Online Learning
Remote Education Provision
Information for Parents
This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to students and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education if local restrictions require entire cohorts to remain at home or if school is closed due to adverse conditions e.g.bad weather.
Work has been carried out to ensure that students are familiar with accessing the different areas of the ‘blended’ learning offer.
The Remote Curriculum
What is taught to students at home
During the first subject lesson of remote learning, the teacher will explain exactly how learning will work, set out expectations of your child’s involvement and remind students how work will be set, handed in and marked. During this time, the teacher will explain the timetable for the rest of the week and how the students can access extra support if they need it when working independently.
Students will be given some simple tasks to complete to make sure they know how to hand in work that they complete.
A remote home school agreement may be distributed and discussed to ensure that expectations of students, adults at home, and school are all clear. Students will be reminded of remote learning rules to ensure that all remote learning is carried out in as supportive and caring manner as in their “real” classroom.
Students should expect a full timetabled day of learning from day 2 of any prolonged period of closure.
Following the first few days of remote education, will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as they would if they were in school?
We will teach the same curriculum remotely as we do in school wherever possible and appropriate. However, we may need to make some adaptations in some subjects. For example, where a task requires lots of discussion the teacher may amend to make it more suitable for remote learning, PE and Art will be flexible to allow for students to access them depending on their individual circumstances.
Remote Teaching and Study Time Each Day
How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?
We expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take students broadly the same amount of time as students in school. The timetable for the day will match that of any students in school and individual support will be available during normal school hours. If students are unable to complete the learning tasks they are set, then they (or parent/carers on their behalf) should discuss this with the class teacher.
During this time, the teacher will explain the timetable for the rest of the week and how the students can access extra support if they need it when working independently.
Students will be given some simple tasks to complete to make sure they know how to hand in work that they complete.
A remote home school agreement may be distributed and discussed to ensure that expectations of students, adults at home, and school are all clear. Students will be reminded of remote learning rules to ensure that all remote learning is carried out in as supportive and caring manner as in their “real” classroom.
Students should expect a full timetabled day of learning from day 2 of any prolonged period of closure.
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?
All students will access their online lessons using Microsoft Teams. This platform is already used to set and support tasks within lessons. Students will be able to ask questions and request support during the day using Teams chat and if appropriate small groups of students may receive additional live teaching to help their learning. All tasks will be set as Teams assignments and students will “hand in” the work they do and feedback will be given using Teams. Students will continue to be rewarded for their effort and achievement using the current reward systems.
If my child does not have digital or online access at home, how will you support them to access remote education?
We recognise that some students may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those students to access remote education:
- If your child does not have access to a laptop or other suitable device but your home does have a high-speed internet connection then we may be able to lend them a laptop. Parents and carers should call the school office for further information.
- For any students that do not have any access to the internet, printed materials will be prepared and can be collected from school or delivered if required. Work will be delivered and collected as appropriate to minimise travel and feedback given on previous work.
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?
All students will access their online lessons using Microsoft Teams. This platform is already used to set and support tasks within lessons. Students will be able to ask questions and request support during the day using Teams chat and if appropriate small groups of students may receive additional live teaching to help their learning. All tasks will be set as Teams assignments and students will “hand in” the work they do and feedback will be given using Teams. Students will continue to be rewarded for their effort and achievement using the current reward systems.
How will my child be taught remotely?
We use a combination of the following approaches to teach students remotely:
- live teaching (online lessons) – most lessons will include a live introduction from your child’s class teacher
- recorded teaching (e.g. Oak National Academy lessons, video/audio recordings made by teachers) – for some lessons your child will download and view a pre-recorded video
- commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences – your child will continue to use the range of online tools that they are familiar with and use in school.
Engagement and Feedback
What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?
Please expect that your child will be completing a usual day of learning from 9:30am to 2:30pm. Parents and students may be asked to sign a remote learning contract that clearly sets out expectations of school, students and parents/carers for any remote learning period.
We expect that students will:
- “arrive” or log in on time to all of their live lessons
- be dressed appropriately for learning
- do their best to complete all independent learning tasks
- request help through Teams if they are unsure of what to do, or how to do it
- abide by the remote learning rules and the remote learning contract (when appropriate)
We ask that parents and carers
- help students to log in to live learning
- monitor students’ safe access to the internet
- report any problems accessing learning to the class teacher
- set routines at home to support their child’s education
- ensure that students “arrive” or log in promptly each morning
- monitor the Parent Portal account for messages and updates from school and teachers
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
It is important that students continue their learning during any period of learning at home. In order to monitor this:
- a register will be taken each lesson
- any child not attending will be marked absent and we will contact you to find out the reason for your child’s absence
- in addition, the class teacher(s) will monitor student’s completion of work to ensure that all tasks are completed during the day.
If we are concerned that a child is not attending or not engaging successfully with their remote learning, we will contact you to discuss how we can work together to ensure your child’s education is not interrupted.
How will you assess my child’s work and progress?
Feedback can take many forms and may not always mean extensive written comments for individual students. For example, whole-class feedback or quizzes marked automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others.
Our approach to feeding back on pupil work is as follows:
- Feedback can be a written comment
- For some pieces of work we will issue a marked score
- Where necessary, more detailed feedback may be issued to help a child or group of students understand a misconception in a virtual live meeting
- Students will receive feedback on all work they submit
Additional support for students with particular needs
How will you work with me to help my child who needs additional support from adults at home to access remote education?
We recognise that some students, may not be able to access remote education without support from adults at home. We acknowledge the difficulties this may place on families, and we will work with parents and carers to support those students in the following ways:
- Teachers may differentiate tasks
- Additional supports, examples and checklists may be issued
- Where individual approaches are required, we will discuss these with you
Please contact the individual teachers at school if you would like to discuss the needs of your child and how they will access remote learning.
