Back to School

People are sometimes surprised to discover that I went to school in Bearsden. I don’t know why. After all, my prominent Bearsden accent is clear for all to hear.

Today I had a trip back down memory lane with a visit to Bearsden Primary School where I was a pupil in the 1970s. I’ve not been back since, and seeing that they were advertising a doors open day, I went and had a look around this morning.

I have to say that I have very happy memories of that school. My P5 teacher was particularly good – an incredibly vibrant woman who obviously loved what she did. There she was on the wall in a photograph though I couldn’t see myself anywhere. There were others I did recognise, notably the head teacher who was a figure of utmost respect and the depute, a woman who was mad, in a peculiarly religious way and kept order by belting children. I was in her P7 class.

The school felt very different today. I love what has happened to Primary education in Scotland. The best schools are amazing places. Today, Bearsden Primary looked colourful, exciting and absolutely full of life. I remember sitting in rows (designated according to assessed ability – clever people at the back, thick people at the front) reciting times tables for hours on end. Now, though there was obvious evidence of the subjects that the school is teaching, there was just as much about respect, friendship and how to be an all round good pupil.

I remember being told that Bearsden Primary was quite an intimidating environment for student teachers and new staff. In addition to the usual possibility of making a faux pas by drinking tea from another teacher’s mug, in Bearsden Primary, you had to make sure you didn’t sit at the Bridge players’ table.

We walked in straight lines when I was at primary school. Indeed, it was a fairly regimented place. I suspect things are a little different now. And very impressive too.