Tick tock, tick tock, the countdown to exams is underway. And so the debates about study support begin.

Time is a big issue in teachers’ classes, so how do you ensure that pupils get a chance to revise exam-level questions through the year when they are still being taught the course in class time?

This is where I think professional dialogue is interesting, as it seems that the best results for some schools involve changing the set-up every year.

Do you only invite pupils who nearly passed the prelim for extra support, or the ones who nearly failed the prelim? Do you bring the parents along to join them? Has anyone found the magic solution that makes a difference in the long term? It’s hard to declare a new method a magical solution if it hasn’t proven itself over a good few years.

It’s a source of frustration in education circles that people do not like turning up after school. Apparently - and I don’t understand this at all - it isn’t cool to be in the maths department voluntarily.

One method we are trialling at my school this year, then, is 7.30am revision classes. I offered it almost as a joke - but we get 20 to 23 pupils turning up. Coffee and tea are available, but no real gimmicks beyond that. What’s in it for us? Well, I haven’t been paid for study support since around 2004, so it isn’t the money. A chance to make a positive difference and to join these children on their journey? Maybe.

Sadly (for some pupils) we reached out to parents, who also love this idea. Around one-third of the attendees arrived in protest at first, but thankfully they did all join in and, so far, it has proved a positive experience. The elusive perfect solution that works for every pupil may or may not be out there - but for now, in the halls of our school, a 7.30am revision class happens every weekday morning.

Eddie White is a maths teacher in East Lothian