Friday 27th Mar

 

We are nearly a week into the total lockdown, but one week closer to April 7th when things may change – for the better or for the worse. Will we open schools or will we not? I don’t think anyone knows the answer to that question, and in these circumstances, you just have to have confidence in the professionals working for the good of everyone. Have confidence in the doctors, the health workers, community managers ....and teachers.

 

Everyone thinks they know best when it comes to schools. They have their own children and so they know! Fortunately, not all children are the same and not all family circumstances are the same. It is the role of teachers and schools to accommodate all of these differences. In ‘normal’ times teachers have schemes of work and plans which as professionals they do without parents being fully aware of them. Parents just have confidence in what is needed to be done during the year is done. 

 

The same happens in ‘abnormal’ times like school closures. Schools have strategies and plans to cope with such situations as they progress. We are professionals who know what to do and everyone needs to have confidence in this.

 

When the school closures were announced we quickly introduced a system where every pupil got the same work as others of the same age every day. This work was not new and too ‘hard’ to do without parents’ help. Many parents are really grateful for this, while some want to keep their children learning new things without the support of a teacher. It is our professional experience that this is not the time for new work. It is a time for review and for parents to work on generic thinking skills activities, and to work with their children on ‘life skill’. Unfortunately, some parents think their children are not learning if they do not have their noses in a book or eyes glued to a computer. 

 

For Cambridge exam classes we were in immediate contact with Cambridge Exam Board to alert them to our situation regarding the closure. I had every confidence in Cambridge making the right decision to cancel the external exams this year. I did not have to give them my advice.

 

So we have a planned strategy to keep pupils reviewing past work every day for the initial closure period. We are also in a position to develop the learning programme if the closure is extended. Parents need to have that confidence in their school.

 

There is always a cry for e-learning when pupils cannot attend school, whether through illness or through closures. I virtually pioneered remote learning 19 years ago with a school closure that lasted 10 weeks.

 

E-learning has its benefits for some but is a disaster for others. There is a misconception that all pupils like to spend hours on a device, (laptop, tablet, iPhone) learning. They do not. They like to use social media and find funny cat videos on YouTube to share with friends, but many do not like learning platforms. 

 

E-learning has to go through a training period with teachers and parents for it to be effective, and what exactly is effective e-learning? People use the term without thinking about what it is. It cannot be a virtual lesson and be sure everyone is watching and concentrating. Even University lecturers who simply talk to adults are not confident that e-lectures have the same impact.

 

E-learning is simply a different way to attract the attention of a pupil. In the 50s pupils looked at a blackboard, in the 60s they began looking at whiteboards, in the 70s they saw computers in the classroom, in the 80s they saw projectors. By 2000s they had interactive projectors, in 2010 they had YouTude videos and by 2020 they can have virtual reality. None of these will work without a teacher, and neither does e-learning.

 

So what are we doing to prepare for the worse? We have spent the last week preparing Y1-3 teachers to introduce an e-learning platform. Parents will be given information about this on Sat 28th.  If the school closure goes beyond April 7th we have a platform ready which can be used by Y4-9. Y10 -12 will get exam grades from Cambridge as if they had taken the exams so their futures are protected. 

 

The school may be closed but everyone is working much harder now than if it was open. If you have the confidence in what we are doing and relax with your children we will get through this period with no lasting damage. 

 

Stay safe and healthy 

 

Mr George