Difficult transition back to class and face-to face learning again

Sixth formers at QEGS have risen to the challenge of getting back into the classroom, explains columnist EVIE PEARCE

Assessments offer us more chances to succeed and get the best grades possible

Evie Pearce

THE movement of students from online learning back to face-to-face learning in March was a difficult transition.

However, the students at QEGS Sixth Form have embraced this change with full stride and are back into the swing of Sixth Form life.

Throughout the past month, the Sixth From students have excelled at putting on new and exciting events to bring back the air of normality to school life.

For example, in the last week of March, the two heads of wellbeing from the Sixth Form Council organised a wellbeing week in an attempt to reduce exam-stress that the Year 13s are facing.

This week included events such as Easter egg orienteering, a whole Sixth Form football match and a movie night.

Although most of these events were free, the proceeds, along with those made from the Easter egg raffle run by me and two other council members, are going to the local Mind charity shop in Ashbourne.

I think events such as these are very important for the Sixth Form, allowing everyone to remember that they are in a supportive learning environment and with most students attending at least one of these events, it was an overall success.

To further this, the heads of sport have been continuing with events such as ‘Workout Wednesdays’ and ‘Fun Fridays,’ in which students are able to come for hours of relaxed exercise if they choose.

This is a definite favourite for all the students at the Sixth Form as it allows for larger groups of us to meet outdoors and the weather at the moment has been perfect for sports such as rounders and netball!

There have also been other events such as a quiz night and form time activities - the task master challenge was a huge success! Overall, the students at QEGS have embraced the new changes and restrictions and have adapted accordingly to have fun while still following all of the guidelines that have been put in place.

On the other side of Sixth Form life, the academic side, the Year 13s are working towards their A-level qualifications.

The Sixth Form has been very efficient with regards to making plans and schedules for the exams that we have to take. For example in March, we were all assessed in a ‘Mini Mock Week’ to gather new evidence that can be put towards our grades.

Since then, we are still being assessed weekly in different subjects until the May 14, in order to gather enough breadth and depth of data to give each student a fair and deserved grade.

Although this is arguably more stressful than sitting the real A-level exams, being over a longer period of time and with more assessments, it does offer us more chances to succeed and get the best grades possible, eliminating the fear that your whole grade is decided for you in a single exam period.

To summarise our return to Sixth Form, although these last months have been stressful on the Year 13s, we are rising to the challenge and still trying to make our last few weeks at Sixth Form the most fun and memorable that they can be – both for ourselves and for the Year 12s.