How much contact has your primary school aged child had with their teacher?

[georgedawes]

Please can you tell me how much contact your primary school aged child has had with their teacher since March. I'm specifically asking for kids not yet back in school and not about emails with work set etc, but actual direct contact (telephone, zoom etc etc) with their teacher.

None

We get feeding back on each piece of work we send back either a little note in see saw for her to read or a voice recording from them. She saw her teacher and part of her class at school for a couple of hours a week or so ago.

Lots of feedback and a weekly phonecall up until the point at which they went back to school and started teaching. After that, nothing. Work is still being set, but it's not as well thought out as previously. I think this is perfectly understandable, they can't split themselves in two.

some feedback about homework and 2 phone calls (since lockdown).

Nothing at all for year 2 son. Teacher been once for nursery son to see him in garden

I do a weekly zoom meeting with my class. I am teaching the other four days but I still give email feedback on work I am sent. We are having our last zoom meeting this week so are having a party! It's going to be a disco of our favourite songs and yes party ring biscuits are involved!

Oh and a weekly video on the home learning site! These have turned into more teaching as time has gone on.

We’ve had about 4 phone calls to us and she’s spoken to DS at the end of each. In the past three weeks she’s started zoom calls with half of the class (ie over two days she does zooms with the class split into two. Those groups are rotated each week so the children see different friends etc). They last 30 mins and they talk about things they’ve been doing/ play hangman etc.
Work is set daily and feedback is given but informally - ie it’s not marked but along lines of ‘well done DS’. I also email her about twice a week in reply to her emails to the parents.
DS is Yr 3 and it would be disappointing if his teacher had done less as she’s Deputy Head.

Term finished for us a couple of weeks ago, but my child had absolutely no contact with his teacher since March. She set work on Google classroom and we handed it all in but there were no messages to him, no phonecalls, no Zoom. I even emailed her near the end of term and didn't get a reply to that either.

One phone call.

Oh how I laughed when I was asked to contribute to her end of year gift.

The school has had 10 key workers kids in... before anyone says she was working full time on that

Vulnerable children and if it's requested, otherwise no.

Year 4 and 2 - we get detailed work schedule across curriculum with one piece marked by teacher every week, plus weekly videos/lessons online (recorded), various other engagements like quizzes, challenges, assemblies, house activities etc. I think they’ve done pretty well (state school), would’ve liked a phone call maybe but overall it’s been very good.

Two calls and two postcards. Y5

We've only had one direct phone call, the teachers have been creative and created a real sense of connection with the school. This started out with a weekly email to parents and a daily blog for children (most days) talking though the work that had been set, and then developed into regular video messages. She also recorded herself reading a chapter of a story book for ten minutes every day. The school then rolled out Class Dojo, so we would get little bits of feedback on completed work. Over the past month the school has started using Teams, and they seem have have a couple of class meetings a week, plus one other activity a day, such as a quiz or art lesson, which the ks2 teachers take turns in running and are open to all children in ks2. There is a whole school assembly once a week on zoom, where the children who are in school and those at home can come together.

So I think the school has worked hard and done well, but in all honesty I don't see what they have done as going 'above and beyond' - these are all things that all schools should have been capable of. It's completely unacceptable how little contact some schools have provided.

No phone calls or zoom, but every piece of work on has been commented on, sometimes with a supplementary challenge and a general chatty comment. So usually 3 times a day (maths, English and topic)

My daughter has had 2 phone calls until June when she went back. Since she's shy, I talked to the teacher more than she did .

My school sends daily emails and a phone call once a week.

None - yr5, not due back until sept. I’m pretty disappointed tbh. I think she should have done a zoom call for 4-5 of the kids at a time, or called once at least.

Also - no feedback on work, as it’s not asked to be submitted.

@georgedawes

I've been a bit confusing with my question about direct contact, I appreciate it may be harder for younger children to interact on the phone etc. I've had no contact with teachers other than receiving work to do. This is not marked by the teacher.

Exactly the same. Work (in the loosest sense of the word) set each week. Not checked. Or asked for. Y1 child I've had two phone calls since March Y5 child I've had one call since March

No feedback, marking or any interaction.

Year 5 at a prep school. We’ve been working to a normal time table which has been a nightmare whilst trying to work from home.

Zoom meetings a couple of times a week. All work marked and fed back on. Daily call from the TA to do reading and teacher available through the day for a video call if anyone is stuck with the work.

It’s been hard work but the teachers have done a fab job.

We’ve been back in school for the last few weeks - looking forward to the holidays.

Year 2 and 4.
Did have a very defensive reply to an email from the head- when we politely enquired about possible interaction.

Independent school - once a week during holidays, otherwise several daily zoom sessions, and prompt response to emails. Full school
back since the 8th.

My y3 & y6 before they went back to school a couple of weeks ago had full remote school timetable 8.30am-3.30pm every day with all lessons taught by zoom with their form teachers and their subject teachers right from the start of lockdown. Each lesson they've had work provided through google classroom, the work is then completed during the lesson and uploaded to google classroom and feedback usually provided by the teachers the same day. Some lessons have been using other resources such as mathletics and language websites for French/Spanish but all directed by the teachers through zoom/google classroom. The teachers have been excellent at providing suitable work and trying to keep the children engaged. I can email any of the teachers and get a response same day and arrange to speak to them if I want to.

It's a private school and I'm aware how privileged my children and others like them have been in comparison to many others in getting this level of engagement.

It's very worrying how this period has increased the gap for disadvantaged & vulnerable children, the disparity in provision just seen on this thread is huge. That's not a criticism of individual teachers but of the way in which the whole issue has been dealt with, the approach of the unions in many respects and the lack of clear guidance from government. I don't know what the answer is but it's certainly something that needs addressing.

Yr 4, nothing at all until the end of May, then 1x 10 minute class zoom to introduce a new learning platform. Now a little messing in the platform, e.g. well done or thank you. All work is twinkl type worksheets and links. They are now all going in for an hour on Friday this week to meet their new class teacher.