Review of studying at Glenalmond college, Daria Seredova

In the photo – son Savva, 14 years old, with British friends from Glenalmond college.

Since Savva’s son began studying at Glenalmond college at the age of 14, at least and with the reduction of one grade, but from the middle of the school year, we did not set any tasks for him. They gave us only one word of advice: the main thing is to adapt and get involved in the process. This is what we got! And the most important thing is that already during the first long Easter holidays he returned with the words: can I go there again next year and continue my studies? And this despite the fact that for the first 2 days he was in shock and did not even understand what was being said to him.

It was difficult, however, I am very grateful to our Russian school for the fact that the child was able to quickly integrate into the learning process. Yes, it took time, yes, my son was an excellent student at our school, but he found himself in a completely different world.

It was a great discovery for me that he draws excellently! This was discovered at school, and Savva really likes the subject of art. Since he studied piano at home, he was offered to take additional lessons on playing the gaboe. Honestly, it was a revelation for me that he would accept the offer and start practicing this instrument. He is very praised, the music teacher says that he is making leaps and bounds. Also, despite the still weak written English, the school insisted on learning a second language, since spoken – wonderful.

Savva moved to a strong science class. Enjoys studying in the choir. There was even a performance by the school in the cathedral, after which the school, as a sign of gratitude, organized a trip to an Indian restaurant for dinner. Of course, all the guys were very pleased. I can’t say that my son is delighted with the mandatory sports, but at home we couldn’t force him to do anything, and now he chose cross-country running, where he runs 16 km per workout.

It was not difficult for our son to adapt to the strict and ascetic conditions of living and being at school. Again, I understand that it is not only our upbringing, but also the approach of his home school at home. And I came to this conclusion quite recently.

Now I have already heard from him personally that he has approximately decided for himself what subjects he will take for GCSEs next year. Savva likes theater classes, we even managed to attend his performance at school, the guys staged “Peter Pen”. By the way, he had a very small role, again, considering that he spent only a short time at the educational institution. During this short period of time, he even managed to resolve the issue of living in a separate room in his house. It was also a very unexpected and pleasant moment for me. That is, it is no longer just about adaptation, but also about the ability to solve pressing issues in which he is interested.

I know for sure that he is not satisfied with all the results of final tests and exams, but rather his great desire to study excellently, just like at home. And we are already proud of how he handled this half-year. Again, I decided to stay for the next year in CCF classes, this is something like military training, if I understand correctly.

At the moment, both my husband and I have not regretted our decision; we understand what enormous experience the child already has. We observe, try to support and guide a little. Then something will depend on him and on the situation that is now unfolding in the world. We don’t make any plans, but we will try.

What was new to me was that the school does its best to create conditions for children so that they do not become attached to anything. They have an eternal change of something… either the leadership of the house, or the place of residence in the house, or a change of teacher. On the one hand – difficult, on the other hand – the ability to adapt and adapt. I see this as a plus.

We had a question: does Savva want to change schools? Is everything okay? There is only one answer: no! Next year he will take his exams here, and then we’ll see.