To think live video lessons aren’t all they are cracked up to be

[Alex15]

During the last lockdown it seemed like people were almost obsessed with them and while they are good there are other forms of Homelearning the are also good and they really aren’t the silver bullet people claimed they were?

I'm glad our school isn't doing them, we do most of our schooling on the weekend.

My son has 5 lessons a day - live. They’re great. The teacher is really engaging and then there’s work set afterwards that they complete. She takes subsets of the group and delves deeper in the subject.
They’ve also been a godsend when I’m trying to wfh - I don’t have to make him do the work as the teacher does that.
He’s year 3.

@Imiss2019 - if you are using Teams, set his status to Do Not Disturb in Settings (top right of the page) and it will stop the binging!

@SmileEachDay where did I say I'd compliained?

It's shut for Dd. Because she's usually in extensions group or working with the year above.

They can't do that now. So they have to teach to one level.

It's either Dd does it or we deregister and home educate to her level (which we are doing along side anyway).

It's shit for everyone.

@Whyarewehardofthinking
I'm sorry you've had it so tough - but also a bit relieved it's not just me spending so much additional time on prep and could have cried today after one lesson where it just wouldn't work

[quote Chickoletta]@Imiss2019 - if you are using Teams, set his status to Do Not Disturb in Settings (top right of the page) and it will stop the binging![/quote]
I have but the teachers haven’t and so you hear theirs binging too whilst they are presenting!

Our school is operating a full live lesson timetable this time. Lockdown 1 we had a mixture of the odd live lesson with mainly work set on google classroom. My DC preferred this. The full day of live lessons is so draining for them. Sitting in their rooms just listening all day. Very little talking as the teachers unmute people one by one so it’s just lots of quiet listening. Mine are sure they’re learning less then when they were given the work to do online, in their own time.

Upside is no homework and zero input from me. Downside is strict schedule and no ability to get DC outdoors until after 4pm. I don’t blame the school as they have put so much effort into rolling this out and responding to parents’ wishes.

And yet this is what the families with two working parents demanded. I can see why. It requires no parental involvement, but it’s not good for the children.

Thankfully my younger child isn’t having live lessons, online work instead. I’m happy with this but still there are parents who want their 6 yr olds babysat in front of screens from 9-3:30.

@Chickoletta

Just another example of us being damned if we do and damned if we don’t.

I taught my yr 7s live for an hour and a half today (just an example, I also taught 2 other year groups for a similar time). We achieved pretty much the same that we would have done if I’d been in the classroom with them. The only difference is the time I spent having to make sure that every detail and resource was there in advance and every possible problem foreseen, whereas in the classroom I would be able to be much more responsive in the moment. It took me longer to prepare than to deliver and I’ll have to mark the work tomorrow.

As someone will undoubtedly be along to tell me very soon, it’s my job. Yes, it is. It is also more labour intensive and totally unfamiliar to me. I, like the vast majority of my colleagues, are doing what we think is best for our pupils because we want to get it right.

Just to say our situation is different as ds has SEN so everything is a bit harder anyway! I can see from the live chat that other pupils are managing to get the work done I just feel so sad for ds that he can’t keep the pace and manage the tech and the work at the same time. I don’t think school are failing and I can see just how much work teachers are putting in I just don’t know how to make it work for ds!

No, they suck. Especially for primary school aged kids. Even one on one, it's just not how kids learn, not in any amount.

I actually think attempting to educate whole classes that way is crazy and kind of cruel to the children.

One of the advantages to real home education is that you often don't have to spend as many hours on it - not until later years anyway. I suspect many parents would be doing less hands on time, and more effectively, if they just taught directly rather than trying to eep their kids on task for online lessons.

@Imiss2019 - In that case I can see why the binging is annoying!

Do you have good SENCO support? I have private channels set up for various pupils who need me to check in with them separately away from the main lesson - simple to set up and seems to help. Might be something to ask SENCO/tutor/HOY about if he hasn’t already got them.

Mine are secondary and doing their full timetable of live two way lessons plus assembly. I am full time working from home with no partner with me all day so is a godsend. They tell me that they are learning exactly like being in school. At least that’s what they tell me!!!

I find them pretty rubbish really for my year 2 child. It's always the same kids talking and it just feels like a show for 3 kids whilst the others state awkwardly into the screen. Half the time my son hides anyway. I think that's partly because the content is super boring and because he feels completely disconnected from his school after having only 3 months schooling last year. The connection has gone now sadly.

It's a good example of "be careful what you wish for", isn't it?

They're a very poor proxy for learning.
Research is now backing this up.

Parents often think they're better but that isn't necessarily the case.

One of the advantages to real home education is that you often don't have to spend as many hours on it - not until later years anyway. I suspect many parents would be doing less hands on time, and more effectively, if they just taught directly rather than trying to eep their kids on task for online lessons.-

Exactly this. And that is the reason we'll probably de register and home ed.

I home educated my eldest through primary. It was far easier on all of us than this no mans land.

Secondary DC - There are pros and cons but mostly cons. I’d rather be able to fit it around my work rather me trying to fit around that. I also feel sorry for the already disadvantaged students who don’t have their own laptops who can’t join in with the rest of the class. The one thing it’s good for is having a routine and I was going to say ‘socialising’ but they have to have their cameras off now.

A thread was started a couple of days ago though complaining they didn’t have live lessons so you can’t really win.

I'm a secondary teacher. My school are doing some live, some prerecorded and some off-screen lessons. I am happy to do whatever is easiest for my classes, and sent out a survey for them to let me know what they'd prefer. Almost unanimously they've voted for prerecorded videos with a worksheet to go with it. It fits with their lives better, as quite a lot of them are sharing devices or have internet that can't cope with multiple devices on video calls at the same time. With the videos and worksheets they can coordinate the family so the internet can cope.

There seems little differentiation , lots of time wasted due to tech issues, waiting for everyone to join - can't see information needed to complete task etc.

I agree with this. Also the teacher will be talking and you can’t hear her properly and you have to try and complete work with little instructions whereas a narrated PowerPoint would be easier to rewind.

[quote Chickoletta]@Imiss2019 - In that case I can see why the binging is annoying!

Do you have good SENCO support? I have private channels set up for various pupils who need me to check in with them separately away from the main lesson - simple to set up and seems to help. Might be something to ask SENCO/tutor/HOY about if he hasn’t already got them.[/quote]
To be fair the SENCO support last time and this time has been excellent. We do get some 1:1 and small group sessions and when TA’s are managing key worker children they message and check in and if possible join the lesson.
I loathe to raise it with the Senco this early on though as it’s only really been a week I feel we should give it a fair shot as I know everyone is doing their best! I’m working from home this time where as last time I was furloughed so it’s just a bit more stressful!

My kids are 11 and 8 and using Teams. I think it’s working ok. It’s good to have the group interaction and it does mean a lot less need for me to teach although the 8 year old needs occasional support and reminders to stay on task. It was very challenging last year with minimal interaction and working from home. I also found them much more resistant when it was me setting the work.

@Tigertealeaves

I'm a secondary teacher. I show up several times a day to find that maybe 3/28 students have logged onto the live lesson, usually the keyworker kids on the school site who have been forced to.

We also have a lot of families with problems accessing online resources full stop.

So, I'm preparing each lesson three times. I'm presenting it live, but beforehand also creating a pre-recorded video input where I explain the work, and then ALSO creating a printable pack where students work completely offline without videos, research, or quizzes. Which for my subject renders it utterly lifeless. And is essentially a whole other lesson to plan and resource.

Also getting virtually no feedback from families/students and a low hand-in rate making it hard to differentiate or plan ahead effectively.

I honestly would be so happy if enough students came to the live lesson to make a debate, or a team quiz, or even the register worth doing. I miss my students. But they have to work however is manageable for them at home.

Are your lessons not compulsory? Our Secondary has said that all lessons, including tutor time, are compulsory. Attendance has been really high in DD3's (y7) classes. A register is taken in every lesson.

DS14 is getting a mixture of live lessons and work set this time. So far it seems bloody brilliant compared to last time and there's enough interaction to keep him engaged and doing the set work.

I can see that it would work differently for primary though.

@rookiemere yep I think there is a stark difference between primary and secondary.

Perhaps many of you who don't like it have KS1 & 2 children doing not very challenging tasks. Today my 16 year old in Year 12 couldn't make head or tail of his A level Chemistry homework. Thankfully he was able to email his teacher before the live lesson this afternoon and she went over the homework in the online live class, and the penny has dropped. A pre recorded video lesson with no opportunity for two way interaction just wouldn't have cut it

I am also delighted at the change in him since school restarted in this online format. He finished school early due to self isolation on 4 December and since then too much leisure time and no sense of purpose started to chip away at his well being. He's much perkier now with structure back in his life