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 (or bubbles) to remain at home.
For details of what to expect where individual students are self-isolating, please see the final section of this page.
The remote curriculum: what is taught to students at home
A pupil’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look different from our standard approach, while we take all necessary actions to prepare for a longer period of remote teaching.
What should my child expect from immediate remote education in the first day or two of students being sent home?
We aim to follow your child’s planned curriculum as closely as possible. We are prepared to switch to distance learning immediately.
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?
From week two of remote learning, we will be following the planned curriculum as closely as possible Your child can expect the full range of subjects.
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) to take all students around five hours per day.
Accessing remote education
How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?
Teachers will teach using live and recorded sessions which they can access on computers, tablets or phones. students are expected to complete work online or in exercise books.
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 online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those students to access remote education:
- We have laptops to lend to students who need them for home study – please phone the school office for more information.
- We also have internet dongles which we can lend if you don’t have an internet connection at home.
- We have reduced the requirement for printed materials. Where students need to write on paper, we have provided exercise books. If your child needs more, please phone the school office.
How will my child be taught remotely?
We use a combination of the following approaches to teach students remotely:
- Live online lessons
- Recorded lessons
- Online activities
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?
We expect all students to log on at the start of the school day for registration and morning lessons. When these lessons are live, all students are expected to participate in the lesson, answering questions either with the microphone or using the chat feature. Taks will be set, including written tasks, which students need to complete as though they were at school. students have the opportunity to ask questions either through the chat feature or via email.
Parents and carers should support by ensuring students:
- have access to online resources, or letting the school know if this isn’t possible
- are ready to learn at the start of the school day and
- are present for registration sessions
- respond to teachers’ questions
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
We will check engagement and understanding throughout lessons by asking questions in live lessons and checking tasks set. We set quizzes and other tasks for each week’s learning which will help us see whether your child has engaged with their work.
If your child is not present for AM/PM registration, or completing the work to a satisfactory standard, we will contact you either by email or by phone.
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 children. 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:
- Weekly learning quizzes and other tasks will help us see whether your child has understood the key learning for the week.
- One written task will be assessed each week. students’ work will be submitted either through our online portal or as photographs. students will get individual feedback and the teacher will use the class data to adapt the subsequent teaching.
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, for example some students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), 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:
- through 1:1 sessions, where students will receive targeted support that is tailored to their abilities.
- through small online groups with students working at the same level.
Remote education for self-isolating students
Where individual students need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school, how remote education is provided may slightly differ from the approach for whole groups. This is due to the challenges of teaching students both at home and in school.
Where possible live streaming lessons will be the first approach to support this, along with pre recorded sessions.
During periods of self isolation you will receive ‘keeping in touch calls’ throughout the week; we recognise that this period can be a very anxious time for our students and families, and situations can rapidly change. If at any time during this period students become unwell, please contact the school office to let us know.
If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating, how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?
We are able to include isolating students in class learning by streaming the lesson electronically. Teachers and Teaching Assistants monitor the chat function so that your child can ask and answer questions. Our monitoring shows that isolating students feel included and that they are able to keep up with their peers.