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Historic detention cell

Detention (or Retention in some Australian schools) is a form of punishment used in schools, where a student is required to spend extra time in school. A detention usually takes place during a period after the end of the school. However, other times may also be used such as before the school day, weekend (traditionally known as Saturday school), and breaks in the school day, such as lunch.

A detention is typically carried out in a room that offers no amenities for pleasure, so that students serving detention will have no outlet to distract. The students are usually monitored by a teacher, and may be required to either bring homework, sit quietly, or perform some punitive or non-punitive task. Such tasks may take the form of housekeeping, such as clapping blackboard erasers or picking up rubbish; academic such as writing an essay or answering questions, or drawing.

Detention is usually considered to be one of the milder punishments available to a school. Multiple detentions may be given as for more severe offences. However, if detention fails to cure the student's need for misbehaviour, harsh punishments such as suspension, or expulsion may be used.

There are numerous numbers of pop culture references to the practice of detention. For example, the opening credits to The Simpsons depicts Bart Simpson in detention, repeatedly writing some ironic phrase along the lines of "I will not instigate revolution", "I do not have diplomatic immunity", or "I will not waste chalk" (see chalkboard gag).

Detention was also the name of an animated series that had a brief run on the Kids' WB in 1999 and 2000. The series portrayed a group of misfit middle-schoolers who were constantly in detention, scheming to overcome the obstacles that said condition presented.

The movie The Breakfast Club revolves around five students bonding during a day in detention. The movie Some Kind of Wonderful features a significant detention twist — a student intentionally misbehaves in order to be placed in detention with the girl of his dreams — but later learns that she has managed to talk her way out of the punishment. However, the student ends up befriending the dangerous-looking derelicts who are regularly on detention, and they ultimately help him out in his moment of greatest need. In the movie High School Musical, the students that did the infraction were required to do housekeeping tasks that is involved with the latest drama production, which would be the musical.