e-Sgoil's Study Support webinars are in full swing this year, with a total of 50 different webinars running each week during term time. And the number of young people registering to take part is constantly increasing.

More than 3000 learners representing young people in all 32 of Scotland’s local authorities are currently registered for a total of 12,700 individual Study Support webinars.

Launched in the Western Isles in 2016, e-Sgoil is now a nationwide community for online teaching and learning, and the Study Support sessions are just one strand of e-Sgoil’s work, which aims to complement pupils’ learning in school by removing barriers to access for education and expanding and enriching the curriculum offer.

This is taking place in a number of ways, from supply teaching into schools across Scotland, which can be short-term or long-term depending on the needs of the school, to Developing the Young Workforce Live (a partnership between employers and organisations delivered by e-Sgoil and Education Scotland), and support for Gaelic learners.

“The Study Support sessions are there to consolidate their learning, to support what they’ve been doing in schools,” e-Sgoil Head of School, Steven Graham, told EVENTS Newspaper in December. “We have over 50 webinars, from National 4 to Advanced Higher, which are available to young people right across Scotland, they all run in the evenings, and it’s totally free of charge.”

Funded as part of the National e-Learning Offer, the Study Support webinars are available in a variety of subjects, including English, Maths, sciences, social subjects, and languages, to name just a few. Pupils sign up for the online classes via e-Sgoil’s website (they can register for as many or as few sessions as they wish), and then attend a live interactive webinar where at least one, and often two, specialist teachers will be leading the learning.

During the webinars, pupils work collaboratively using digital tools on Microsoft Teams, and use the chat function to ask for help with any topic they’re unsure of.  Each webinar Team also offers a “Your Questions” channel, which is monitored by teachers, where pupils can post questions in-between webinar sessions. The teachers work with and help the pupils with any areas of difficulty, while other young people often chime in and help their peers, too. “There’s a real culture of them being in it together and helping one another,” said Steven.

The community aspect of the webinars is borne out in the feedback. Pupils are asked to evaluate their experience each term, and e-Sgoil staff report that young people recently rated the “overall quality of webinar experience” at 4.5 out of 5, saying they enjoy the sense of an online learning community, as well as the positive relationships that develop between learners and teachers as the year progresses. As one young person said in their feedback: “Great job on all the webinars. There is amazing consistency in the quality of the learning. The teachers are also very welcoming and inclusive.”

Speaking to EVENTS, Steven added that these sessions increase access for young people who live in more rural areas across Scotland, and may not always be able to stay behind for classes after school. “As long as you’ve got an internet connection, anyone can join. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Stornoway or Uig, it’s open to everybody – it’s no longer a postcode lottery.”

And although thousands of learners are already enrolled for this term’s Study Support webinars, there is still space – and time – for young people to sign up, as the digital set-up on Microsoft Teams through Glow means large numbers can be accommodated on a single meeting. “We are very lucky to have such a dedicated team of teachers delivering the Study Support webinars,” said Dr Simon Hall, Study Support Lead and e-Sgoil Depute Head Teacher, of the webinars. “The young people really appreciate the work that goes in to make the sessions as interactive and inclusive as possible, and it’s clear that they really enjoy them.”

To register for any of the e-Sgoil Study Support webinars, pupils can visit the e-Sgoil website at the following link and fill in the registration form. Please note that a Glow login is required; if your local authority doesn’t routinely use Glow, e-Sgoil can provide clear support for easy access: https://e-sgoil.com/study-support/

For further information, anyone interest can contact Dr Simon Hall via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.