Would this type of 'blended learning' be better received?

[IDSNeighbour]

Generally, I'm not in favour of the idea of blended learning. I want to see my classes every week. I teach a 1 lesson a week subject anyway so already feel I don't see each child enough.

But I think that (in some areas of the country at least) it's starting to look inevitable. And much better to have blended learning than totally online teaching (regardless of how in/effective it is, I will go clinically insane if I have to go through teaching via MS Teams again ).

In Brazil, they have had a sort of blended learning for years due to having too many children for the school buildings/number of teachers.* In their state schools, half the children attend the morning session and half the afternoon session. They get, I think, 4 hours schooling (8-12 or 1-5) with no need for a lunch break and then have homework to do in the other half of the day.

Could this be a sensible solution for a while, do you think? I don't know if I'm missing some obvious downside but I feel like it could be an effective way of halving the number of children in the classroom without halving their time spent in school.

I do appreciate it doesn't solve the childcare issue but I'm just thinking about it from a teacher's point of view atm, not a parent's.

*(Disclaimer, it is possible that overcrowding isn't the reason for Brazil's system at all and that I had a Portuguese fail when it was being explained to me - I'm not fluent in Portuguese by a long shot. So sorry to any Brazilians I may have inadvertedly offended!)

If you made working both shifts optional and paid teachers more to do the double, many would do it.

You could make one shift only a shorter day (4 lessons not 5) and therefore 80% of what teachers are on now. So overall salary bill would be 160% of present bill. Space issue would be solved but not childcare issues for working parents.

I think it could work OK in secondary possibly, far from ideal but if my daughters school is typical then they'll all be shut by Christmas anyway. Would have to be 3 hr sessions not 4 though, 8 hours teaching with no break, as well as the extra time setting the home learning? I teach primary in a normal fashion (pre covid) and my workload was already completely unmanageable

@FredaFrogspawn I like that idea! Agree some teachers would work the double, we get paid absolute shit at the moment.

The timing wouldn't work for my son who has additional needs and has to travel 60- 75 min to school. That amount of travelling and being there only 4 hours doesn't work as well him not coping with the very early start or late finish and needing intensive support to learn. For him blending learning wouldn't change any risk because they are in small classes anyway.

That was the plan for DS’ school for part time schooling.

I think it’s the best solution (though I don’t want blended!) as I think it’s good to be in school each day.

I’d be happier with blended learning. I think the sooner we accept that we can’t do ‘nomal’ any more the better.

I do think week on week off is better. It allows parents to plan ahead and is less frantic.

That said. I reckon blended is only possible for secondary, where the kids can be left unsupervised. Primary needs more classrooms and teachers.

It is an unfortunate truth that primary is childcare in this country. Unless the government is going to invest then it won’t change. Hence all privately run wrap around clubs.

Also, it’s not just the working class who rely on school childcare to make their lives work. There are 506,000 teachers in this country. A lot of whom are women with childcare commitments.

OP I do think it's time for some blue sky thinking to come up with workable solutions- and it may be that those solutions aren't ideal, but we have to something as and when the current set up is no longer viable.

I think maybe your idea is best suited to secondary aged children.

Certainly in our case, once at secondary the children can make their own way to school and are fine at home for a medium amount of time.

It wouldn't work well for everyone, but no system does, and to look for one is unrealistic.

It would be better all round if the government gave parents a choice, those that could take their children out of school would. It would make conditions in the schools workable.

Current situation is very dangerous and really Tier 3 parents should have more choice.

@NannyMcphee39

It would be better all round if the government gave parents a choice, those that could take their children out of school would. It would make conditions in the schools workable.

Current situation is very dangerous and really Tier 3 parents should have more choice.

What it would mean, in many cases, is the children who most benefit from school get taken out.

I would prefer week on week off (as a wfh parent) otherwise I would be forever picking one child up, dropping another one off. I think too that it would reduce numbers more, most infections seem to pop up within about a week so if half the class were off on Friday by the time they return a week on Monday it will be ten days later. Symptomatic cases will have become apparent in that time and asymptomatic cases will possibly be past the most symptomatic phase. Half the class in one week, other half listening live/ to recording the other week. Although they would need to do something with the timetable as currently on a two week timetable at secondary so they would always be in for the same week.

It doesn’t matter how you slice or dice bellended learning, it still doesn’t work for working parents.

I had an idea to make blended learning work but still get childcare covered - I suggested it on another thread.
So you have week in / week out of school.
The week out your children attend an alternative provision that could be set up festival style (circus marquees, portaloos, portacabins etc) in any local park or open space, outward bound provision - or take over empty concert centre, closed theatre or whatever would work locally.
It would be staffed by a seconded head SLO / DSLO from neighbouring schools, plus - and here is the bit I love - forest school teachers, theatre skills teachers, outward bound instructors, peripatetic music and sports teachers, circus skills. Counsellors. Whatever there is locally. It would be enrichment. It could be awesome.

Secondary teacher here, in a school with a huge catchment of students using public transport. That wouldn't work for us logistically.
Week on; week off would be better. If we got half a year in a time, we could reduce classes sizes from 32 to 16, and teach a staggered scheme so that class A is doing in class which class B does home learning, and then swap.
BUT the students at home would have to be doing independent learning, and not needing teaching because I still can't do two things at once.

@WhyNotMe40 I like your idea. Very creative! That would be actively good.

Thanks. I've been saying all along that we should use this as an opportunity to overhaul education in this country.

My dd is in 6th form doing A levels. She's already got a full day of single and double lessons with very few free periods.

How could those be squeezed into less hours?

It would mean more independent learning for sixth form - a bit like university - you would do the stuff that needs to be done in school with teachers, and the independent practice at home, maybe online. Also a lot of sixth form lessons are already small groups so if the rest of the school was week in / week out, they could be more socially t in a bigger classroom.

More socially distanced

The week out your children attend an alternative provision that could be set up festival style (circus marquees, portaloos, portacabins etc) in any local park or open space, outward bound provision - or take over empty concert centre, closed theatre or whatever would work locally.
It would be staffed by a seconded head SLO / DSLO from neighbouring schools, plus - and here is the bit I love - forest school teachers, theatre skills teachers, outward bound instructors, peripatetic music and sports teachers, circus skills.

That might work for primary, but I can't see it working for A level pupils. They need specialist subject teachers and a chemistry lab, not be in forest doing circus skills.

@WhyNotMe40 I love your idea for primary! Would not work for A Level students though

I’d permanently sign up for half days and half classes for early primary, I don’t need childcare. I think primary classes are too large and if you cut out a lot of the nonsense schools do and trim the curriculum you can probably cover most of the primary curriculum in half time anyway - scrap assembly, PE, only half the kids to wait to line up etc. But only if I could have mornings (everyone would want mornings), my children had the same sessions and only if my children were with their friends (nightmare to organise).

I think we’re a long way away from blended learning/mass closure of primary schools anyway though. Secondary is another story.

No I wasn't envisaging it for a level - just for those pupils who would need childcare on their week out. I'm assuming A level students could probably (should probably?) be trusted to stay at home safely.
It would work well up to year 7.
Those older ones who can't be trusted or don't cope well at home alone would have to have a sort of keyworker provision to supervise them doing the work set. Doesn't have to be in school though - could again be portacabins or empty offices or closed libraries - staffed by ex teacher Ofsted inspectors / exam invigilators / supply teachers eyc

My y13 students would love forest schools!

As someone who teaches an A level science - a lot of the theory can be covered at home as long as they have internet. There are virtual practicals online now, and "intelligent" learning apps.