I attended a co-ed high school in NZ during the early 80,s. Caning was regularly practiced on the boys backsides by most of the male staff. I believe that most schools were trying to phase out caning and so the principal only allowed teachers to give four strokes at a time instead of the customary 6 that you would have received a few years earlier. This had the effect that most teachers really made sure that if you got four strokes then you really felt them. Basically they would lay the cane into your bent over backsides as hard as they physically could. I even had one teacher take a run up before twisting and putting his whole body weight behind the strokes. On that occasion I got two strokes and the tram tracks lasted well into the third week. It hurt like all hell but the attention from the girls afterwards seemed to make it all worth while.
I have to wonder though what was going through a teacher's mind while he was inspecting a boy's bent over backside?
That teacher who left tram tracks which lasted into the third week must have been extremely fit, to say the least. Imagine taking four from him!
In my day (1950s) boys respected a man who caned hard. Six was the norm but older youths could be given up to twelve strokes. You stayed down until told you could get up, and eventually left his study with your backside in flames.
While there were excesses, I still think the cane did less 'damage' than sarcasm. An acid reproof could crush a fragile ego. We had one female teacher who boxed ears so hard our teeth rattled. God knows how many boys suffered permanent hearing loss as a result of that punishment.