My child’s primary school is not doing any online teaching

[Yandle]

My dd is in year 6. There are no online lessons with her teachers. We are sent links to the Oak National Academy website with tasks put on a very old fashioned database called “purple mash”.
After all my friends who have children at other local schools in my area, told me about their children having online lessons daily, I contacted the head at my dd’s school and asked if they would be doing online teaching.
The answer was a firm no.
The reason given was that the school has a large number of children who do not speak English as a first language.
I don’t think this is an acceptable excuse and I feel very annoyed that the school is using this as a reason. Surely the school should be doing MORE for these children?
My dd has been watching the videos & doing the very small amount of work set but I feel she is missing out (along with her peers) when my friends children are having live interactive teaching on Microsoft teams.
Is there anything I can do? I know I can’t make them teach online lessons but I can’t help thinking that other schools in my area who also have pupils who do not have English as a first language, manage to teach online. They obviously care more about their pupils.

@GuyFawkesDay

I’ve got to say I feel you. Having only just stopped working (since 7am) and to immediately see criticism everywhere I turn, social media, MN, the media etc is pretty bloody exhausting and infuriating. Doesn’t breed good feeling.

@tinierclanger of course, so many professions/people are on their knees and working so hard. What’s an extra layer of crap for teachers though is the seemingly endless criticism by people who do think they know better and/or could do a better job and/or thinking we’re having a right ole jolly at home. I don’t see this of any other job and it just gets well meaning, kind teachers down after a while :) we all only have a certain tolerance even if we are meant to be these wholesome, kind creatures :)

Bit on other threads parents just want worksheets.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Can't win.

Do upper primary aged children really need so much parental involvement? We have a year 6 child, apart from helping him getting logged in on the first day he is self sufficient.

I understand that younger children will need more parental input but I do wonder if some parents are making a meal of this.

There are actually very good arguments against live lessons. Safeguarding is one, some schools may have pupils who are vulnerable I'd their location is discovered etc. Whilst chances are low, what of their location was disclosed. This will not apply to all schools but it may influence a school's decision.
There is also research that suggestes it can widen the attainment gap, if pupils can't attend. Yes they can be recorded but that also leads so safey questions. Do they stigmatise any who can't attend? Is there the technology available to ensure no one is disadvantaged? It should be but in reality, not always. I wish people would accept that there may be issues that you are not privvy to. It's not laziness, it may be linked to a variety of factors that make it unsuitable. And heaven forbid teachers are working from home with their children around. I wish the sympathy for wfh and juggling work/childcare extended to teachers as they are doing that too. Teachers are not likely to be granted furlough so they, like everyone else are doing their best. Just because I've had a baby doesn't mean I could be a midwife. Just because you have been to school or have children at school, doesn't mean you know everything about schools.

Yeah, and I don't normally post on these threads either because everything is complex and I absolutely do not want teachers to feel that we don't hugely value everything they're doing. I'm just quite close to the end of my rope already.

@GreekOddess

Do upper primary aged children really need so much parental involvement? We have a year 6 child, apart from helping him getting logged in on the first day he is self sufficient.

I understand that younger children will need more parental input but I do wonder if some parents are making a meal of this.

Wow. "Making a meal of it". 😂 11/10 for empathy.

After nearly a year of working my arse off I am tired.

I did live lessons all through lockdown one.

I'm doing 6hrs a day live teaching, plus all the prep. My own kids have learned to be self sufficient.

We are not there to cater for what you want. We have to take into account far broader pictures and circumstances than you, as an ondov5 parent, see. We know which kids have no pens and paper at home, or no internet. Which ones can't access lessons because there's only s phone spare.

You don't see the differentiation going in behind the scenes to make my lessons accessible for the 15 year old with a reading age of 7. For his classmate who will storm a 9 at GCSE and needs extension work or parents complain.

We are doing our best. I promise. Just try and trust that we are and remember we are as scared, knackered and strung out by Covid as everyone else.

I think that for every parent like you who wants live lessons, there will be others wishing that there wasn't live lessons because it means being tied to sitting with the kids at specific times and if you have 2 kids both with a lesson at 9am who do you sit with? Especially if there's only 1 device and 2 kids. Some schools stipulate an adult being in the room.

I don't have a 10yo but I think you might be overestimating being able to leave them to it for an hour. Judging from threads on here there could be technical issues (eg sound too quiet), kids overwhelmed with the task, needing an adult to print or download stuff... My kids at 10 could do a sheet of times tables or whatever but that would be 10-15 mins of the hour lesson and I'd have to print it out.

Out of my 30 year 6s, there are 5 who have a device to themselves. Of the others, some are sharing one between 4 children, and many have 2 parents working from home who have first call on the WiFi. Live teaching is just not practical unless the vast majority have a device and internet access/data. You would just be penalising the less advantaged.

@BrilliantBetty told be fair teaching time really is a parental job regardless of whether it's in the curriculum or not. To be fair it's in the curriculum to pick up the shit from the lazy parents.

@PoppinShoppin what a strange comment.

My child's school isn't offering 'live' online lessons, but their teacher does upload a few videos to youtube each week, so that each family can watch them at a time that works for them. I think this works better than having a live lesson.

They also have lessons to download from the school website, and have offered to print off hard copies for those without access to a PC and printer.

Videos to oak academy are online teaching. What do you think your child’s own teachers can do better than those that have had time to perfect and record teaching if the same thing? The only difference to the teaching and learning would be that a pre recorded lesson can have better graphics and pictures to help explain than the classroom teacher is going to be able to come up with for every lesson.

Socially and emotionally there is a benefit to children having an online meeting with their friends and teachers every day, so I can understand parents being upset if their children aren’t getting that, they should be. That only takes 20 mins a day though. It sounds like parents are more bothered about getting themselves an online babysitter than they are about the quality of the learning that their child is doing.

There are actually very good arguments against live lessons. Safeguarding is one, some schools may have pupils who are vulnerable I'd their location is discovered etc. Whilst chances are low, what of their location was disclosed.

What do you mean by this? How would their location be disclosed? Someone would recognise the interior of the house? But only people with the log in would be able to log in to the call anyway? Genuine question by the way, not being snippy!

The main safeguarding issue my kids school seems to have is kids chatting on the call before/after the lesson when the teacher isn't there - so they now put a link up at the time of the lesson and remove it immediately afterwards so that no one can go in there when the teacher isn't there.

We aren't having live lessons in Year 5, worksheets through Google classroom, it's frustrating as I do have to explain things to my child as he hasn't always learnt the information yet, and I'm trying to work from home at the same time as a single mum.
I would prefer live lessons but our teachers are at home (seen the background twice a day during the two check ins), the school were very understanding when I explained some work maybe sent in the evening and I've sent them an email thanking them and the head. It's not an easy time for me, but some of them have children at home too or key workers so I'm thankful I do get worksheets at least. It's a hard time all round

Ours doesn't have any live lessons. They have work set on Google Classroom and some live meet ups and the work gets marked and fed back on. I think teacher is on line at certain times for qs too although we haven't used that.

I don't want live lessons mainly because our broadband can't sustain DDs full live secondary timetable and DH and I wfh with frequent Teams meetings ourselves. Primary DS would be the one to miss out.

OP seems to want live lessons mainly for babysitting purposes. If your child will engage with a live lesson without your input then why can't they engage with a worksheet or a video without your input? What's the difference? A KS2 child should be able to do that. They'd do it at school. KS1 they aren't going to sit sweetly in front of a live lesson either so no advantage. If the child is in your house then you are ultimately in charge of them and not the teacher. A live lesson isn't going to resolve that for you. Them's the breaks right now.

We just get DS started with his stuff and he has to get on with it. He can ask for our help if we are free but if we aren't then he has to wait and not interrupt. If he strops off and doesn't do the work then I tell him he can explain to the teacher why he didn't do it. If he buggers off to play Lego or read or something then I let him go. The only thing I won't let him do is be in a screen that's not the work one.

I don't think these live lessons would be anything like a real one anyway. In our meet ups hardly any kids speak up. Many don't attend. Many have tech issues so can't get anything out of it. The rest are pretty much silent apart from one or two confident ones. It's a waste of bandwidth I think but DS likes it.

What's wrong with
A recorded video to show the concept/ what's required
A worksheet or task to consolidate that
They hand it in and the teacher marks it
What essential element of teaching is that missing?

@duvetfan

This!!!! Completely agree with every word!

There's been issues of kids taking screenshots of other kids and teachers and putting them on vile abusive Instagram pages and porn sites.

We just have a no camera rule for kids and I often don't turn my own on. I can do but Tbh looking at yourself in the bottom corner is disconcerting!!

What do you mean by this? How would their location be disclosed? Someone would recognise the interior of the house? But only people with the log in would be able to log in to the call anyway?

Reasonably easy to hack for those with that sort of expertise. I’ve had lessons gatecrashed sadly. In addition, easy for a parent to take a photo for social media ‘look at what we’re doing’ sort of thing.

Yep, we had a hacker on a zoom call drawing massive cocks on screen.

That was pleasant

@BrilliantBetty in addition to 'time' you'll be expecting teachers to teach them how to use knives and forks next... Oh wait... 😂

@Jetatyeovilaerodrome

Where do I begin 😂 photos of kids that could be screen shot without permission, inappropriate things in the background etc. It’s also about protecting teachers’ privacy...for example a teacher mate of mine was on a live zoom in the summer, told their teenage son this but he forgot and he walks through, topless calling his other brother a wanker. A bit mortifying but ultimately Hilarious if that happened in a business video call but imagine if that happened to your class of 5 year olds and their parents 😬

First day of Google meet up for my DC we had a parent ranting and swearing at her older DC in the background. Really horrible. Felt like it went on for ages and teacher didn't seem to be able to/ know how to mute them.

I leant over and turned the audio off for DS because we were on the same room but if I wasn't supervising him that would have been worse.

However the main thing isn't DS hearing a few F words it's that poor kid who now everyone knows what his home life is like. Imagine the embarrassment of that.

Our primary school child gets about half an hour a day. No live lessons, no teams. In the first lockdown we were specifically told not to contact teachers, and that the children must not do so either. We have set our own timetable for her very successfully. But this doesn't justify the lack of school support. Our high school children have received excellent provision. It's a lottery.

No live teaching in my sons primary. Lots of children have English as a Second Language, lots have limited or no access to devices/internet, a number have chotic households with no real chance of being logged on at the right time. At least this way people can fit the work around the many other daily pressures.

We were doing a mixture of live and uploaded lessons in my secondary school. We were told ideally at least one live a week per class. After two significant safeguarding issues today we have been told no live lessons from now on.

I had an email today from a parent disappointed their child didn’t have a live lesson and I had only uploaded a lesson (it included prerecorded videos). A colleague had a parent complain because their child missed the online lesson because they were eating lunch so could they resend it.

No matter what we do someone won’t be happy. It is very disheartening to be working until midnight everyday trying to get everything right so that all students can access it and during a 10 minute break all you see is your profession being slated.

I’ve had my partners primary age kids today because I am the only one working from home, I have been so wrapped up in sorting my lessons that they’ve been ignored all day and after scrolling through mn it feels like a complete waste of time.