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 where national or local restrictions require entire cohorts (or bubbles) to remain at home. For details of what to expect where individual pupils are self-isolating, please see the final section of this page.

The remote curriculum: How will I know what is to be taught to pupils at home and how it will be delivered?

Remote Learning Plan:

• A brief outline of each lesson will be shared with parents and students via Go4Schools, to allow you to keep a track of the learning plan.
• Pupils and classes have been enrolled on Microsoft Teams, which will be the main platform for live lessons and materials.
• Pupils will follow their current timetable, which will start at 9.00 am each morning.
• Staff will be asked to set lessons on a daily basis for the lessons that would be taught that day, with the exception of games/activities and PSHE to allow students screen breaks and opportunity to engage in exercise. This will ensure that pupils are not overloaded with work at the beginning of the week and have time away from their devices.
• Pupils will be set the same amount of work that would be expected of them when in school, although time should be allowed for pupils to understand and process what is being asked of them.
• Given the amount of time students will be spending in front of a screen we will not be setting additional homework to allow students a sufficient amount of time away from their electronic device.

 

How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?

The expectation is that students will engage in 4 to 5 lessons per day, as per their standard school timetable. Staff will set realistic expectations on the amount of work set, allowing time within lessons for consolidation of their learning. There is an understanding that students may not complete the same amount of work as when they are in school and have face to face teaching. 

 

How will my child access any online remote education you are providing? 

The main form of communication will be Go4Schools and the delivery of live lessons will be via Microsoft Teams. Students have been assigned to their classes to allow them to follow their normal school timetable. Teachers will supplement this work with the use of Seneca Learning, MyMaths, ActiveLearn, Kerboodle and other departmental platforms.

 

Where can I get the Go4Schools app?

The app is free and can be downloaded to any device through your device’s app store. All students and parents have a designated log-in. These have been shared with students, but if you require a reminder please contact the school.

 

I am having trouble accessing Go4Schools, where can I find help?

Your Go4Schools account has more functionality than the app, so if you are having trouble in the app try logging in to your account through a web browser.  If you are having problems logging in to the website or using the account once logged in then see here.  You can find a range of other support resources on Church Stretton Online School Apps that will support all aspects of using the school's IT system. If a student or parent cannot access work due to password problems then please use the 'forgotten password' route on the Go4Schools website.  The school cannot change your password, you will need to go through the self-service route on the Go4Schools website.

 

How will my child be taught remotely?

We will use a combination of the following approaches to teach pupils remotely: 

Teachers will use a range of activities and resources in order to teach students remotely.

• Students will receive work for each of their timetabled lessons per week, with the exception of games/activities and PSHE.
• The expectation is that all students will receive a minimum of one meaningful interaction with their subject teacher per week. This could take the form of, but not exclusive too, a live taught lesson, a pre-recorded lesson or personal email contact.
• Students will also receive individual or whole class feedback for the work that they submit on MS Teams.
• Teachers will be available to students throughout their timetabled lessons in case they have any difficulties with the work that has been set. Students will be able to use both email and the chat facility on MS Teams in order to contact their teachers.
• There will be a range of different types of work being set for students which will follow the revised curriculum plans that are available on the curriculum area of the website.

 

I have a problem with the work.

If there are issues in relation to specific tasks students can contact staff through email.  Key contacts are here.

Please remember that on a tier 1 approach teachers will still be following their normal school timetable so there may be a delay in any response. However, staff will endeavour to contact you as soon as possible.

 

How do I submit work?

Teachers will make it very clear when a student needs to work in their book or when work needs to be handed in on-line.

When work is submitted on-line it will be done through MS Teams and OneNote, either as a computer-based document or as a photo of exercise book work taken on a smartphone or other device.  Every student will have an online class notebook in OneNote for every subject.  This can be accessed through MS Teams or the OneNote app.  Class teachers will be able to see each class notebook, but students can only see their own books.

 

How do teachers mark the work?

Teachers will continue to follow the schools normal marking and assessment policy. This may be supplemented by more frequent quick tests and quizzes using MS Forms. Teachers will keep a record of how children are getting on with these quizzes, and submitted work, to monitor each child's progress.  Therefore, work must be completed and submitted.

 

What happens if the work is not completed or work is not submitted?

Our Distance Learning Co-ordinators (DLCs) are monitoring the use of Go4Schools, OneNote and the registers taken by teaching staff during each live lesson. The DLCs may be in contact to discuss missed work and check that all is okay.  Please ensure that your child logs into Go4schools in their account and not a parent account, and that they attend every live lesson that they are able to.

If you are concerned about your child’s progress or need some support please contact your child’s Head of Key Stage here.

 

What if they finish all the work or the internet is not working?

If students finish all their work or the internet goes down, then please take this opportunity to consolidate their learning and practise what they have learned so far:

• Make revision notes/ cards or a mind map (These can be used later, use the knowledge organisers on the curriculum pages area to help)
• Design a quiz that you can use – test a friend through social media
• Condense your notes – page to a paragraph, a paragraph to a sentence, a sentence into a key word
• Read a book just like you would in school

There may be other strategies that students are familiar with, many of these do not also require a screen.  Students often say they have finished, by which they usually mean they have completed the work to a particular standard.  It is often the case that a review of that finished work will create an opportunity to improve it, add more detail or consolidate their understanding further.

 

How can I support my child in working?

• Please check Go4Schools regularly.
• Find them somewhere quiet to work.
• Remove any distractions - game consoles etc, phones (only for checking tasks).
• Break the work up into chunks with regular breaks.
• Help them establish a routine (Following the school timetable is best as it will make any return to school easier).
• Look on the curriculum pages of our website where you will find knowledge organisers for the unit of work your child is doing.  This will help you and your child understand what it is they need to know and where their learning is going.

 

Additional support for pupils 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 pupils, for example some pupils 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 pupils in the following ways:

• The work that is set by staff will be differentiated to take into account those students with SEND, as would be the case with face-to-face teaching.
• LSAs, the SENDCo and our specialist teachers are available to speak to students or parents via telephone, email or can access student’s lessons on MS Teams to support if needed. 
• If you have a child with an ECHP or high level of SEND and you are struggling to support them with remote learning we would actively encourage them to come into school and work with our staff here as per government recommendations.

 

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

• Parents/carers, please get in touch via admin@csschool.co.uk if your son/daughter does not have access to a reliable laptop or similar device. We have had a small consignment of DFE issued Chromebooks that we have been busily getting ready to be leant out, please let us know if borrowing one of these would be of benefit.
• The school remains open for children of critical workers and vulnerable children. If you require any printing please email the school on admin@csschool.co.uk and we will do our best to provide support. In general, most lessons will be able to be completed online with work submitted on Teams or email.

 

I am worried that we don’t have enough IT access at home?

The school is facilitating a lease / purchase scheme where a Chrome book can be purchased over a period or outright, to be used at home to support home learning or in the event of any distance learning. Full details can be found on our Chromebook Programme page.

As a school we have limited IT resources that can be allocated to students during any period of distance learning. Where we are able to offer a loan of devices to students, we will always prioritise students based on priority need.

 

Remote education for self-isolating pupils

As a school and in line with DFE guidance we will not be offering distance work to those students who do not meet the official criteria below:

• Student told to self-isolate for official reasons as part of Track & Trace or as part of a household.
• Student tested positive.
• Student has returned from a non-term time holiday and has been required to quarantine as part of government guidance.

We acknowledge that this may be difficult, but we must try to ensure that all students return to school.

Whilst students are waiting for official guidance, we would suggest that they continue with their normal homework and use the resources on the Oak National Academy. This was funded by the government as part of distance learning and will support all subjects within school at both KS3 & KS4. 

• From the point of notifying the school and the booking of a test, we will endeavour to issue work that follows the student’s timetable within three working days. In the time before, these students should continue to complete any homework tasks set in Go4Schools and access any relevant work as part of the Oak National Academy.