EXAM stress, careers advice and the impact of lecturers’ strikes on school placements were top of the agenda when Glasgow pupils met the city’s education convenor recently.
Students quizzed Councillor Christina Cannon on a range of topics at her latest “youth surgery” in Hillpark Secondary on the Southside of the city.
Sarah Linton, 17, who is in sixth year at the school, said she had written to both First Minister Humza Yousaf and Glasgow City Council education director Douglas Hutchison to highlight frustrations over cancelled classes.
Sarah said: “I’ve missed six weeks of my criminology course at college because of the strikes – it’s not the lecturers’ fault, but it might mean I don’t finish the course, or I have to do it into the summer holidays.
“Schools provide lots of college placements and it’s really frustrating when something like this happens and there’s nothing we can do about it.”
Councillor Cannon said: “Colleges are independent from the council, but I understand Sarah’s frustration and will write to the Minister for Further Education about this.”
The school, whose catchment stretches from Glasgow’s border with East Renfrewshire to Pollok, has around 1200 pupils.
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Councillor Cannon said: “In my role as political leader on education at Glasgow City Council, I am often contacted by teachers and parents. However, I could count on one hand the number of times a young person has got in touch with me.
“So I decided to run youth surgeries in schools around the city, to give me a chance to hear directly from young people about the issues that matter to them.”
She added: “The Hillpark Secondary pupils raised a lot of great ideas, big and small.”
Pupils Natalia Larraniaga-Llie, Jack Mackie, Robyn Bryan, Andrew Lafferty, Sara Koraishi, Robyn Wong, Cllr Cannon, Sarah Linton, Dua'a Korashi and Caleb Reid, shared their thoughts on the pressures of exams, particularly following disruption caused by the pandemic, and the important role of pastoral care in schools.
Geri Collins, Hillpark Secondary’s headteacher, said the session had been “very worthwhile”.
“It’s great for pupils to feel listened to,” she added. “This S6 group is fantastic, they are really enthusiastic and respectful young people.”
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