allan dingwall - technician
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Interview with Allan Dingwall:
Saturday 28th July 2001

Q. Tell us a little about yourself?
Former pupil Braehead and former member of staff 2/3 years as member of staff

Now a Senior School Technician Buckhaven High School. Before that at the Multimedia Resources Centre in Kennoway

Pupil when RF. Mackenzie was headmaster and a member of staff after he had departed to Summerhill in Aberdeen – Mr. Roger (art) Deputy Head took over when RF. left.

Q. What did people feel when RF. Mackenzie left?
When he left people felt it was an end to an era, he was the driving force behind braehead, everything stemmed from him, his ethos.

Q. What are your memories of Braehead?
It is quite a small building, a small population within the building, everyone new everyone, you new all the teachers unlike today with the bigger units.

A compact building, and split into smaller sites, you did not have to walk far

Technical and home economics were in a separate building shared with the technical college, the mining college had the upstairs and we had the downstairs.

Then across the road we had the Rechobite hall which was our gym and the huts behind that and huts further round in Michael street, technical and home economics

The games field was next door to Denbeath Primary we used to have our sports over there, a nice trip out – sports days I remember, playing cricket and football and things like that.

Q. What do you remember of R.F. Mackenzie?
In fact he was very kind to me as I was off school for a number of months after an accident. And when I came back I spoke to him and said to him that I was feeling that I needed extra help and he said 'well come to me and I will give you extra help'. I got help from him on a one to one basis for a while, he did give me quite a lot of personal help.

He was quite an approachable man.

A very interesting man to speak to. He had a lot of time for people. He would often be seen wondering around the school making his presence felt.

Q. What else do you remember from that time?
There were some staff for him and some not to sure… he was ahead of his time… with his thoughts and theories which he carried over to Summerhill in Aberdeen.

The things he introduced and fostered within the school… the gliding, he gave everyone the chance to excel at something… they were maybe not all academic but there were other things, cars doing them up, driving lessons… if you were not academic this was something great.

I also noticed that the exam results used to be pretty good considering that everyone had failed their qualifying exam. The number of 'O' levels far exceeded the expectations of a lot of people.

I did not go gliding when at Braehead but did go gliding with Doug Clarke and David Scott when they were working out of the Multimedia Centre in Kennoway. I was only up twice and both times it was in bad weather… it was up and down… although others had been up for hours, I only had a very short flight.

Ken Mcloed was involved in fishing trips to Loch Rannoch. Returning with tales of the fish that they caught and the ones that got away.

Within the technical department they actually made skies, wooden skies out of formers… what are formers? Formers were the moulds used to bend the skies into shape in conjunction with a steamer.

I seem to remember that we actually build a glider in one of the outhouses.

There was the braehead-news being produced on one corner, music in another, technical work on one side and kitchens in between.

My memory of braehead was for to give people a chance, you may not be academic but to give you a chance without being penalised.

RF. gave people responsibility, it was not all about people take, take, taking but people had to give something back. That sticks in my mind from my days at braehead to try and give something back.

Q. One of RF. Mackenzie's ideas was to ban belting?
Belting did go on across the school, although it did become less and less. Some people were brought up with the idea that the belt was the answer.

They had to consider bringing in some method of control to maintain discipline. Some people could go overboard in using the belt for the least thing.
If it was kept as the ultimate sanction that was all right.
Some people just belted for belting sake.

Q. Do you think there is a place for R.F. s thinking on education today?
Yes, there is a place, but in a large school it is very difficult where people don't know each other very well, people tend to get lost in the crowd. Where in a smaller unit being part of something is more personal.

Q. Memories of funny things that happened?
I remember at time about a year before the school closed down when there was an absolute storm outside with a downpour of rain outside. Water started coming in all over the building… it was running down the walls, it was running of the balcony, it was running down the stairs. They found out that someone had been up on the roof and stripped all the lead off. There was water in the fitments, in the electrical fittings, they had to close the school until they could dry it out.

Another thing was that we knew that that school was due for closure and we were getting ready to move bits and pieces out. Suddenly a man appeared with a measuring stick one day when I was down at the janitors. He had come to measure the place for painting. So there was a chap here measuring the school for painting when in a few weeks the school was due to be demolished. Fife County Council did not seem to speak to itself, the right hand did not know what the left was doing. They did not paint the school before it closed.

I remember it was on a Wednesday when the whole school would come together in the hall for a concert. There was something every week. It was always the same piece of music they played to introduce it… Monteverdi, I have a copy at home and every time I hear it I always remember the concerts.

I remember Ken Mcleod making a space ship, something like the Apollo Lander and it was on pullies from the back of the hall balcony down to the stage. You would not get to do this today on safety grounds. On the first run this thing shot down and hit the front of the stage, whack! I remember Ken pulling it back up and cutting a bit of the bottom and sending it back down again until they got it right.

School dances were held for each year group… in the main hall with a large, roaring fire burning at one end. (there was a fireplace ( Jim).

In PE we were taught highland dancing.

I remember the early sex education classes, as a technician, we would get films once a year to show to the boys and girls. Although they were kept apart at the time. We set the projector up and if was for the girls we had to go. If there was a problem we would have to come back sort the projector and then leave again.

Q. Any other memories?
I remember the concerts that were held especially when people like the Spinners came to sing. It was a member of staff that made the arrangements although I can't remember their name. He was a folk singer at the time.

I also remember them doing West Side Story in the games hall, they had scaffolding up for the set.

I remember the assemblies with the hymn sheets hanging down on either side of the stage.

School meals came from the central kitchen, and the top end of the hall was turned into the dining room each day. A lot of pupils travelled home, it cost me penny happeny to Denbeath.

Duncan shop at the back of the school used to come across at break times with a tray and put in on the school wall. They would sell broken biscuits.

The braehead news – written by pupils and edited by a member of staff.

School council – I was a member, it was a bit like democracy, pupil democracy, that RF. had introduced. It was to give pupils more responsibility and let the pupils have some input into what was going on.

RF. was present at the meetings and they took pupils from each year to make up the council. They listened to what the pupils had to say but not sure if a lot was carried out.

Q. What do you think of education today?
I don't think R.F. would like the idea of league tables. A lot of it is just raw data and does not reflect local differences, problems etc., When RF. was doing his thing back in the 60's it was a different time and economic situation. People were under the impression that when they left school they would get a job. Jobs would come easy, jobs for life. Its not the situation today as there are no jobs for life.

Q. What would be your lasting memory of Braehead and of that time?
Braehead was a community, a small community, where everyone new each other the staff that tried to do their best for you and a building that was quite old even at that time because a new high school had been built in the 50's. We were working in a building that was showing its age. Trying to do things on a budget. The budget at the time for the whole of the science department for a year was 200.00. Now that would last no time at all.

Most people seem to have fond memories of being at the school. I'm not sure what it would be like for members of staff who had to work there.

It was quite strange moving over from pupil to staff member. Although we were not allowed to teach and we were not allowed to go in the staff room and if we did we had to watch what chairs we sat on.

Kirsty Adams was head of arts in fife for a good number of years until she left.

There were some excellent teachers at Braehead, they were really dedicated to what they were doing.

END.

Many, many thanks to Allan for being the first to be interviewed. For me he has certainly brought back many memories. Also, thanks to Allan my very short list of staff at the school has now become very respectable indeed.

Would you like to share your thoughts and memories from your time at Braehead? Yes!
Then simply e-mail me and we will make arrangements with you.
 


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