Keyworker Provision - Nothing taught in school?

[Awcw1234]

Kids have a place at school as I’m a keyworker and don’t work from home.

School have informed me that they won’t have access to any of the live lessons and they won’t be doing any of the set work with them. I’ll have to do it all at home with them at the weekend. 5 days of work.

Is that right? I’ve got no choice but to send my children in but feel like my kids are really going to fall behind now!

All the schools I know are doing the online lessons in school - so no teaching as such. I don’t think you should be expected to do it on the weekend.

But if they don’t have enough devices, they don’t have enough devices - there’s not a lot you can do.

As your DC is in KS1 I would probably prefer they weren’t stuck on iPads/computers all day anyway.

Ours aren't being taught either, it is akin o holiday club with a bit of reading included. The school has very few computers and those it does have are being used by the teachers to teach online.

I don't have a problem with it but if they were at home with DH or I, they wouldn't be accessing the lessons either as DH and I would be working and DS is to young to access online lessons alone.

I'm just grateful for the childcare.

bloody hell.
mine had a similar experience in the last lockdown. we were told that the provision was childcare only and my DC were not even time and space to get on with the set work that I printed out and sent in with them. They were encouraged to do other activities instead. It felt like a deliberate tactic to keep attendance at the bare minimum. As my DC was only in 2 days/fortnight, and the curriculum was officially suspended, I didn't feel I could complain.

However this time round the curriculum remains in place, and my DC will be attending 2 days/week, so I will at the very least expect her to be provided with a workspace where she can use her own tech to access the learning, and a few brief words of advice if she needs a little guidance. That's asking nothing more than I manage to offer when WFH and working a full clinical day, snatching 2-3 minutes between patients.

Your children have a right to an education.

quite, but as the children who have to stay home are not receiving one in these extreme circumstances, on which planet should they be discriminated whilst the children at school receive normal schooling?

That's ridiculous.

Can you send your DD in with an Ipad or laptop of her own and demand she be put on the wifi and have access to the online lessons while she's in? I would.

Mine are not getting live lessons (upper primary). I am doing live lessons. All day (secondary). They're either going to ignored all day at home, and struggle on, or go to the kw place when I'm on rota... and get ignored. At least I won't be shouting at them this time, I suppose.

I think they are obviously very short staffed. In a small primary school, each teacher is teaching online. They are clearly using TAs to cover in school provision. They need to try and do more though. Can they split the group and do some reading and maths everyday and use devices for older children? How many children are they taking?

Our secondary is providing online form time plus 5 lessons per day via Teams. KW&V children will be accessing the same online lessons but will not have face to face teaching. The lessons will be re order for students to access later if they are sharing a device and can't access it at the set time. The school have asked that places only be taken up if they are absolutely necessary. The HT was in touch first thing this morning img and had planned for this eventuality since the middle of last term.

Primary school hasn't been in touch yet to say what's happening but a form was emailed out to some to see if they needed places. Ds is year 1 and from the WhatsApp group most parents have requested a place even if only one is a key worker or some have requested a place when neither is. It will be interesting to see how many get places. It's not a big school and has one class per year unlike two of the other local schools. A lot of parents either tag team drop off and pick up or grandparents do the lions share. There is great anxiety in the group as to what will happen. Quite a few with SEN who need to be in school but won't automatically get a place.

I assume the school have lent out any spare laptops etc to the children at home.

Our local primaries are struggling to have enough technology. They have had to lend out the class laptops, so not sure how they are teaching the children in class

@Awcw1234

We do but my children are in KS1. I don’t think I’d trust letting them take in expensive devices. Especially my kid in reception Who manages to break lots of things without trying 🤦🏻‍♀️

🤣🤣🤣 I have one of those. Actually I only have 1!!!

But I feel your pain!

Surely they have a printer and could print the material.
I can understand a small rural school not having the tech.
Many are still just moving from slate and chalk
I'm sure insurance wouldn't cover untested equipment i.e kids using own devices.

@StatisticalSense

They should be accessing the same learning as those at home. The schools that are actively teaching those in school place are acting against the guidance and are unfairly disadvantaging those at home.

Which guidance is this please? If they are not supposed to actively teach those in school what should be in place?

Last year the DfE told schools to prioritise childcare over the curriculum, so it was more like holiday-club provision. Things should be much tighter now; students should either have some F2F teaching or be able to access the home-learning resources. I was going to suggest taking in own devices too.

Our primary don't do any school work. Just sports, crafts and art. The kids have to do their online work at home.

The secondary get the kids on a computer all day to join the online lessons.

Do they have interactive white board in the classroom? Problem might be that if it is only a TA looking after the class they probably won't have a laptop to access the work.

@LaMarschallin

But teachers aren't just there to provide childcare. I've read that here, I'm sure.

Yeah funny that. I’m sure I’ve read that multiple times in here.

OP our key worker provision is all year groups in the assembly hall supervised by TAs.

This time they’ve got to provide the same as what is being sent home which has got to tick all the boxes of what they would normally be doing. This is what I was told by 2 teachers at 2 different primary schools. It’s not like last time with just a load of twinkle sheets being acceptable.

My child’s school is doing in class what is being sent home. Sometimes by teachers and sometimes TA’s but it’s certainly not just childcare this time round

@Awcw1234

It is a small rural school, they don’t have enough iPads/computers for everyone to access the live lessons. I don’t know whether the headteacher was trying to put me off sending in my kids in by saying all this? She kept reiterating the fact they were open for childcare purposes only. Only support staff will be in, no teachers.

My children are both in primary and I’m very worried about them falling behind. Just don’t know how I’m going to catch up on all the work. All the lessons will be recorded but that is a lot of lessons to catch up on over the weekend. Won’t have time to complete the actual work set

If it's a very rural school it could genuinely be a case that the internet wouldn't support several children logging onto the live lessons / videos at the same time. Our rural school has dreadful internet (as does the whole village) and struggles if more than 2 or 3 people are trying to watch videos etc at once. The there class teachers have to sort out between themselves as to when they'll be using videos in their lessons or download them the night before as it's just impossible to stream anything.

During first lockdown, the curriculum was suspended and schools were effectively offering childcare, though many, including ours, were putting work online/producing workpacks for those who wanted it. We also encouraged pupils to at least attempt the work during the weekly calls home.
This time round it is different. Every member of staff is in school, unless isolating or unwell. Children have been put in year group bubbles and are being taught by a teacher from the year group. The other teachers for each year group are planning the lessons (live remote lessons may need a few tweaks) and delivering the live learning sessions online. TAs are supporting as required and 1:1 staff are supporting 'their' children. Most of our 1:1 children are in school as they have EHCP's or are vulnerable. Those of us who are general TA's are preparing resources for our specialities - speech and language, EAL etc, conducting online learning with small groups or individuals or helping by covering staff who are not in for one reason or another.

I think I would be asking the local authority whether it is acceptable for your school to offer no education for the children who are in school.

They aren’t being taught any extra though and it’s not one on one but is still in their normal separate class bubbles but less kids than usual

Ours have a proper teaching learning programme for those in x

@keyworkerhonestguv

My kids are at home but with no online provision. Just worksheets emailed Home. All the keyworker kids are being taught f2f by the class teacher. So i feel exactly the same as you-that mine are disadvantaged and falling behind. Just my School has prioritised differently. Just Shows they can't win as they can't do it all and keep us all happy.

I feel the same as this. One-third of my daughters class have got key worker places (far more than in lockdown 1...) and they have their normal teacher. They upload some worksheets for home learning to a portal but no video lessons or anything. The kids in school are lucky and given the teachers are teaching so many kids, I don’t think the risk of the spread is minimised particularly. I’m fed up.

But teachers aren't just there to provide childcare. I've read that here, I'm sure.

They aren't they are at home doing live lessons, and all their other non teaching responsibilities, whilst the TA's are childminding/supervising.

Are there any other schools nearby? Some of our really small village schools have set up a hub, rather than have all schools open as not enough staff.

@GypsyLee

But teachers aren't just there to provide childcare. I've read that here, I'm sure.

They aren't they are at home doing live lessons, and all their other non teaching responsibilities, whilst the TA's are childminding/supervising.

Same for my schools. TAs looking after kids and teachers working from home.

Some SLT and office staff about at school if any problems.