went to a section of large thick books and extracted a rather thick volume on Chinese dynasties and history. 

“Tina,” she started, “since you do not have any other homework right now, and since you can’t do your research without the internet, I expect you to spend at least three hours reading and taking notes on this book.  We will discuss it tomorrow morning.  I expect you to be bathed and in bed before nine o’clock this evening and any night when you are in detention.  It is well documented that students in detention in grade schools improve their grades and behavior when they get a good nights sleep.  When you act like a Grade school student you can go to bed at a reasonable bed time.  No back talk.  Get to it.”

Mary pointed at a leather chair and Christina moved towards it.  She decided to let things settle down for a while.  She felt like she was a kid back home and her mother was telling her what to do.  She felt this was wrong.  But, she did not want to offend Mary and she needed to get her research done so she could get her degree.

While the reading was dry, Christina found she was interested in the history since she had never had any of this information in any other class she had studied over the years.  China, especially old china, was an area barely covered in most schools.

Mary stuck her head in and told Christina dinner was ready.  They had a quiet meal and Christina migrated to her bedroom and prepared for bed.  She read some more of the book and made notes.  As a researcher and a PhD candidate, she was always interested in learning new things.  Mary came by and told her it was time for lights out.

Christina felt silly, but she closed the book and turned off the light.  She thought about the last few crazy days and tried to figure out what she was doing wrong.  She needed to get away from these distractions so she could focus on her work. 

+++++++++++++++++++

The next morning, Christina did her morning ablutions and stepped up to the closet.  She donned another pair of her white panties and opened the drawer of the dresser.  Tentatively, she pulled out one of the camisoles from the middle of the drawer.  The fit was snug.  What little development she had was flattened out by the camisole.  She grabbed the headband she wore yesterday and pulled it over her head.  She then slipped the front up to her forehead and pushed the sides behind her ears.  When she looked in the mirror, she had a flashback to her childhood.  She looked ridiculous.  This underwear stripped away all the years and put her back to a simple grade school look.  She started to mildly hyperventilate.  She was going to cry. 

“Tina,” she heard Mary calling.  “We have to go so we aren’t late for school.”

Christina tried to pull herself together.  She slipped the blouse on and dropped the uniform over her head.  She pulled on the silly uniform shoes and pinned her ribbon to the uniform. 

As Mary watched little Tina, yeah she liked that name, come bounding down the stairs, she was astounded by the regression of this outspoken college PhD student to looking exactly like any other student at the school.  Well, of course, little Tina had the detention ribbon that few people were sporting at any given time. 

Mary walked over to Tina and fingered her shoulder. 

“I just wanted to make sure you were not wearing that big girl Bra again,” Mary snickered at the joke, but took satisfaction rubbing little Tina’s ego in this clear demotion.  “So you had no trouble finding the appropriate underwear in your drawer?”

Christina was confident that Mary was kidding her, “Yes, I used one of the camisoles from the drawer and I did not wear my bra.  They were right next to the socks where you showed me the other day.”

Mary sensed an undercurrent because Christina mentioned the camisole and the socks specifically.  “And, you selected your underwear from the same drawer, right?”

“No, I had some white underwear that meets the regulations.  I’m not wearing little girl’s underwear.”

Mary looked at her and said, “Tina, I hope you’re right.  I don’t think Ms Winters is going to look too kindly on a third day in her office.  Are you sure you don’t want to change?”

“No, I am not changing.  I am not a little girl.  Let’s go.”

Mary and Christina went out to the car and headed out for school.

+++++++++++++++++++

After getting to school, Mary filled out a note to the headmaster and suggested that Christina should have a full uniform check to ensure that she met the requirements.  The implication was clear to Sarah.  She decided to see how the day went before moving on this information.

Mrs. Kaufman was pleased to see Christina with her headband and her uniform on.  She was much more comfortable having all the girls dressed the same.  Christina seemed to be following the rules today.  After class, Christina approached Mrs. Kaufman and whispered that she was supposed to go to detention after school and asked where she was supposed to go.  Mrs. Kaufman told her what room to go to and said she would see her there to assign her detention assignment.  She shook her head as she watched Christina leave.  It was hard to see the college girl in the student leaving her room who was scheduled to be in detention later. 

Christina tried to behave herself.  Over lunch, she found herself telling some of the other girls about her detention and asking them questions about what was involved.  This was all good information for her research project.  The students had avoided her until the last few days.  It seems that her being reduced to the school uniform and detention caused the other girls to bond with her. 

She was happy that she at least had someone to talk to during breaks.  Up until now she had felt like an outsider. 

Several of the girls warned her that she needed to make sure to avoid breaking any more rules because they figured she was pretty close to a paddling.  The detentions would be expanded and she would be stuck this way for weeks. 

Christina took this all to heart and assured them she had no intention of breaking anymore rules. 

Christina was sure everything was going well.  However, after lunch, the nurse stuck her head in the classroom where she was.  The nurse told Christina she needed to see her for a few minutes.

Christina and the nurse went directly to the headmaster’s office.  Sarah was waiting for them.  

Christina was unclear what was happening.  She asked, “What is the matter?”

Sarah Winters answered her question.  “Hopefully nothing is wrong.  We felt that after the last couple of days that we should simply verify that you are actually following the uniform rules.  You assured me you would follow the rules and everyone says you have been following the rules today.”

The Nurse closed the door. 

Sarah continued, “Tina, I need you to pop off your uniform so we can verify that you are following our underwear requirements.  We should be all done with this in a moment.”

“Sarah, I don’t understand.  I have not broken any rules and yet I feel like you are trying to ….”

The headmaster cut her off, “Tina, stop talking.  You agreed to follow the rules.  I don’t care about anything else.  I want to know if you can be trusted when you give your word.  Take off the uniform.”

The nurse stepped behind her and lifted the hem of the uniform over Christina’s head.  Christina unbuttoned the blouse and showed them the childish camisole. 

Sarah could barely keep her amusement under control.  Christina looked like any grade school youngster.  She had no chest and in this outfit, no one could possibly believe that she was anything but a sixth grade student.  Then she realized that Christina’s panties were clearly non-regulation.  She looked at the nurse and she nodded and shook her head.

Christina saw the look and asked, “What?”  She was honestly shaking she was so nervous.  “I wore everything I should have.  Why are you shaking your head?”  The nurse and headmaster heard the whine and trembling in Christina’s voice just like any scared child in this situation.

Sarah looked at her.  In her strong headmaster’s voice she said, “Little Tina, it appears your word is no good.  These panties are a clear violation of the uniform code.  Did you even read the requirements?  Can you read?  How could someone like you be here having this problem?  I am done coddling you.  This is a flagrant violation and it will be dealt with as such.  You have earned 6 from the learner paddle.”

Christina yelled, “What?  I didn’t earn anything.  Are you…

“Shut up young lady.  You will not interrupt me when I am handing out your discipline.”

Christina would not keep her mouth shut.  “I am a woman and I will not be paddled like some kid. …”

“That’s an additional 3.  Keep talking and you won’t be able to sit for a week.”

Christina was trying to figure out how to get a handle on this.  “Please, please, just explain what is happening here?” she whined.

Sarah noticed that Christina was starting to cry and she was whining.  She hadn’t even gotten to the discipline part and little Tina was already falling apart. 

“I am the headmaster of this school.  You agreed to follow our rules.  You agreed to any penalties if you broke the rules.  You broke the rules and you apparently did it on purpose.  Now that you are going to be punished, you want to argue.  You sound just like any other student that receives news of their punishment.  You want to negotiate and argue.  I am in charge.  You will be punished.  You will receive 10, unless of course you want to continue to argue.  Please stand at the desk.  Nurse, hold her arms.”

The nurse stood across the desk from Christina and reached out and pulled her arms towards her.  This caused Christina to bend over the desk leaving her behind exposed.

The headmaster retrieved a paddle that resembled a ping pong paddle and came up behind Christina. 

“Tina, you have been sentenced to 10 strokes with the paddle.  School rules require you to ask me to give you your punishment.”

Christina looked up at the nurse with a surprised expression.  “What?  You want me to ask for it?”

“Yes Tina, ask me to give you your discipline.  Ask me now or the penalty will be worse.”

Without thinking, Christina found herself asking for it, “Sarah, can you give me my discipline?”

“Young lady, I am the headmaster of this school and you will never refer to me by my first name when dressed as a student.  And that is especially true when you are awaiting discipline.  You will only refer to me as headmaster or Ms Winters from now on.  Do you understand?”

Christina quickly responded, “Yes, I understand.”

“Then, let’s try this again.”

“Headmaster, can you give me my discipline?”

“That is better, but you should refer to it as a paddling.  Try again.”

Christina felt ridiculous.  She was crying before the paddling began and found herself almost begging, “Headmaster, please give me my paddling.”

“I think that is appropriate.” Sarah responded.  She nodded to the nurse who firmed her grip on Christina’s wrists.  Christina was wearing only her blouse hanging open and the camisole and panties.  Sarah pulled the offending panties down to her knees. 

As Christina started to complain, Sarah let the first swat land firmly.

Christina’s complaint was cut off by a yelp.  Sarah then proceeded to deliver the first 6 strokes with a firm hand.  Then she paused.  “That is your initial penalty of six.”  Christina was crying like every girl was after six good swats.

“And, now the extra four,” And Sarah lifted her arm fully back and made sure that this was the hardest swat so far.  She carefully timed the next three.

There was a pause.  Christina was screaming, crying and trying to pull away.  But now she relaxed since she had gotten the full ten strokes.

Suddenly, Sarah delivered two more quick hard smacks.  One was focused on each of her buttocks.  And, that is for not keeping quiet when told to and for referring the headmaster by her first name.  This is a discipline session and every person who enters must understand who is in charge and that the stated penalties for inappropriate behavior will be delivered when earned.

Christina was heaving.  Her rear end was on fire.  She was so sorry for interrupting and for breaking the rules.  It would not happen again.  What was wrong with her?  Her face was soaked from her tears.  The nurse still held her arms.

“Tina, the nurse will let you go in a second.  When she does, you are to walk over to the corner near the bookshelf and stand facing the wall.  You will join your hands on top of your head.  Do not touch your underwear.  Just stand there and think about this for a few minutes while you calm down.  By the way, you have earned an additional two days of wearing the ribbon.” 

The nurse let go of her arms.  Christina grabbed her wrist and held her arms on top of her head.  She waddled over to the corner.  She was standing in the corner like some toddler in a timeout.  She was still crying. 

After ten minutes, the headmaster told her she could pull up her underwear, get dressed and the nurse would take her to the nurse’s station.  Once in the nurse’s office, she told Tina to remove her underwear.  Christina did so and was handed a pair of thick, full cut cotton panties.  She pulled them on under her uniform.

Christina winced as the panties gripped her tortured bottom.  The nurse gave her a pass and told her to go back to class. 

Unknown to Christina, students who had been in and out of the office during the paddling had all heard her cries and wailing.  Word spread.

Christina returned to class and several students gave her knowing glances.  She sat down gingerly and popped back up for a second.  Finally she forced herself to sit.  She winced and gritted her teeth.  After pulling out her laptop, she tried to focus on the class and her observations.  But all she could think about was the pain in her bottom and how she had disappointed everyone by behaving so poorly. 

After the last class, Christina made her way to the room designated for detention.  There were only three other students in the room.  She stood and walked around until a teacher entered the room.  Mrs. Kaufman arrived and asked Christina to come to the front of the room. 

She pulled out an assignment description and asked Christina to sit down for a moment.  She noticed Christina wincing as she sat down and realized the rumors were true.  The headmaster had paddled the college PhD for a uniform violation. 

“Now Christina, let me explain the detention process.  I know you have looked into it but of course now you are looking at it from a different perspective.  In the sixth grade, we have students in detention do a research project which is based on the coursework we are studying in class.  You have probably looked at some of this material in your schooling.  However, you are going to need a good basis in the basics to be able to do this project successfully.  You will be required to spend all detention time doing research on the assigned topic.  You must then spend time at home preparing a final report.  It is expected that the home portion will take at least as long as you spend in detention.  Detention is two hours after school.  So you have been given two days of detention prior to today and I understand that two more will be added.  So you will be expected to spend those eight hours doing research and then you will have a week to complete the report.”

“Okay.  Sounds like a lot of work.”  Christina remarked thoughtfully.

“More importantly, you need to catch up on the in class portion of the subject matter to have the proper basis.  I suggest you start doing all of the reading assigned in class and catch up with where the class is.  Otherwise your report will be rejected and you will have to do it again.  This will actually be a lot more work for you than a regular student because you will have to do the regular work and the detention project.  The topic has to do with Western Civilization which is our history topic this term.”

Christina shook her head and looked at the floor.  “Wow, this is going to kill my research and take away almost all of my work time.  Mrs. Martin has already given me some studies because of the detention and I guess I’ll have to put things on hold till I get this project done.”

“Well I suggest that when you are in history class, you should concentrate on taking notes on the class instead of working on your research until the project is done.  I brought you a copy of the book we are using in class.  You will need it to keep up in class.  I think that since everyone knows you are working on the detention project that I may ask you questions in class once in a while to allow you to talk about your studies outside of the regular work and to make sure you understand what we are doing in the class.”

Christina reluctantly agreed. 

Christina spent the time in detention reading the early portions of the book to try and catch up to where the class was.  At the end of detention, she put the book in her bag and went to find Mrs. Martin so they could go home.  Mrs. Martin had agreed to stay late for a couple of days so she could give Christina a ride home after the detention. 

Mary Martin let Christina know how utterly disappointed she was in the situation.  She could not believe that after everything else including an option this morning, Christina had gone ahead and broken the dress code rules.

When they reached the house, Mary told Tina, as she was referring to her, to go in the study and begin her homework and her home project.  She told her she did not expect to see Christina working on anything but her history class work, detention work or the home penalty work until she had caught up on her studies.  As Christina expected, she was not going to get much research done in the next week or more.

After dinner Christina returned to her room and noticed that the suitcase she kept with her personal items seemed to be missing.  She mentioned it to Mrs. Martin and Mary told her she had put it away.

Christina was stunned, “What do you mean you put it away?” she asked indignantly.

Mary Martin suddenly dropped into upset mother tone and looked Christina in the eye, “Don’t you dare talk to me that way young lady.  You obviously can not be trusted to select your clothing.  So, since you are wearing a grade school uniform every day, I saw no need for you to have at your disposal your case full of adult bras, panties and other little dainties which are against the rules.  You can’t wear make-up. And, you can’t wear jewelry.  Therefore, there is nothing in that bag you need.  And since you are acting like a little kid, I thought it best to remove the temptation.  There are plenty of regulation acceptable clothes in the dresser.  And to avoid any more embarrassment on my part, I will do a uniform check on you before you are allowed to leave for school in the morning.  My girls figured it out by the third grade, but I am happy to make sure you have no more uniform violations.  Is that understood?”

Christina was chastised, and had clearly disappointed Mrs. Martin.  She was upset about her personal things being taken.  “But, what about my nightgowns and on the weekend?”

Mary stared at her.  “Little Tina, the lower drawer of the dresser has plenty of appropriate night clothes for someone in sixth grade detention.  And, with all the work you have to do, I doubt Little Tina will be going to the playground or anywhere else for a while.  On the weekend, I am sure there are plenty of outfits in the closet and the dresser that will be appropriate for you while you work on your sixth grade study projects. If we need something from the bag, or if you grow out of these problems, I can always retrieve it for you.”

Christina thought the attitude was a bit smug, but she was right that Christina should be embarrassed about being in grade school detention.  If she focused herself on the tasks at hand this would all be done with in about a week or so and they could get back to where they were before. 

“Alright, Mary, I’m sorry I got upset about the bag.”

Mary thought for a second and said, “Since you are acting and dressing like a student, I am worried about that happening at school.  During this period, you should refer to me as Aunt Mary or Mrs. Martin.  No first name basis until we are through this return to grade school.  Don’t you agree?”

Christina thought it was stupid.  But, she did not want to get Mary mad at her.  “Okay, I understand … Aunt Mary”

Christina found a night shirt with kittens on it in the dresser and slipped it on.  It felt childish, but at the moment, that is what she thought Mary Martin wanted.

+++++++++++++++++++

The next morning, Mrs. Martin advised Christina that she could not stay after school today to give her a ride home.  Therefore, she would arrange for Christina to be able to ride the late afternoon bus which took sports players, club participants and detention students home.  The bus would drop her off about two blocks from the house.  Christina asked why she could not drive her own car. 

“Really Tina, do you think a girl in a sixth grade school uniform should be driving a car to school?  And do you think they have parking for students?  I put your car keys and your driver’s license along with your other documents in your suitcase.  You are in detention and all aspects of your life right now will be dealt with based on that knowledge.  You realize the average sixth grade student is eleven years old?  I will not have my Little Tina getting into any more trouble.” 

Christina was really getting annoyed by the “little Tina” references.  “But, I am not eleven.  I own a car and I have a driver’s license.”

“I doubt you can prove that today or anytime in the next few days.  Why don’t you toddle on down to the license office in your school uniform and ask them to get you a copy of your license?  You’ll probably get arrested.”

“Mary, this is ridiculous.  “

Mary cut her off, “What did I tell you about my name?  We will discuss this violation when you get home from school; after you ride on the school bus.  And after you do your homework.  And then finally you can discuss breaking simple rules in my house.  Get your things.  We are leaving.”

Before walking out the door, Mrs. Martin lifted Christina’s skirt and took her time looking at the full cut children’s underwear.  She checked that Christina had the camisole on and that she had not violated the jewelry rules.  Her headband was in place.  After completing her uniform inspection, Christina felt defeated and they went to get in the car.

+++++++++++++++++++

The ride to school was quiet.

Christina went directly to the homeroom and awaited Mrs. Kaufman.  The full cut panties were thick and uncomfortable.  She was used to thin stylish underwear.  They also seemed to scratch and tease her sore bottom from yesterday.

At the end of the history class, as students were leaving, Mrs. Kaufman asked Christina how far she had read in the textbook.  She reported that she was still several chapters behind the class and hoped to be caught up after the weekend or early next week.  Some of the other girls heard the conversation and asked her about it at lunch.  Margaret offered to help her study if she needed help. 

Christina was on pins and needles as the day ended and she was not called to the office.  She got on the bus and found a seat alone.  As the bus was driving, it was clear that she would be dropped off in the later portion of the route.  So she pulled out her cell phone and called a friend from school.  They caught up on things and Christina glossed over her problems. 

As she was being dropped off, the bus driver asked her name for the records.

On Saturday, Christina could not find any of her casual clothes and assumed that Mary had stored them along with her other things.  She looked in the dresser and retrieved a pair of the childish panties covered in flowers which seemed to be in abundance.  She did not want to go bra less and her only alternative was one of the camisole tops.  She found a pair of pink and white shorts and a tight pink childish t-shirt.  One look in the mirror confirmed her fears.  She looked even more childish than in the school uniform.  She pulled a pair of crocks from the closet and went downstairs to talk to Mary Martin. 

As Christina entered the kitchen, Mary Martin’s face lit up. 

“Tina!  That is a cute outfit.  But, you have to do something with your hair.”

Christina had an obvious look of displeasure on her face.

“Mary, I look like a little kid.  No one would take me seriously in this kind of outfit.”

Mary took her by the hand and led her back to the bedroom.  She grabbed a brush and ran it through Christina’s hair.  She stood behind Christina as she brushed her hair and pulled a scrunchy on to a pony tail. 

“Tina, what did I tell you about my name?  That is twice now.  Call me Aunt Mary, or else.”

Christina was distracted by the correction and responded, “I’m sorry Aunt Mary.  It just seems like too many things have happened in the last few days.  I feel like my life is out of control.”

“Frankly, Tina, I have been wondering if your life is out of control.  I mean, how does a college student studying for a PhD in education end up in grade school detention for at least a week?  You were told a simple set of rules and you seemed to try to find a way to fail.  Can you explain that to me?”

Christina was looking in a mirror in the bedroom and with her hair now in a ponytail, Mary had succeeded in making her look even more juvenile.  Christina started to answer Mary when Mary interrupted.

“Tina, let’s go back to the kitchen and we can talk about it while we get some breakfast.”

Back in the kitchen; they prepared breakfast and Mary began.

“Tina, what do you think the problem is?  How did we get here?”

“Well, it all started with the accident.  I guess I wasn’t looking and I tripped.  That led to my trip to the nurse and ending up in a school uniform.  Then that WOMAN stopped me in the hall and gave me some form.  If it wasn’t for her, everything would have all blown over.”

“Now, Tina let me stop you for a second.  You say the accident was probably because you were not looking where you were going, right?” Mary paused and looked at Christina.

“Yes that’s right.”

“And this woman you are referring to is Miss Watson right?”

“I guess.  She never introduced herself.”

“Do you think she broke any rules or did something wrong by giving you the discipline form?”

“No.  Probably not.  Sarah said she was happy the woman gave me the form.  She said it meant that Miss Watson was following the guidelines.”

“So your main beef with this WOMAN, Miss Watson, is that you wish she had broken the rules and let a student, unknown to her, break the rules?  Because that sounds like a silly argument and one I would expect from a child and not an adult.”

“Well, when you put it that way it does sound wrong.  It’s just that if I could have gone back to the room everything would have worked out fine.  We wouldn’t have any of these other problems.”

Mary paused and then said, “Well, why don’t we discuss the other things that happened after you got the form and visited the headmaster.”

“I read the dress code carefully.  It said I had to wear a white bra and underwear.  I admit that I should not have worn the hair clip, but I have been wearing it every day to the school until now.”

Mary asked, “So did you understand the hair clip was a violation of the dress code?”

“Yes, it was just a mistake.”

Mary continued, “And did you read the regulations regarding Bras and camisoles?”

“Of course I read it.  I just assumed that since I was a woman and should wear a bra that no one in their right mind would raise some issue.”

“So, you wore the hair clip but knew it was wrong.  And you assumed that you could wear the bra because of your age, not because it was part of the uniform.  Oh and by the way, the bra you wore would not have met the school bra regulations.  So it was a violation either way.  And we have already discussed the underwear.  You wore it every day knowing full well it was not what the uniform called for.  You wanted special treatment because of who you are or because you thought you were an exception.”

Mary looked at Christina.  “Young lady, I think it is time for you to take a hard look at yourself and the research you are doing.  Let me provide an outside analysis of what happened.  You did not pay attention and caused an accident which potentially injured yourself and other students.  You were not focused on what you were doing or where you were.  You want to rebuke a teacher for doing her job even though you admit she was doing the right thing.  Then you are given a free out by the headmaster.  And every day you have gone out of your way to willingly violate multiple portions of the dress code because you decided not to follow the rules.  Now that you are being punished for not following the rules, the question is will you change your behavior?  I expect you will change your behavior or you will never get back to college at this rate.” 

Christina was astounded.  Mrs. Martin had just laid out an argument that Christina herself was an example of a person working within the ground rules of the grade school.   She was now being managed by discipline and rules.  She herself was sitting here on a Saturday wearing childish clothing from the skin out looking to all the world like a little kid.  She still felt the effects of the paddling.  And, she had already committed to herself to change her behavior.  Her research was on hold so she could do the sixth grade homework and special projects. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Following their discussion, Aunt Mary told Christina to follow her into the office.  Mary sat in one of the sturdy chairs and motioned for Christina to come closer. 

Mary continued her lecture, “With children we often have to help them focus.  We create rules and procedures to help them operate within boundaries we want.  We punish them for not staying focused and for going outside of the boundaries we set.  We reward or praise them when they do what we want.  As they grow up, we expect them to be able to set their own boundaries.  You are in trouble for the same reason that any other sixth grade student would be.  And as a student of discipline and incentives, you are learning that these tools will affect the way you behave in the future.  It will probably help you in your studies and your research.  Of course, that assumes you can behave and get back to your research.”

Mary paused and looked sternly at Christian, “Now Little Tina, we have another issue to discuss.  I realize that sometimes children have trouble following rules.  That is why we have discipline.”

Christina quickly interjected, “I know what you mean.   I’m trying to follow the rules and I have to admit the discipline has probably influenced me to try harder.”

Mary Continued, “That’s wonderful Tina.  However, I was really discussing behavior at home.  I have repeatedly told you not to address me by my first name.  You however as recently as this morning continue to test me.  It is time to pay the price”

With that, Mary reached up and tugged little Tina across her lap.  Caught off guard, Tina fell directly into position across her lap. 

“You will learn to address the adults in your life in an appropriate way.”  Mary held Christina down with one hand and yanked her shorts and panties down towards her knees. 

With that task completed, she began to spank Tina.  By the time, she let up, Tina was crying and promising she would be good and follow the rules.  She assured Aunt Mary that she would never call her by the wrong name again. 

+++++++++++++++++++

On Monday, the plan was for Christina to ride into school with Mrs. Martin and for her to ride the bus home so Mrs. Martin did not have to sit around the school while Little Tina was in detention. 

After their talk over the weekend, Christina had resolved to obey all the rules and get out of this situation.  She re-read all the rules and resolved to do better.

She dressed carefully on Monday and confirmed with Mary that she met all the uniform requirements.  Mary prepared breakfast for Christina like she always had for her own kids. 

Mrs. Kaufman told Christina that she was supposed to go to the office when the class had morning recess.  Christina spent the rest of the morning worrying about why she needed to go to the office.

Mrs. Moore acknowledged Christina and asked, “Tina, do you have a cell phone?”

Christina was taken aback, but answered, “Yes, I have a cell phone.”

“Do you have it here at school?”

“Yes, that’s what I thought you were asking.”

“Well young lady, cell phones are supposed to be turned in at the desk in the morning and picked up after school classes are over.  Also, you are not allowed to use a cell phone anywhere on campus or on the school buses.  We received a report that you were using a cell phone on the bus last Friday.  Do you remember that?”

“Yes, I did use the phone on Friday on the bus.  I did not realize that was against the rules, but I understand that it is my fault and please tell me what I need to do.”

Mrs. Moore was surprised by her quick agreement and admission of guilt.  “First of all, you need to drop the phone off with me if you are going to bring it to school while in uniform.  Frankly, it might make more sense for you to leave it at home.  I don’t know if you should have had it before our recent issues.  You shouldn’t need to make or receive calls during the day.  Shouldn’t you be focused on what is happening at school?”

Christina extracted her phone from the bag and gave it to Mrs. Moore.  Mrs. Moore put a note with the phone.   “You can drop by and pick it up after detention.  I believe that the headmaster will be adding more days to your detention for these violations.  I will let you know this afternoon.”

Christina felt her heart flutter at the idea of additional detention being added.  But, she tried to take it like a responsible person and nodded before turning to leave.

Over lunch, Christina explained why she had to go to the office during the recess break.  Most of the kids from class felt Christina was being mistreated.  However, as always there were girls that believed Christina was getting favored treatment.  They figured it was fun to see this older girl demoted to wearing the uniform and having her participate in class and detention.  Everyone understood that Christina was now required to follow the dress code and all the other regulations. 

Christina spent the rest of the day following the rules.  After detention, she dropped by the office to pick up her phone.  Mrs. Moore advised her that this problem had been ongoing since last week and the use of the phone was in addition to the not turning it in.  Therefore, the headmaster had advised her to add 5 days to the detention.  She also said the headmaster hoped this was the end of all these problems.

Christina assured her that she wanted it to be over as much as the headmaster. 

+++++++++++++++++++

On the bus, several girls made fun of the fact that Christina had been in detention for so long.  Christina tried to ignore them and just let it pass.  Finally, she reached her stop and departed the bus.

After Mary was told of the new detention, she confiscated Christina’s phone.  With no cell phone or internet access, Christina felt cut off from the world.  She had her laptop to take notes, but she could not get to the internet. 

With her detention work and the assignments from Aunt Mary, Christina didn’t really have time for much else.  She was still behind on the class assignments and that ate up what little free time she had. 

When she arrived at school on Tuesday, Christina let Mrs. Moore know that she no longer had a cell phone and would not be dropping it off.  Mrs. Moore complimented her on the decision.  Although it was not really her decision, she accepted the praise and went to homeroom.  Strange she thought to herself, she thought of her morning ritual now as getting ready for school and when she arrived she looked forward to getting to “her” homeroom.  But, that wasn’t really right was it?  She put the thoughts into the back of her mind and went to homeroom.

At detention on Tuesday afternoon, Christina was told that due to the length of her detention, she was being given a second assignment.  This project brought together aspects of topics covered in the math and science classes.  Mrs. Kaufman also pointed out that her writing, organization and documentation would need to conform to items being covered in their English/Writing classes. 

Mrs. Kaufman had a long talk with Christina regarding these issues.  Christina had never excelled at math or science.  And her dissertation was a totally different type of writing style and was inconsistent with what was expected for these projects.  Mrs. Kaufman urged Christina that if she wanted to succeed, that she needed to be more fluent and up to date on the subject matter of these other classes.  Christina agreed and they decided that Christina would have to put her research work during class time on hold so that she could pay attention and understand the class material.  Mrs. Kaufman told her that she thought it would make sense for Christina to do the assignments and possibly even take the tests just to ensure she was keeping up.  Christina felt this was going too far, but Mrs. Kaufman reminded her that she needed to get these issues behind her so she could complete her detention and get back to the work which was why she was actually here. 

Christina rode the bus home and got more harassment.

On Wednesday, Christina took notes on her notebook and was clearly more interested in the class material.  She had been given all of the textbooks and course outlines. 

At lunch several of the girls asked why she seemed to be reading and following in all the textbooks.  Christina explained her problem.  Margaret and some of the other girls offered to help Christina catch up.  They offered to give up recess and meet with her on the weekend to help study.  Christina was actually excited to have some interaction with some of the other girls.  Her only social outlet for weeks had been time with Mrs. Martin. 

More and more, Christina had found herself joining in on the silly conversations the girls had at lunch or recess.  She wanted to interact with them and found herself picking up their style of speech.  She unconsciously mimicked them to try and fit in. 

+++++++++++++++++++

On Thursday, a couple of the girls that did not like Christina went to Mrs. Moore and asked why Christina got to take her class notes on a laptop when no one else was allowed to.  Mrs. Moore alerted Sarah Winters.  The headmaster and Mrs. Kaufman had discussed telling Christina to participate and study in the classes to ensure her project went along smoothly.  But these girls were right.  If Christina was not using the laptop for her research, she did not really need it. 

Mrs. Moore notified Christina that after today, she should not bring the laptop to school anymore.  She explained that when her research started up again, Christina could start using it again at the school.  Mrs. Moore assured her that she would let her know when her laptop rights had been reinstated. 

Christina had not taken notes in a paper notebook in years.  In fact she used the laptop because her handwriting had never been very good in the first place.  It allowed her to work faster and avoided anyone having trouble reading her notes. 

Aunt Mary told Christina that if she was not using the laptop for her research and was not allowed to use it at school in “her” classes, then it should be put away with her phone since she had no internet access until detention was over.  Christina was annoyed at the reference to “her” classes.  But she tried to take this further demotion in stride.

On Friday, Christina found herself writing notes in her new notebooks and trying to follow the class work.  She participated in a pop quiz and felt she failed the test.  She knew she would have to spend the entire weekend working and reading just to try to figure out what was going on in these classes.  Any thoughts of her research were drifting into the background. 

On Friday, Christina’s enemies asked Mrs. Moore why Christina got to use a special bag instead of the one required in the school rules.  Mrs. Moore tried to explain that it had been for her laptop and research.  But the girls reminded her that Christina was no longer working on her research since she was working on the class material.  Mrs. Moore noted that she would “tell Little Tina” to start using the school backpack.

Unluckily, Mrs. Moore’s slip led to all of Christina’s detractors calling her little Tina.

Upon her return home, Aunt Mary placed Christina’s bag on the table and transferred the appropriate class related material into a school book bag and took Christina’s bag to be stored with her other things.

+++++++++++++++++++

On Saturday, Christina was looking for clothes to wear when she noticed that even the clothes she had hung in the closet were now missing.  Looking around the room, she realized that there was not one personal item she had brought into this home.  She had no clothes, no purse, no id, no electronics, no access to the outside world, and she was even wearing children’s underwear. 

She just sat on the bed and tried to understand what was happening. 

Aunt Mary called from downstairs.  “Tina, get dressed.  You have to have breakfast.  I poured you some cereal and orange juice.  Margaret is coming over to help you study in half an hour.”

Christina thought back to how she usually had a Starbuck’s coffee and some simple biscotti on Saturday.  The breakfasts she had eaten all this week were similar and reminded her of what she ate when she was younger.

She hadn’t had a coffee in over a week.  Wow, this was a stark realization.   She loved her coffee and considered herself a connoisseur.  Now, she was drinking milk and orange juice and eating cereal. 

She hadn’t worked out in weeks.  But, she was running around a little bit at the recess period at school.  She had started going outside with the other girls and found herself pulled into some of their games because they needed another person.  At least she got in some running.

In an attempt to have some variety in her life, Christina selected some childish panties with flowers on them and then some white shorts Aunt Mary had suggested.  She grabbed a midriff baring camisole with spaghetti straps and an inner layer like a bandeau bra.  The top eliminated any illusion of a chest.  But it was not a T-shirt and she did not feel the need to wear the silly tight camisole undershirt. 

Her outfit, along with a pair of pink canvas tennis shoes with flowers on them completely eliminated any possibility of being considered more than a child.  Since she was staying in the house and her clothing options were limited, she just accepted it and moved on. 

In a subtle way, Aunt Mary had been trying to make clothing suggestions without telling Christina what to wear.  She was happy that Christina was not trying to make herself look older.  If anything, Christina seemed to be embracing the clothing situation. 

After breakfast, Christina went to the study and began reading some of the class textbooks.  Shortly thereafter, Margaret arrived.  Soon they were going through the different class subjects and Margaret was helping to determine where Tina needed to work to catch up.  They spent the rest of the morning reading and working together on some of the past assignments to try to help Tina catch up.

Mary Martin asked Margaret to stay for lunch and after checking in with her mom, they took a break and ate together.  Aunt Mary quizzed them on where they thought Tina was in the different subjects and what she needed to work on.  Margaret assured her that Tina would soon be caught up with the rest of the class. 

Mary heard the girls giggling in the library periodically.  They took a break and Christina showed Margaret her room.  Margaret was surprised by all the clothes.  Christina told her she could not use the internet or her cell phone until after detention was complete.  Mary heard whispering and more giggles.

Soon the girls were back studying and Mary offered to take them for ice cream before dropping Margaret off at home.  The girls both thought that sounded like fun.  It was not until they were in the car that Mary noticed the reality dawning on Christina.  She was out in public dressed like a little girl.  She voiced her concern that she should stay in the car.  Margaret convinced her that she looked fine and she wouldn’t see anyone either of them knew anyway. 

Christina was extremely nervous as they entered the store.  But they quickly made their selections and moved to a table to eat.  They talked about other people in the store and Margaret seemed to keep the conversation moving so Christina didn’t focus on being out in public.  Margaret even got a few giggles out of Christina.

After dropping Margaret off at her house, Mary and Christina returned home. 

Over dinner, Christina raved about how much help Margaret had been.  She asked Mary if Margaret could come over again and help in the future.  Mary assured her that she could have her friend over again. 

Mary always enjoyed when the kids played and studied with their friends.  In Christina’s new role it would be important for her to interact with the other kids.  Margaret seemed like a really nice girl and she and Christina seemed to get along well. 

Margaret gave Christina a few magazines she had already read since Christina said she had nothing to do but school work.  She found herself paging through magazines called American Girl, Girl’s Life, Hopscotch and J-14.  Since she could not watch TV and only had study material, she found herself reading every article in these magazines.  She knew all the latest celebrity news along with all the issues young girls were worried about.  Of course, Christina remembered reading some of these when she was younger.  But she had always had other outlets for her time.  With nothing else to occupy her time, she found herself going back to the magazines and asking Margaret for other issues she could read.

Mary totally approved of the girls’ magazines as a safe outlet for Christina’s limited free time. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Over the last few weeks, as Christina has had more work from school, she has helped out less in meal preparation.  Mary picked up the slack.  As time goes on with Christina working at school late and then working on things at home, Mary has taken to preparing simple meals like she did when her kids were in school; Pizza, chicken nuggets, pasta. 

After the first few days of detention, Mary told Christina that since she could not help with meal preparation, it was her job to clear the table and load the dishwasher.  After the first week, she asked Christina to attempt to make her bed in the morning.  Slowly, Christina takes on more chores around the house.  On the weekends, she was expected to do some vacuuming and clean the bathroom.

+++++++++++++++++++

On the bus, several of the girls continued to make fun of and tease “little Tina.”  Two of the girls grabbed Tina’s book bag and started playing keep away.  Christina lost it and started yelling at the girls.  Then she lunged at the girl holding her bag.  Suddenly, the bus stopped and the driver came rushing back to find Tina and two other girls in a pile between the seats fighting over Tina’s book bag.  They were slapping at each other and it took the driver several minutes to separate the girls. 

Christina found herself sitting on the dreaded bench outside the headmaster’s office.  Unluckily, she was sharing the bench with the two girls who had made it their mission in life to berate and bully Christina. 

The headmaster stood the three of them in front of her desk.  She read the report from the bus driver.  She discussed the no bullying policy and the no fighting on the bus policy.  Christina tried to explain and was immediately shushed.  They were told that they would all three have a week of detention in addition to some immediate and personal discipline.  Christina and one of the other girls were escorted back to the bench.  They quaked and jumped with each yell and scream from the Headmaster’s office.  Then the other girl was sent in.  Christina had the same reactions again. 

And then it was her turn.  Christina tried to explain to the headmaster what had happened.  She kept talking and called the Headmaster by her first name by accident.  She received the same ten strokes the other two girls had received along with two more for talking and using the headmaster’s first name.  Christina was told that she would have an additional two days added to her detention. 

“Well, Little Tina, it appears that you would prefer to play the role of the petulant sixth grader instead of continuing your other efforts.  I can’t tell you how disappointed I am in your behavior.  I expect your attitude to change.  I expect you to get your work done.  Your teachers will be checking your work and I better not get any more complaints.  I expected you to be an example to the other girls and you seem to be an example of what not to do.  For now, you had better concentrate on doing your class work and your homework as well as your detention projects.”

Mrs. Kaufman had been reviewing Christina’s notes and her homework in class.  She felt that Christina’s handwriting was way below what she would normally consider acceptable.  However, since she expected Christina to revert to the college observer, she did nothing about this. 

After Christina’s detention was extended again, Mrs. Kaufman felt that she needed to address Christina’s handwriting.  She sent a report to the office and asked that Christina be assigned to the remedial handwriting class to improve her penmanship. 

The Headmaster shook her head when confronted with the handwriting report.  However, she quickly issued a directive to have Little Tina assigned to the remedial handwriting class for the next two weeks.  After the initial two weeks, the student’s progress would be evaluated to determine if she needed to remain in the program. 

The problem was that the remedial handwriting class was after school on Monday Wednesday and Friday.  It was also at the same time as detention.  So the Headmaster’s memo indicated that Christina’s final detention classes would be delayed on the days she attended remedial handwriting and would be tacked onto the end until she passed out of the remedial handwriting class.  This change would ensure Little Tina was going to continue to attend classes as she was for at least the next four to five weeks or more depending on whether she could complete the handwriting class. 

At home Mrs. Martin started to assume that Little Tina would be attending school as a grade school student for most of the rest of the semester.  With these assumptions, Aunt Mary started to review day to day life for Little Tina and wanted to make sure that she had some social time outside of the house.  If she was going to act like a child and go to grade school, then she could participate in life in the real world in that same role. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina was totally dejected when she found out that she was assigned to remedial handwriting.  Most disappointing of all was that it would seem to force her to stay in the classes much longer than she felt she needed. 

When Christina showed up in her first remedial handwriting class she found that she was the only student above the third grade.  The school took great pride in teaching their children to write well with good penmanship.  They tried to cure it before third grade.  Therefore, the only time they had older children in the remedial course was when they took in transfer students or in other unusual cases like Christina. 

The class was held in one of the third grade class rooms and Christina was set back again when she found out the teacher was Mrs. Watson, the woman who had caused all of Christina’s problems.

Mrs. Watson had been warned about Little Tina and took great pride in putting her in her place.  She introduced Christina as “Tina” and made sure to call her Tina every chance she got.  None of the other kids in the class called her anything else.  Several of them rode the bus and soon everyone in school, not just her nemeses were calling her Tina. 

Tina had trouble with the rote procedures used to hone handwriting skills and did not put the effort into the lessons that were needed.  Therefore, she did not improve at the rate others expected.

+++++++++++++++++++

When Mrs. Martin found out that her little girl had handwriting problems she was aghast.  How could this girl have gotten so far in life without the ability to have reasonable penmanship?  She decided that Little Tina needed to do some additional writing at home. 

Aunt Mary bought a locking diary with an American Girl theme in pink with flowers all over it.  She gave this to Christina and told her that since she was not allowed to access the internet or her computer that it would be a good idea for her to write down a summary of each days’ events along with her personal thoughts on her life and the things that were happening.  In this way Christina would be able to document any issues she thought would be needed for her research and she would also have a log of her personal life. 

Christina thought this might be a good idea and committed to spending at least 15 minutes each evening writing in her diary.  She was bothered that the diary seemed to be childish in its decoration.  But, Aunt Mary assured her it was something she had around from when her daughters were younger.  She asked Christina why the outside decoration would affect her thoughts or the content of the diary.

On the first nights when Christina would write in her diary, she treated it like a research log book.  She wrote her name, the date and time at the top of every page.  She logged her activity and then wrote one or two sentences of her thoughts of the day. 

As time went on, Christina’s thoughts took on a questioning of her own attitudes and asking why she put up with this situation.  She pondered how this was affecting her degree and her research.  Emotion began to enter her writing.

In addition, as time went on, Christina’s writing style changed in subtle ways.  She seemed to use more flowery terms and less direct observations.  The tone was almost childlike.  Much self-recrimination was surrounded by ideas that she was bothered by not fitting in better with the other girls at school. 

Because the school had forced her into a remedial handwriting class, her handwriting took on a more flowery, flowing easy to read handwriting style.  But an outsider simply reading one of the later sections would feel highly confident that they were reading the ramblings of a regular grade school girl.

+++++++++++++++++++

When it became clear Tina would be attending sixth grade classes for the foreseeable future, Aunt Mary sat her down after dinner one night. 

“Tina, we are going to discuss an issue that is important to me.  You are essentially living under my roof and attending sixth grade classes until these discipline issues are resolved.  You are attending these classes at a Catholic school where I teach.  Catholic’s go to church on Sunday.  And I have always had a policy that children and visitors in my house are expected to attend church with me on Sundays.  I let it slip for a while here.  But, I am no longer willing to do that.  I will expect you to put on a dress, look nice and attend mass with me every Sunday from now on.”

Of course, Christina thought this was silly.  She had never gone to church regularly. 

Aunt Mary added, “It might be that you need a little help from God and spending a few minutes in church each week certainly won’t hurt you.”

While they went back and forth, Christina finally gave in.

So the next Sunday, Christina found herself wearing her now regular children’s’ underwear, a white childish dress which seemed to take a few more years away from her and the only pair of dress shoes in the closet which were a pair of black Maryjanes. 

It turned out that this was also an occasion for Aunt Mary to get Christina out in public in the clothing she was always wearing now.  Mary no longer allowed Christina to sit at home like a hermit. 

Every Sunday from then on Aunt Mary and Little Tina headed off for Mass and often they went out for a Sunday breakfast at a local restaurant. 

+++++++++++++++++++

Mrs. Kaufman announced that the class would be taking the state aptitude tests for the next three days.  The tests would be done during the first two class periods each of the days.  All of the children were encouraged to get a good night of sleep and to eat a good breakfast.  These tests identified how the school was doing in relation to other schools in the state. 

Although they did not discuss it with the students, recent changes in the law required them to report all the children’s scores to the state.  Students that do not meet certain benchmarks will be required to go to additional schooling or reassigned in the school to get the required skills.  Sometimes children might be held back or even moved up or down a grade based on the tests.  Parents worked with the teachers to select the best solution for each student.

Mrs. Kaufman and Mrs. Winters discussed the aptitude testing and Christina’s situation.  Mrs. Winters suggested to Mrs. Kaufman that Christina should take the tests along with the other students so that she can experience the pressure to perform. 

Mrs. Kaufman approached Christina and suggested that she take the tests.  She highlighted the advantages that she and Mrs. Winters discussed.  After some discussion, Christina believed it would be beneficial to her research.

On the nights before the tests, Mrs. Martin questioned Christina about her research projects.  Mrs. Winters suggested that Mrs. Martin offer Christina a strong cup of coffee on the morning of the tests.  Mrs. Winters and Mrs. Martin discussed that this was a way to have Christina a little wired for the test.  Mrs. Winters suggested it would add some mental pressure that Christina would not otherwise feel since she believed the tests had no bearing on her. 

Mrs. Martin offered Christina a cup of coffee on the mornings of the tests.  She told Christina it would give her some extra energy.  But, since Christina had not had any caffeine in weeks, the jolt made her a little shaky and distracted.  It made it harder for her to focus on the tests and other things at school. 

So, Christina took all the aptitude tests.  Each evening she and Aunt Mary would talk about the tests.  Christina would report on how much pressure there was to complete the tests.  She had assumed she could get everything done pretty fast.  But in fact she had trouble getting all the work done in the allotted time.  She rushed through certain portions of the test.  But she was supremely confident she had done well on the tests. 

+++++++++++++++++++

School continued and Christina was to all appearances a normal sixth grade student.  She did not excel in most of her classes.  She worked hard and got good grades.  But she was not the best student in any class.  She made new friends and they talked about the latest celebrity gossip or new songs that were on the radio.

Since Christina was attending all of the other classes, the Headmaster assigned her a regular class schedule which included gym.  Aunt Mary supplied her the necessary gym clothing.  She also suggested that Little Tina shave “down there” so that she would not stand out when in a locker room with other girls.  Christina felt totally humiliated, but complied prior to her first gym session. 

Christina did not pass out of remedial writing after the initial two weeks and continued attending the classes.  Her handwriting was getting better.  There was a well-rounded and flowery character to her writing projects.  She was putting little hearts on things.  But she continued to have some spelling issues. 

Christina’s diary had evolved to the point that it was a self-discussion of the day’s events as well as speculation about the world, friends, the latest gossip, etc.  In other words, it seemed that Christina’s thoughts in her diary were becoming indistinguishable from any other young girl’s diary.

+++++++++++++++++++

When the school test results came in, Sarah Winters quickly reviewed the overall school performance.  Overall, the school’s performance was really good.  The school ranked in the top statewide and all grades performed well.

After the headmaster had reviewed year to year performance and comparisons to other state schools, she remembered that there were several students who had been identified as issue students.  One of those students was Little Tina.  After reviewing the other students, she turned to Christina’s test results.

Sarah just stared at the test results.  Then she chuckled to herself as she shook her head.  Christina had done pretty poorly on the tests.  In fact, if she was a regular student, she would have major problems. 

After school, Christina found herself in the headmaster’s office with her homeroom teacher, Mrs. Kaufman. 

Headmaster Winters detailed Tina’s poor performance and expressed her disappointment that Tina did not do better on the testing.  She pointed out that a regular student with her poor performance would risk being held back or going to summer school. 

Tina was very dejected and ashamed of her performance.  She tried to express her acceptance of responsibility and promised to do better. 

Christina took some solace in the fact that if she kept herself out of trouble for another week or so, she would be able to get back to her research.  It didn’t make her feel any better about failing a sixth grade capabilities exam. 

+++++++++++++++++++

The following Monday, Headmaster Winters received a letter from the State Department of Education.  She called the State office and had extended conversations with several people. 

That afternoon, Christina found herself back in the Headmaster’s office with her homeroom teacher and Aunt Mary.  She was very nervous trying to figure out what she had done wrong.  Just like any other student, she assumed she was in trouble. After her extended sixth grade experience, Christina hardly realized that her behavior and her thought patterns were indistinguishable from her classmates. 

Sarah Winters had a very serious look on her face. 

Sarah began, “Everyone, we have a very serious problem.  When we had the state tests a few weeks ago, Little Tina did not perform up to standards.  I have already expressed my disappointment about this.  However, a new problem has arisen.  When the students take the tests, the test results area associated with their social security number.  When Tina was younger there were no statewide aptitude tests which were tracked at the state.  Therefore, there are no results for older people that graduated a long time ago.  Under the new standards which were implemented to ensure that all students passing out of one grade meet consistent standards, the state began tracking the aptitude tests and they will not allow a student to graduate until they pass the aptitude test.”

Sarah looked around the room and continued, “Since, Tina had never taken an aptitude test, but voluntarily took one of the tests and submitted it to the state, her score was put into her file.  That entry has created a conflict with the state which has temporarily invalidated her graduation out of sixth grade several years ago.”

Christina was trying to follow this, but blurted out, “What are you talking about?  I graduated from all my grade school classes with honors.  What are we talking about?”  Christina was beginning to whine and was on the verge of a tantrum. 

Aunt Mary grabbed her arm and shushed her.  “Tina, hold on a second. I think we only have part of the story.  Let’s wait till the headmaster is done explaining.”

Christina was shaking and starting to cry.  How could her life be so out of control?  These people were ruining her life.  Everything was fine until she came to this school.

The headmaster continued, “I called the state and tried to understand what their position is on this.  I was on the phone all morning and I am still working on trying to resolve this situation in the most reasonable way possible.  Please understand that this situation is still in flux and no final decisions have been made.  At this time, the state’s position is that Tina failed the aptitude test and she has to pass it for them to continue to report her as a graduate of the sixth grade.  At this time, if you called the state, they would not report you as having finished grade school due to this problem and the idiot I talked to suggested that they might consider invalidating her high school degree.”

She paused for that to sink in and Tina was unable to speak as she was openly crying now. 

“They say that if she takes the aptitude test and passes that will overwrite the previous failure.  They also say that if an accredited school reports grades and class attendance to demonstrate successful completion of a sixth grade program after the failed test, that would also be enough to resolve the sixth grade completion problem.”

“So, I have more talking to the state which will occur tomorrow and in the coming days.  However, we as a group are going to have to determine how we will resolve this.  I suggest we all go home and think about it tonight and tomorrow, we will meet again after school.”

She looked at Christina, “Tina, we will figure this all out.  Please believe we all have your best interests at heart.  I just felt like I had to tell you all as soon as possible so that we could figure out what to do.”

+++++++++++++++++++

Christina and Aunt Mary left the office and went home.  Christina was in a daze and Mary Martin was concerned.  She got her to nibble on a little food and put her to bed.  She got her to bed early and tucked her in.

The next afternoon, they all met again with the headmaster. 

“We have to realize that there are certain unknowns in this situation.” the headmaster began.  “As I see it, we need to follow three strategies.  Let me lay them all out and then we can talk about them.  The first strategy is that I will work with the state to resolve this issue and cleanse Tina’s record.  However, we have to consider if the bureaucracy is so overwhelming that we may not resolve this in a timely manner.”

“The second alternative is that Tina studies hard and retakes the aptitude test when offered in the spring.  If she passes, then all the problems should resolve themselves.  But, we have to consider the risk that she does not pass the test with an adequate score.”

“The third option is for Tina to continue to do all the work in all of her classes as she has for the last two months for the rest of the school year.  We register her as a student and we have the teachers keep track of her grades and treat her like every other sixth grade student.  At the end of the school year, when we assume she will successfully complete her sixth grade studies, she would resolve the state situation by receiving a passing class status from our school without the test.” 

“Due to the risk of the retaking of the aptitude test, I suggest that Tina do both the second and third options in parallel.  In this way, she will hopefully get past the problem no matter what.”

Christina was incredulous.  “Are you suggesting that I should simply agree to retake my sixth grade and spend the entire year doing so even though I graduated from sixth grade over a decade ago?  This is insane.”

The headmaster interrupted, “Young lady, I know this is a trying situation, but you will remember where you are or I will remind you.”  The implication was clear.

Christina paused and considered her words more carefully, just as any young girl would in the presence of the headmaster and two teachers. 

“Mam, this is crazy.  How can you suggest such a thing?”

“Tina, due to your other problems, you have already been essentially doing the same thing as you would do for the rest of the school year. I know it is asking a lot.  But I did not create this problem.  You asked to come here.  You agreed to take these tests and the State is where the problem is.  I realize that we have all participated in the events of this semester.  But you need to take responsibility for starting things down this road.  I am trying to help you.  I am trying to work this out.  If you would like to go out and fight the state by yourself, I will be happy to step aside.  But, in my experience, that would be a really dumb decision.”

Christina was trying to come to grips with the idea that this was her fault or that she had caused things to go down this path. 

“What exactly are you suggesting?” Christina asked.

“I suggest we officially register you as a sixth grade student.  You would continue to live with Mary Martin.  You would attend all classes and be expected to do all homework just like all the other girls.  You will be given no special treatment.  In the spring semester, when the test is available, we will arrange for you to take it.  If you pass, and the state agrees, you would be done with everything and be able to go back to life as before.  If you fail, you will need to get a passing grade in all your classes to be given a sixth grade completion from our school.  That would also complete your requirements.”

“Since you have been here since the beginning of the year, your attendance is not a problem.  You would also have to participate in gym and complete the state physical fitness requirements.” 

Christina tried to maintain control and whined, “I just can’t believe that we are discussing registering me in the sixth grade.  Why is this happening to me?”

After much back and forth, Christina finally agreed to follow the advice of the headmaster.  She and Aunt Mary filled out the registration material.  Mary Martin filled in all of the information that would normally be done by a parent since Christina was living with her and she would be available if there were any issues.  By the end of the registration process, Aunt Mary was her guardian for the foreseeable future and she was officially a sixth grade student instead of a doctoral candidate. 

In the car on the way home, Christina came to the conclusion that her life had devolved to its absolute lowest point.  Up until now she wondered what else could go wrong.  She felt she was fighting to prevent things getting worse.  Although she found it disappointing, she was confident that she was finally at the bottom of the barrel.  There was no way things could get worse.  With that thought in mind, she cried and cried.

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After they got home, Aunt Mary told Christina she was going out to dinner and a late evening with friends the following Saturday evening.  Christina thought little of it since she was not going and Mary had not really gone out much if at all since Christina had moved in. 

On Saturday morning, Aunt Mary reminded Christina she was going out that night.  Christina nodded and after breakfast she started on her assigned chores. 

After her chores were complete, Christina showered and changed clothes.  Since she was not going anywhere and would see no one, Christina put on a childish camisole top with Barbie on the front along with a matching short cotton skirt that exposed her childish underwear with almost every step.  With no makeup and her hair in a high ponytail, she could have been mistaken for someone younger than the sixth grader she portrayed on a daily basis. 

Christina spent the afternoon doing reading for her classes and looking through some of her girly magazines. 

Mary started getting ready for her night out at around four PM.

At around five thirty, the doorbell rang.  Christina was in the study reading.

Aunt Mary answered the door.  Christina heard voices and assumed Aunt Mary’s friends had arrived.

Mary entered the study and said, “Tina, I know we did not discuss this.  But sixth graders at Applegate Academy are not typically left alone at home and I felt uneasy about going out tonight.”  Turning slightly, she continued, “This is Julie.”

A smiling girl that seemed much younger than Aunt Mary entered the room.

“Hi, Tina.  It’s so nice to meet you.”  Julie was gushing and seemed way too happy. 

Aunt Mary added, “Julie is going to stay with you tonight while I am out.  She’s a student at the local university.”

Christina immediately complained, “A babysitter?  Why would I need a babysitter?”  Then suddenly she paused.  Did Aunt Mary say Julie was a student at the university?

Neither Julie nor Mary understood the look of understanding that suddenly gripped Little Tina as she realized that she had taught Julie in a course last semester.  And Julie was the biggest gossip on campus.  It was like someone heard her thoughts that things could not get worse and dreamt this up. 

Tina started gasping and began crying.  She got up and ran to her room. 

Aunt Mary turned to Julie and said, “I guess its hormones, but I don’t know what the matter is.  I’ve got to get going.  She’s all yours.  ”

She yelled down the hall, “Be good for Julie, Tina.”  And, she was gone.

Julie called out to Tina, “Tina, I understand you’ve been having some trouble in school.  Maybe I could help you with your school work.  I could sort of tutor you.  I’m just here to help.”

Christina’s crying seemed to get worse.  Julie just shook her head and walked into the kitchen and thought, “I’ll give her a few minutes to calm down.”

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The question is: By the end of the school year, will Tina be a successful and happy sixth grader, following the rules and participating in normal sixth grade activities?  Should she continue on with her class, wear the uniform and be one of the kids in the seventh grade?

Or should she try to revert to the college observer?  Will she need to return next year to actually do the research she was unable to do this year?  Since she already has the uniforms, if she reverts to doing her research, will the school require her to continue to wear the uniform? 

If she fails the tests, will the state force them to put her back a grade into the 5^th grade?

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EPILOG

In December, Christina’s university awarded a doctoral degree to a local educator. 

Her dissertation covered the use of discipline and behavior modification incentives to mold children in the school environment.  The theory is that with the right discipline and well laid incentives, a child will develop in a consistent pattern.  In fact, she suggested that while the basic theory was that children would evolve or grow in to this desired type of student, she believed that an older student put into the class environment with the right incentives would not only conform to the system, but over time would become indistinguishable from the other candidates in the same student pool.  In other words, the older student might actually appear to regress to the status of their peers and they would participate and communicate indistinguishably from the other candidates who were for instance in the normal grades at school. 

The dissertation documented how physical discipline along with other well-structured incentives and disincentives were used to successfully mold a child.  The test used goals and potential penalties that the student fears to incentivize them to conform and perform in the structured educational environment. 

In the dissertation, writing examples from one of the observed students included examples from before they were put into the test environment and writing examples from the end of a semester in the school. 

Unknown to Christina, Sarah Winters was a doctoral candidate at the same university and was therefore aware of Christina’s actual thesis when she came to the school.  It gave Sarah a lot of satisfaction to include examples of Christina’s writing before she was embedded in the sixth grade along with copies of her diary entries at the end of the first semester. 

Yes, the Headmaster was now Dr. Winters and Christina was the shining example documenting her thesis.  Sarah had actually been taken aback when she read some of the entries in Tina’s diary.  Anyone reading it would assume they were reading the prognostications of a 12 or13 year old instead of a 25 year old.  Her handwriting had a juvenile look and she used few words of more than 4 or 5 letters.  In the classroom environment, she was indistinguishable from the other children.  In truth, her thesis worked better than expected. 

Dr. Winters was teaching a class at the local university as an adjunct professor.  Due to the success of her thesis research, she had secured a large grant to continue her work.  To assist her in her research, Dr. Winters hired a new graduate student who did a lot of babysitting for students at the school named Julie.  Julie would also be working around the academy starting in the spring semester.

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