Aibu to think private school provision at home can be done in state schools too?

[Namechangedforthisreply7]

Just that. Private schools are doing active live teaching via zoom, FaceTime and Skype. Full school days. Teaching via video link, then sending kids off to do work which they send back and gets marked, then another lesson. full school days of work. Even pe online! Parents don’t need to do anything and can get on with work.

State sector get home learning packs. No info about how to do bus stop division or similar technical stuff. Not heard from anyone at school since Friday, no information at all bar work timetable on website. Where are the teachers? Why are can state sector teachers not actively teach online and stay in touch with the kids? Why not more engagement? We are all having to work at home alongside our kids, why aren’t teachers doing this too?

Gosh- so many wrong assumptions on this thread.

Not all state school children are poor and deprived.
Private schools have also been asked to stay open for key workers children,
Many state schools are also providing online lessons for children via google classroom and zoom and setting homework and work daily for children- especially secondary schools!
Teachers and even TAs are working at home doing online training, preparing resources for when school returns, writing reports, doing planning and paperwork which they usually do in their spare time, etc.

Sounds like it bauxpeep ours has been incredible.

My teens are in two different independent schools - both at open for keyworkers’ kids. (We’re keyworkers but electing to keep them home as we can). Both have a normal timetable delivered online. TBH, I’d rather cynically assumed they were making so much effort to provide it, in the main, so they could avoid us all stopping paying the fees. If they weren’t providing the education we could stop paying the fees because they were not fulfilling their obligations under the contract...🤷🏻‍♀️

But there is the rather obvious and unavoidable point (made by so many others) that the average state school can’t assume kids have the tech to access online lessons.

All closed European schools are homeschooling online.

A lot of those countries are way poorer than the UK.

I am supporting schools to help they stay open as long as they can. Ratios in school have to enable no more than 10 children to a classroom, to allow for distancing. Two adults needed to ensure safety, handwashing etc. Staggered breaks and lunchtimes. Frequent cleaning. Oh and keep them educated/entertained. Some of them you may not know at all because they’ve come from another school that has had to close for a deep clean because they’ve had a confirmed case.

At least three rotations of staff - one on, one off, one reserve, to drop in at any moment if a colleague needs to self isolate.

And make and deliver packed lunches to all your free school meals kids because the government promised a voucher scheme that still hasn’t materialised.

Maintain contact with the special needs children and other vulnerable who are being cared for at home.

Start to think about reports, whether or not schools return this year. And move up information for children going up to high school.

I know teachers and school leaders who have had to move vulnerable spouses or children out to other family members because the risk they might infect them are too great.

And please keep all this going over the Easter holidays.

Thanks for the appreciation OP.

Three at state school

They’ve had a few bits come in via the online email system - includes video tutorials printable worksheets and things like Mymaths.

So far they’ve had 2/3 lessons each

This is day 1 of isolation.

Some teachers are getting to grips with new technology some are finding out what works and what doesn’t for their pupils

Give them chance!!

Is this a joke.
My school was shut. It’s a school in a very economically deprived area, kids don’t have school shoes , kids dont have food, kids parents fucking abuse them . We sent out paper packs with equipment, because many don’t have it at home. And many children’s parents - if they live with them- tell the to literally “piss off” because they can’t be arsed to read with their own child.
So that is why. And no it’s not a holiday for us.
I’m actually ill in bed quarantined. Whilst trying to parent and do work.

We were planning for very little but my (state secondary school) DCs have had loads of work. Too much to do comfortably TBH because I don't believe homeschooling can have homework as well. Teachers are working really hard to provide it. They are also teaching however many students still need school. I'm impressed.

I am reading a lot of assumptions on here. I work at an independent school and we're also looking after key workers' kids, so it's simply not true to say private schools aren't doing this. We're also doing this over the holidays. I can assure you that all of my colleagues who are teaching from home have been at their computers helping kids all day long - as have my state school pals. There's no need for the nastiness on here. We're all trying to support our students and get through this together!

yes @Tonyaster it def. sounds like we've been fobbed off hearing what other schools (of all sorts) have been able to provide. Problem is half the parents won't wince at the fees to start with and the other half are so desperate to remain within the Head's favour they don't want to rock the boat. Trying to steel myself to contact the bursar (again). Easter deadline for notice draws ever closer...

Well you get what you pay for...!

@feefee322 I'm not sure how to take that?

I can see how from the outside, for some schools, it would seem like they aren’t working much.

Before I get shot down. I’m an experienced teacher (now work for the LA) and my son in Year 3 received what amounts to about 2 hours worth of planning. And that’s me being generous, it really is. My friend’s son is having lessons via Google Classroom and was sent home with a learning pack, exercise books etc. so it is a little frustrating for parents when they can see such variation between schools.

But I also know that the teachers aren’t doing nothing.

• All of the teachers in his year group were really unwell. None of them were tested but we assume had CV. They are planning this stuff whilst ill.
• The school has limited resources to provide teachers to use. One school I worked in required teachers to buy their own laptops (in fact, I had to buy my own scissors because there were none) and I don’t know the capacity of my son’s school in this area but I know they aren’t rolling in cash.
• The teachers will still be marking all of this work. That will take up their PPA time of half a day a week but probably more than this given the sort of work that they are looking at.
• They are on hand to look at work in progress as well as at the end, via email.
• They are also on a rota to go into school and look after the children of key workers. Whilst also looking after their own children.
• They had two days to plan for this provision. No, they can’t just use what they already had for the classroom, it just doesn’t translate.
• For all I know, they are catching up with some online CPD that nobody ever has the chance to do.
• They cannot be certain of the IT capacity at home. Many homes have one laptop that children can use but in a mixed demographic, you can’t provide lessons online unless you know all children have equal access to it. Ours got enough flack for expecting people to print stuff out.
• What they are providing will have been the decision of the SLT. Many colleagues I have from a variety of schools have been told to write their end of year reports at the same time.

What I’m saying is, I know it appears like some of them aren’t really doing anything but they will be. They also need to recover from one of the most intense times in teaching that I can ever remember when many schools were operating at 50% of staffing levels.

This is new for them all too. Not all schools were prepared for this, cut them some slack.

Private school: good home-learning conditions and WiFi that works

State: no WiFi, no internet, poor learning environment.

Generalisation, but you get the picture.

Small class sizes vs 30 ++

The thing is there is no need for it to be each teacher in every school, they could just do one mass year 5 lesson for the whole country with one teacher, not the marking etc. If Joe Wicks can do one stream of PE, why can't they do streams for each year group, one website to access materials and then hand the work to own teacher on return.

DS is at a specialist autism school, on an EHCP, so should classify as vulnerable. I am shocked by the inadequacy of their provision this week and plans for the next few months. They are planning to close the school site in a couple of days time, and then there will be nothing except a pile of worksheets for them to do, and not even the opportunity for them to be marked as teachers have no remote access, and it is too difficult for them to get Head Office approval to set up Google Classroom or similar.

Our Local Authority is paying a crazily high amount of money for DS's place at this school. (According to the latest OFSTED, feed are over £60k per pupil.). There are almost as many staff as pupils (almost 1:1) although I know a lot are self isolating or sick at the moment. But not a single member of staff had been in touch by phone or email to check DS is coping and understanding how to work remotely.

I am shocked that the school thinks this is anywhere near appropriate. Their attitude is that they can't do anything further, and they look forward to seeing pupils 'when this is all over'. These are highly vulnerable SEN children with complex needs who haven't even started to process how their world had just been turned upside down.

Because joe wicks isn’t bothered about checking that everyone is doing it properly? Because some children struggle? Because some will find it easy and fly through? Some will say they understand when they don’t. Some can’t be bothered. Some say they don’t understand when they should do. Some are lazy. Some get really, really stuck and upset.

Flum you just need an iPad/laptop and zoom - all our classes have those. No excuse?

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.

Some don’t have food. Or clothes. Or pencils. Or paper.

And 30? Try 36 for a start.

The problem with one lesson for all is that there is no way you could keep children effectively engaged because they are so different.

Even teaching the same year group consecutively, my plans would still be different each year to account for learning styles and abilities in each cohort.

OP's full day set up sounds hellish for DS.
He's very bright but has HFA, dyspraxia and dyslexia and gets through the school day by masking. At home, he's not in a focused, dedicated school environment with his peers. He's having to adjust to his home environment duplicating roles. Just trying to get him to do Joe Wicks at 9am lasted less than 90 seconds. We don't need that kind of pressure.

School is sending about 3 hours of work per day which is about right as I find the DCs need breaks. I'm having to tweak and customise work to get it into an accessible format. I feel like I've returned to my supply teacher days after a decade!

We're fortunate to have enough tech to go round. DH has brought his work laptop home, DS2 has the family laptop and DS1 has his own due to his SNs (which we had to buy ourselves due to an absence of budgets and we did not buy it for fun)

The DCs go to a lovely little school, but that does not mean that all is easy for the families. There is social housing scattered around. There are children on FSM, there are children on the child protection lists. There are children with parents who are not the most switched on and supportive. There will be families facing the loss of service sector salaries/ employment.
There will also be some parents who are pushy and want more and more.
Not all needs will be met in one fell swoop. I noted the pencil set home on the DC's books (not that it's much use to us, and we're stocked on the types of pencils and grips that DS can hold for more than a couple of minutes).

I haven't been in touch with the DC's teachers. They both have their own families and enough on their plates however school is arranging their affairs. As an ex-teacher, I'm confident and just concentrating on pacing ourselves through a few hours of decent learning suitable for my DC's needs. (y2 clocks came in as good revision for y4 DS as I know that's a tricky skill for him)

+maddening The thing is there is no need for it to be each teacher in every school, they could just do one mass year 5 lesson for the whole country with one teacher, not the marking etc. If Joe Wicks can do one stream of PE, why can't they do streams for each year group, one website to access materials and then hand the work to own teacher on return.

So that the teacher can mark potentially many months worth of work, while helping children adjust to being back in school? No way. If a child brings in a pack of home learning after the break, it would be insane to expect it to be marked then. Marking is done for a purpose, and only has impact if done in a timely manner.

Joe Wicks is not providing PE; he is providing a fitness video. Which is nice, but is not the same as physical education lessons.

A video will not help many to learn other lessons either. Children need supported practise.

Many schools are managing to use google classroom to provide supported practise already, which is incredible given the time they had to prepare. My school is not yet. I feel slightly guilty, but know it's just because the headteacher has more pressing matters to deal with for now. So I am seeing this week as a break (except for my day in school with key workers, and a few parent emails), but I know workload will increase again soon. Like most teachers, I want to help my students. I just don't really know how yet.

So whatever we do, it will simultaneously be too much and not enough.

This is it in a nutshell, we are trying to support everyone and not leave any child behind. It’s a completely different (and more varied) demographic that we are catering for.

@anappleadaykeeps
But not a single member of staff had been in touch by phone or email to check DS is coping and understanding how to work remotely.
Please remember that you don't need to get him to work. So long as he's safe, that's all that matters. It is a shame that no-one from his school conveyed that message to you, but we don't know what else is going on for them. We've all had our lives turned upside down, but it must be especially hard for people with autism and their parents. I hope you can support your son to feel safe and calm.

My private international school is doing a fantastic job. Full teaching program, outreach pastoral support. I truly can't fault them.
But as a social worker in a past life I understand that they don't have child poverty issues, child protection issues and large classrooms.
We had to buy new iPads for this, it wouldn't be possible for many state school families to do this. We couldn't have done this in the past.