“We never expected to be off for so long.”
That was the view of Sophie Booth, sixth year pupil at Dundee’s Baldragon Academy.
Sophie, like thousands of other pupils across Tayside, has had to spend the past three and a bit months learning at home as the pandemic continued to bite.
Now, following the return of Fife secondary schools last Monday, these pupils are finally back in the classroom full-time; marking a full return of all pupils in Scotland.
The Courier spoke to pupils and teachers at Baldragon to find out what it was like to be back.
“I can get the teaching to get the grades that I want”
A full time return to the classroom was welcomed by Sophie who, despite saying this period of home learning was better than the last, admitted there was no substitute for face-to-face teaching.
Sophie said: “It’s much better to be back because online school just isn’t the same as in person teaching.
“For me personally, I’m more relieved to be back [compared to last August] because it’s coming to the end of our year doing assessments and things.
“We never expected to be off for so long this time as it was only meant to be a one week push back. Now I know I can get the teaching to get the grades that I want.”
Fellow sixth year pupil Jay Hunter was also relieved to be back in the classroom full time, also citing the benefits of in person teaching as a key reason.
He said: “It feels a lot more beneficial being back in terms of learning. It’s having that interaction that you didn’t have in lockdown.
“Being in front of your teachers again, it makes it so much easier for asking questions and taking in the work.”
The experience of home learning has been different for all pupils across Tayside and Scotland, with some relishing the experiences and others finding it a struggle.
For S2 pupils Ellie Hutcheson, Jessica Paterson, Tiana Kelbie and Katie Bolden, there were mixed emotions on the return to the classroom.
“You’re used to the peace and quiet [of home learning] so it’s a bit strange”, one of them explained.
Another added: “This lockdown was better than the last, I think.
“We were following a timetable this time whereas last time you were given out work and you just picked what you did and when.”
Like Sophie and Jay, however, one thing they all agreed on was the benefit of having face-to-face teaching and seeing their friends that being in the classroom brings.
Ellie said: “If you needed help from a teacher you had to email them and wait, and some were available at different times than others.
Tiana added: “You’re used to seeing [your friends] most days so it was weird not having them there.”
Senior assessments
With exams cancelled for the second year in succession due to the pandemic, pupil grades are being determined by teacher estimates.
This has not been without controversy, however, and concerns have been raised about some pupils having to sit assessments under exam conditions in the coming weeks.
For Sophie, who has three conditional offers to study medicine at university, these upcoming assessments are first and foremost in her mind now that she’s back at school.
She said: “I have three this week, and another three next week, I think.
“I am more worried than I have been for assessments in previous years because I go to different schools for my Advanced Highers.
“So even when we were back part time at the start of last month, I wasn’t allowed to go into the school where they were because I could only be in one school at a time.
“So I felt a bit disadvantaged for them, and I feel more behind in my learning compared to the same point last year because I had in person teaching all of last year.”
Jay, who will be studying sound management at Perth College after he leaves Baldragon, admitted he has been “frustrated” by the lack of clarity over what is expected from pupils.
He added: “What’s most frustrating for me is the lack of knowledge of what the assessments will actually look like.
“As a pupil, I don’t feel we have enough information to actually stand the best chance we could have.”
Disruption to their exams is not the only thing senior pupils have had to contend with this year and for many, missing out on the traditional end of school celebrations is a bitter pill to swallow.
Jay explained: “I would’ve liked to have had a sixth year prom to leave it on a better note that it will end on.
“It feels like we’re just going to be done with school and then shipped off. It’s not going to be a big event like it would be normally and that is upsetting for us.”
Sophie added: “It’s a case of putting my head down but hopefully once the assessments are done, then I can have more fun and enjoy the last few weeks.”
“It doesn’t have to be like we have always done it”
For Baldragon headteacher Hugh McAninch, this year has been one like no other.
Despite its challenges, however, these unprecedented times have offered an opportunity to change the way learning is delivered in the future to benefit new generations.
He said: “It doesn’t have to be like we have always done it.
“We have to look at the opportunities within the challenges and see what we can do differently in terms of serving our young people.”
This opportunity has included looking at the school estate and maximising the space for learning both inside the classroom and outside of it – leading to “great things”, Mr McAninch explained.
He said: “After lockdown one, we were working with our young people and being more observant of the space we have around the school and what we are doing with it.
“Out of that has come a massive community partnership project that will offer a very diverse approach in our curriculum.
“Looking at the way our staff have engaged with digital resources and technology, and what we can do differently outside the classroom and in it.
“If the pandemic has given us the opportunity to stop and reset, then we have to embrace it. Some great things are on the table as a result.”
