Remote Learning

We teach the same curriculum remotely as we do in school wherever possible and appropriate. However, we have needed to make some adaptations in some subjects. For example, where there is a practical element in Art, Drama, Music, Science, Computer Science and PE this will supplemented with videos or alternative tasks. Where students are completing coursework, the teacher may decide to move to course revision tasks.

We expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take students 5-6 hours, including form time, each day.

Students should login to Microsoft Teams to access all learning. If they encounter any problems, they should contact: Pastoral Manager, Director of Learning or Senior Link.

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:

• Laptops have been provided for many of our families where device access is a problem.
• In addition, the Academy has a small bank of laptops that families can borrow, if there are no other devices in the home. To access this, please email your Pastoral Manager or Director of Learning. Students will be issued with a laptop and families will need to sign a usage form and return when the student comes back to the Academy.
• Since Microsoft Teams will be used to deliver lessons as far as possible, we expect students to use this forum and the laptop loan scheme for remote learning. Where families do require some printed materials, they must request this and collect these materials from the Academy’s reception, or where this is not possible, it will be sent home.
•  Students should submit all work through the assignment and submit work button. Students can also email work to teachers on their school email address. Work can also be submitted on paper to school

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

• – Live teaching (online lessons)
• – Microsoft Stream videos- this is pre-recorded lessons
• – Teachers sharing screens and working through PowerPoint presentations
• – Students working on activities in Class Notebook where the teacher can provide direct feedback on the work
• – Teachers will also use additional platforms (e.g. GCSEPod; Show My Homework)
• – Commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips and quizzes amongst other interactive resources (e.g. Oak National Academy lessons, video/audio recordings made by teachers, BBC Bitesize work)

Student Expectations

Our expectation is that students attend each lesson for each period and that students stay online during the live lesson. Where this is not possible, we expect the student to go over the class materials and complete any assignments when they can access the work.

Parent Expectations

Our expectation of parents is that they ensure students attend online lessons, on time and remain in the lesson as long as live lessons are taking place. We also ask that parents check in that students are completing set tasks and communicate if their son/daughter is having problems accessing the work. This can be done by contacting the Pastoral Manager, Director of Learning or Senior Link.

The Pastoral Manager will check in on student attendance at each lesson, you will receive a phone call if your son/daughter does not access learning on a particular day and the expectation is that they should then catch up with the work they have missed.

If a student is not completing the tasks, parents will either receive phone calls from the Pastoral Manager or Director of Learning, subject teacher or Head of Department. The expectation is that parent/carers ensure that work is completed. Where students are struggling to access content, then it is the parent/carers responsibly to either contact the Academy via telephone or email or support their son/daughter in communicating with their teacher through Microsoft Teams.

The Senior Team will be running Q & A sessions for parents regularly to address any queries linked to remote learning.

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:

• Assignments
• Quizzes
• Verbal feedback in live lessons
• Comments made in Class Notebook
• Students should expect feedback in line with the marking policy (Frequency every 6 lessons for examination groups)

We recognise that some pupils, for example some 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:

• – Regular well-being calls from a member of the Inclusion team
• Teaching Assistant’s and learning support Assistant’s supporting in live lessons
• – TA’s run interventions to support the schoolwork
• – Online classes where needed
• – Differentiated packs for students
• – Regular well-being calls from a member of the Inclusion team
• teaching Assistant’s and learning support Assistant’s supporting in live lessons
• – TA’s run interventions to support the schoolwork
• – 1-1 Online classes where needed
• – Differentiated packs for students

In many respects, individual students isolating will have the same experience as when they are isolating in a group.

For students who are self-isolating, expectations of remote learning will vary. In such cases, students will be able to access all the learning through Microsoft Teams. They can access the resources from the lesson in Files section of their class Team. In some instances, videos will be provided but live lessons will not take place. If students are struggling accessing the work, they should contact teachers via Teams or email for support.