Corridors buzzing again as friends reunited at last
THE smiles on the faces said it all. At Sullivan Upper in Holywood, it was almost back to business as normal yesterday as the youngest post-primary year groups returned to face to face teaching.
For headmaster Chris Peel, the best thing about seeing all 1,100 pupils once again milling around the corridors was the buzz.
“We’re delighted to see all our pupils back. This is the first time we’ve been full since before Christmas and that’s a long time for young people not to be in school,” he said.
“Some were maybe a little anxious, but it’s been mostly smiles. Now we get on with things.
“Teachers were also a bit nervous to be back with full classes, but we’ve all learnt a considerable amount about teaching. Blended learning is something we don’t want to lose, and going forward there will be a lot more of that engagement.
“There’s a real buzz at the change of period. It’s an empty place when the pupils are not here.”
At Sullivan, like in all schools, pupils have been asked to take lateral flow Covid tests and so far Mr Peel said there has been a “substantial” uptake.
“We have around 40-50% of pupils volunteering for the tests,” he said. “We’re pleased so many have decided they want to do that.
“We want to do whatever it takes. A lot of our Year 8s have been in one classroom for practically the whole time they’ve been with us. I’ve met one or two in corridors trying to find their way around!”
For two of those Year 8 pupils at Sullivan Upper, getting to see their friends was the highlight.
Effie Lappin, from Bangor, said that though she had got used to lockdown, it was still good to be back.
“It has been a bit odd,” she said. “Similar to primary school being in the same room all the time. I was bit nervous. I felt like I’d missed a lot, but I was excited to see my friends.”
Ben Borland from Belfast said being in a classroom was definitely preferable to home learning.
“Teachers have been posting work online but it’s been hard to know what you’re doing because there’s no one there to actually tell you how to do it,” he said.
“It’s good getting back so you can actually see people and know what you’re doing properly in class. Hopefully it will all be better for my second year.”