Independent school becomes first Gold-accredited secondary in Glasgow

This successful scheme, developed by Scottish Book Trust, Scotland’s national charity to transform lives through reading and writing, has three accreditation levels - Core, Silver and Gold - that mark a school’s journey to building a successful and sustainable reading culture within their school and local community.

Having been accredited at the highest level, The High School of Glasgow has also become the first Gold-accredited secondary school in Glasgow.

Reading Schools is open to every school in Scotland and its framework is tied to the delivery of the Curriculum for Excellence. It is built upon extensive research that shows the significant benefits for young people who read for pleasure, which has been shown to improve attainment, support equity and wellbeing, and help develop critical thinking, creativity and empathy skills.

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To be accredited at the highest level, schools need to evidence how a focus on reading for pleasure has sustainably benefitted the school in different ways, including impact on learner achievements, learner opportunities and role-modelling, staff development, raising the profile of reading with families and developing partnerships beyond their own school. The High School of Glasgow has a commitment to providing access to a diverse and wide-range of texts, and its librarian, Dr Graham Fairweather, collaborated with a large pupil working group on a number of reading-based initiatives and clubs designed to create a modern reading culture in the School.

A key partnership in the High School’s Reading Schools Gold success has been working closely with EmpathyLab, a charitable social enterprise that uses books to inspire an empathy-educated generation. Pupils have used their ‘Read for Empathy Collection’ on several interdisciplinary projects and even had the opportunity to interview Brian Conaghan, Reading Schools Ambassador for secondary schools, for an 'Empathy Action Month' recording that was used by schools across the UK.

Dr Fairweather said: “Pupil voice and achievement are central components of the Reading Schools framework. Achieving this accreditation is a testament to the work that people across our school community have put in. The reading culture within the High School is thriving and we have developed a vibrant and diverse library, where pupils want to spend time and where everyone has the opportunity to become a reader.

"I’ve particularly enjoyed the community aspects of our reading journey, which have included hosting our own in-house book festival, manning a storytelling tent at a community day, a ‘Rights Respecting Reads’ challenge that is also open to staff and families, and a beautiful partnership with a local care home where pupils spend time reading with residents.”

The High School of Glasgow has a commitment to providing access to a diverse and wide-range of texts (Image: The High School of Glasgow)

Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said: “Many congratulations to The High School of Glasgow, Scotland’s first independent school to be awarded a Reading Schools Gold award. This is a fantastic achievement – as their independent assessment states, their work was 'Truly epic in every sense of the word, a masterclass in creating and evidencing a sustainable reading for pleasure culture within a school'.

"Creating a whole school reading culture and engaging with the local community in supporting and promoting books and reading creates huge benefits for all concerned, not least the students themselves, since we know that readers are achievers, and that a sustained engagement with books nurtures individuals throughout their lives, educationally, socially, and economically.”

The High School found the ideal moment to celebrate their landmark success with learners as it hosted BookFest - the school's own annual week-long book festival earlier this month.

Reflecting on what the Gold accreditation means to the High School, current S6 pupil and Reading Leader Athena said: “Reading Schools has allowed the library, and the whole school really, to become a space that is passionate and enthusiastic about reading and literature. The library is a busy place of discussion now where pupils talking about new books together is normal. Teacher involvement has also normalised reading as just a thing that we should all do - not to make us smarter, but because it is enjoyable.

“There is a positive culture of reading at the school – we have assemblies that showcase that reading is fun, that the library can be a social space, and I see pupils search out specific books because they know that the library will have new books that they want to read. We’ve always had the library as a place of resource, but now it is also a fun place, and we go there because it’s enjoyable.”

This culture of reading has seen pupils swapping smartphones for books for their entertainment and distraction. Where previously, they may have turned to their phones to pass the time, they are instead forming healthy, lifelong habits that will benefit them immensely.

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With increasing evidence about the harm smartphones have on the mental wellbeing of children and young people, the High School conducted a Digital Wellbeing Survey responded to by over 80% of the Senior School pupil population. It looked at a variety of aspects of the use of digital technology across the school day and in the evenings and the impact this has on learning. 58% of pupils stated that they found having their smartphone on or near them when studying and revising was a distraction, with 74% noting that receiving messages or alerts on their phones affected their ability to concentrate.  

As a result of these findings, and in a bid to champion learning uninterrupted by notifications from smartphones, the High School strengthened its long-standing policy whereby mobile phones should not be used at any point in the school day unless with express staff permission, to a policy that requires smartphones to be switched off. This approach chimes with a growing narrative amongst thought leaders including Johnathan Haidt, author and New York University professor, who published 'The Anxious Generation' earlier this year. In his book, he describes the steps that parents, teachers, schools, technology companies and governments can take to mitigate against the negative impacts of smartphones and social media on young people’s mental health.

While learning via digital technology is still a key aspect of the curriculum (evidenced by every child being issued an iPad for the duration of their time at school) it was felt that the over reliance on smartphones amongst young people, the negative impact they have on the ability to focus and the detrimental effect social media can have on mental wellbeing, merited a stronger policy.

Rector John O’Neill, said he was very proud of the school's gold accreditation adding this was a true reflection of the reading for pleasure culture imbued across our school.

He added: "We believe that fostering a culture where reading is not just normalised, but valued and celebrated, helps pupils to reach their full potential and shapes them into well-rounded individuals. Dr Fairweather, in collaboration with pupils and wider members of staff, has worked hard to make the High School a place where pupils are opting to put down their phones and pick up a book.

“This, coupled with our no mobile phones policy, is having an immediate and lasting impact on the wellbeing of our young learners and we are already seeing the benefits. At the High School we pride ourselves on our ability to help every child in our care not only find their voice but use it for good. Pupil advocacy has been a key driving force in our journey to receiving the Reading Schools Gold Accreditation and this is empowering for all involved.”