Remote education provision: information for parents

This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to pupils and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education if local restrictions require entire cohorts (or bubbles) to remain at home or individual pupils need to self-isolate.

Where individual children are isolating we will provide work that covers what has been delivered in the lessons that they have missed. In some cases we are able to run “live lessons” that pupils can access at the same time as the students in school, in other instances we will provide work through google classroom.

The senior member of staff with overall responsibility for the quality assurance of remote learning is Mrs K Binns.

This document builds upon the good practice that has been developed over the last year. Practice continues to develop as we learn from our experiences. This document details, in bold, where we have made changes to our procedure. All pupils are expected to follow these procedures.

Safeguarding
During live lessons pupils must ensure:

• they are logged in to Teams using their username and password;
• they are appropriately dressed and their background is blurred.
• they use appropriate language and behaviour as we expect when at school.

Curriculum

• Work will be in line with agreed curriculum plans and be both meaningful and ambitious;
• Pupils will get 5 hrs of work per day in line with their school timetable and the same number of hours work set across the 2 weeks per subject as they would have timetabled lessons;
• Pupils will be set a mix of work where they are required to complete work either on the computer or handwritten responses to ensure they are not sat at a computer screen all day;

Lessons

• It is important that we support pupils in keeping to good routines that help to maintain wellbeing. All lesson resources will be scheduled on Google Classroom shortly before the start of the lesson. Google Classroom User Guide
• Live Lessons
  • Microsoft Teams will be used for live teaching  Teams Guide
  • All lessons will start with a live introduction. Pupils are expected to log into each lesson at the time specified on their timetable as a register will be taken to track pupil engagement;
  • Staff will remain online throughout the scheduled lesson time to support pupils in their learning;
  • Staff may then teach live, or direct pupils to a ‘recorded video’ to deliver new material and explain concepts; 
  • Pupils should complete the work set during the lesson and in most cases the learning will be reviewed with pupils at the end of the lesson. This allows for feedback and checking understanding; 
  • Pupils will be given clear instructions regarding the amount of work they are expected to complete during the lesson time.  We recognise that it may take some pupils much longer to do the task that we anticipate and that pupils may not complete everything and that they should do what they can to the best of their ability in the timeframe given;
  • Pupils should submit their classwork to google classroom so that teachers can check progress and engagement and adjust the pace or difficulty of what is being taught where necessary. It is not the case that every piece of work will receive individual feedback;
  • Separate arrangements will apply for core PE lessons.

Homework

• Pupils at KS4/5 will access the same total amount of learning time per week as they would usually – hours in class and on homework tasks;
• In order to support our KS4 pupils in preparing for assessments with both skills and knowledge, homework will either be an additional task or a continuation of something that was started in the lesson (but not intended to be finished in the lesson);
• Extension tasks may be used to support extended learning for KS3;
• All additional tasks set beyond those intended to be completed during the lesson time will be added to Google Classroom and not Classcharts and a submission deadline given;
• Pupils should make use of the online learning platforms listed on our school website for additional independent learning tasks.Online Learning Platforms

Engagement and Feedback

• Feedback will be given each week through individually marked work, whole class feedback and self assessment;
• Staff will check that pupils are attending live lessons and engaging with their work using Classcharts. The Achievement Team will contact home where necessary. Pupils with low engagement may be required to attend school to support them with their learning;
• There is no longer a 5pm deadline for submission as work should be submitted at the end of a lesson;
• Parents will get a weekly email summary from Google Classroom.

Expectations for pupils’ engagement with remote education
We expect all pupils to:

• to take part in live lessons as much as possible;
• complete their online learning to the best of their ability;
• to ask for help from their teachers if they are having difficulty with the work;
• to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner during live lessons following the school behaviour policy at all times.

Parental Support
Where possible please ensure that children:

• get up and are ready to start their lessons for 8.45am each day;
• log onto google classroom to access their work and the links for live lessons;
• ensure that they have a set space where they can do their work and one where they can take their breaks;
• avoid having their phone/the tv near them when they are working;
• stick to their school timetable as much as they can – including their regular breaktime and lunchtime.
• ask for help if they are having difficulty;
• try to get some fresh air (if they are not self-isolating) and physical exercise.

Additional Support for pupils with individual needs

• Staff will ensure that pupils in their classes with specific learning needs (SEND) are given additional / alternative / differentiated support and guidance where needed;
• AEN Key Workers for SEND pupils have been added to teaching groups on Google Classroom – this means they can support when they are in contact with SEND pupils at home;
• AEN Key Workers will remain in regular contact with parents and carers to ensure that they are engaging with remote education and to check on their emotional well being and mental health;
• Staff will be flexible when chasing non-submission of work for these pupils and where possible will liaise with their AEN Key Worker rather than contacting the pupil directly.

Support Accessing Remote Learning

We recognise that some pupils may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those pupils to access remote education:

• Should your child be unable to access their remote resources from home please contact the achievement team who will provide technical support;
• Should your child not have access to a digital device we will lend one to them. Please contact Laura Envy in the achievement team;
• We have enough hardware to ensure that all pupils have access to remote learning, including wi-fi dongles should they be required;
• In the rare event that pupils cannot access online material we will post written copies of work to pupils with stamped addressed envelopes to return the work to school.

Key Contacts