Welcoming students from the local Aberdeenshire area, to further afield from Edinburgh and the Borders, it was fantastic to have the RGC Online student community together at Schoolhill over the weekend.

Throughout the year, they have been working together as an online class with Mr McGee, Teacher of Computing Science. The students have progressed well through their Higher Computing Science course work, and it was time to complete their practical SQA Assignment under invigilated conditions. 

Mr Macpherson, Head of Robert Gordon’s College, along with Mrs Power, Head of RGC Online, welcomed the pupils on to campus. After a quick introduction to what was ahead of them, the students received their RGC Online hooded tops. Led by Mr McGee and Mr Rae, Teacher of Computing and Mathematics, the students worked through their assignments. 

Mrs Power shared: “Every Monday and Wednesday, Mr McGee hosts the live classes via Google Meet in the early evening to enable the students to attend their day school, eat, relax and be ready for their lesson. This has worked really well with the students this year who have continued to manage their other activities around their computing lessons. While the online classes have been a success this year, it was fantastic to finally have an opportunity to have the whole cohort together in a real bricks and mortar classroom. The Assignment is an important part of the Higher Computing Science certification and the students have really valued Mr McGee’s guidance throughout, as he is an exceptionally experienced educator and current Principal Assessor for Higher Computing Science for the SQA.”

Mr McGee commented: “Students employed their Python programming and SQL expertise to develop their own solutions to the Higher Computing Science Assignment. Expertise in these areas was developed throughout the year using the browser-based IDE, Replit. Problem solving and computational thinking skills are such an integral part of this course and it was really rewarding to see them apply these skills to successfully complete the assignment to a high standard.”

Mr Macpherson added: “It was a landmark moment for us to have our inaugural RGC Online class come together for the first time at Schoolhill, Aberdeen for the assignment. We’re really proud of their efforts and their progress so far. It shows that the platform we have established is really working well and that bodes well for future growth. Bringing pupils from across Scotland together to increase SQA presentations for Computing Science, as well as learning about cutting edge technology through the diploma programme, will provide a massive boost to Scotland’s tech sector in the future. It also shows our commitment as a school to public benefit and extending access, thanks to the number of fully funded scholarship places we can offer through RGC Online. ”

Hear from some of our RGC Online students

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Find out more about our live-taught online Higher courses and additional tech modules for students across Scotland. Apply online now for Higher Computing Science and Higher Applications of Mathematics.

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