PETER Johnston tells us that over 40 years ago he shared a flat with another man who was a teacher at “the best boys school”

in Leicester (“Spare the rod and help provide proper teaching”, April 9). He was a teacher so brilliant as a communicator that all the boys were well behaved in his class.

If the school was anything like the boys school I attended, it would have been ruled with a rod of iron by a headmaster and teachers who used corporal punishment.

So did the children behave because the teacher was a good communicator or because they knew what would happen if they stepped out of line?

As to Mr Johnston’s tirade against bankers — and I do not believe they should get a penny in bonuses — he tells us they would not have jobs without our bailout. I don’t want to worry you, Mr Johnston, but it is doubtful if many of us would have had jobs if the banks hadn’t been bailed out.

I hear your enlightened view to bringing up children when I hear parents constantly saying “Don’t do that” and the child just calmly carries on doing what he or she wants to do.

After all, it doesn’t hurt and it gets mummy or daddy angry, which is a bonus, so let’s just do as we please for there is nothing in life that can hurt us.

Teachers? All they can do is eventually exclude us, so that we can spend more time playing out. Police? They can’t touch us because we can have them done for assault — just like if mummy or daddy smack us.

That is Peter Johnston’s world of bringing up children to become just like bankers — knowing they can do what they want because nobody can do anything to punish them.

J O’Connor Bolton