Lake Wyangan Public alumna reflects on 1970s education at school centenary

Lake Wyangan Public School celebrated its 100th anniversary on Saturday (12 October) with an open day packed with nostalgia, music and festivities.

Region caught up with 59-year-old alumna Doris Mancinelli (nee Sconfienza), who attended the primary school from 1971 to 1977, to reflect on her favourite memories, how schooling was different from how it is now and what she achieved in later life.

What do you remember about your time at Lake Wyangan Public?

There were four siblings in my family who went to the school. My oldest sister Loretta, my brother Robert, my little sister Grace and myself.

It was such a good little school, we had a mixture of all different nationalities. There were Italians, Indigenous children and a lot of other groups.

Everyone knew everyone and the majority of the parents got along well – they were farmers and worked with or for each other. My family grew lemons and grapefruit.

What were some of the most enjoyable aspects of school life?

All the little schools like Beelbangera, Bilbul and Yoogali did a round-robin sporting tournament where we played each other. That was a lot of fun.

We used to do a lot of excursions to places like Canberra. In year 6, we all went to Parliament House.

Do you think school life was better in your day than it is for kids now?

Definitely.

Why?

No social media. That’s the biggest thing today. In my day, if you had an argument with one of the kids or a fight with one of your friends, you’d go home on the weekend then come back to school on Monday and everything was forgotten. These days, it’s so different, the things that you hear are unbelievable.

Who was the principal when you were at school?

Mr Curry. I remember he was very strict and his children attended the school.

Did you have a favourite teacher?

Mrs Underwood was really good. She was gentle and very easy to get on with. But all the teachers were great.

Was the cane still used when you were at school?

It was, they used to whack those poor boys. I don’t think the girls ever got it. I never did. I was a good student at school, though probably naughty at home.

In those days, were students able to swim at the nearby Lake Wyangan?

We could, but we preferred to swim in the channels.

But I remember Sundays during the summertime, we’d all go to Lake Wyangan. About four or five families would get together and all the kids would be in the water and the parents would be chatting on the banks. It was a great thing to do when it was so hot during the summer.

What was it like learning at school without air conditioning during those sweltering summers?

It was so, so hot. Though we had fans on the roof or portable fans.

What did you do after you left the school?

I went to Wade High and then I became a hairdresser. I’ve been one for 41 years.

I did my apprenticeship in East Griffith, then went to North Queensland for a year to live and work, then I came back to Griffith and worked at Individual Hair Care, then Enbee, Icons, then I bought a salon at Yenda, which I have owned for 23 years.

I have two children: my son Daniel is 31 and my daughter Jessie is 27. They both went to Yenda Public School, though.

But it’s so nice to be back here and look at all the photos, it brings back such great memories.

To check out the school’s Facebook centenary page, click here.