This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to pupils and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education.
Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, The Tutorial Foundation has provided a bespoke education tailored to our students’ needs and circumstances. We have been able to continue to provide an education for our students who are able to attend onsite, but have also offered online live lessons, offsite face to face lessons in the student’s home or workpacks supported with tutor phone calls.
The remote curriculum:
What is taught to students at home?
Our students will continue to receive the same curriculum that they were accessing at school with the exception of PE and assemblies. Links to PE & Mindfulness, Art & Assemblies are accessible on our website.
What should my child expect from immediate remote education in the first day or two of students being sent home?
Since the beginning of the first lockdown, The Tutorial Foundation was able to able to offer both onsite and remote online learning. We were able to react promptly to any new requests for remote online learning.
Onsite students who are moved to online learning continue to follow their normal timetable.
Provision for new and existing offsite students continues to be coordinated by our Offsite Manager who will ensure a remote learning timetable meets the student’s requirements
If there are any teething problems with accessing the lessons, our IT support are always on hand to offer support.
We teach the same curriculum remotely as we teach in school. The remote learning lessons follow as closely the lessons that would be taught to that child in school, with the occasional adaptation. All online lessons are live and adapted as much as possible from onsite lesson plans.
The lessons are mostly accessed from Microsoft Teams and all students and staff have their own log ins. Teachers also support the live lessons by sending home workbooks and workpacks as this allows students to work independently and are mindful that a student may not be able to access the computer all the time, especially if there are other children at home or a parent working from home.
All students and parents/carers who are receiving online lessons are asked to sign an online learning contract which outlines expectations for safeguarding and behaviour.
Remote teaching and study time each day
How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?
Although we fully understand that remote learning can prove more challenging for students with SEN and that a more flexible approach may be required, The Tutorial Foundation has the expectation that our students attend all their timetabled lessons each day. Each student receives a personalised remote learning timetable on the Friday before the following school week:
Onsite student in a group who has moved to online learning – same timetable (5hrs per day with breaks)
Onsite student individual who has moved to online learning – 2 x 1hr lessons per days
Onsite students individual/group who has moved to receiving workpacks – 2hrs per day independent study with telephone teacher support.
Offsite student face to face who has moved to online learning – same timetable
All other onsite and offsite students continue to follow the same timetable.
Accessing remote education
How will my child access any online remote education the school are providing?
If my child does not have digital or online access at home, how will you support them to access remote education?
We are using Office 365 as our main digital platform. Each student has been coached initially in how to login and access the site and parents and carers have been given a step by step guide to support their child with access. The teacher will send an invite for all live lessons to each students in advance and may also follow this up with a phone call reminder for those students who need further encouragement to engage with online lessons. Any student experiencing technical issues can phone the office and receive IT support. We are also able to offer lessons via Zoom and Skype if there are any issues with Teams.
As a school we understand that not all our students have unlimited access to a computer, laptop or tablet or have broadband in the home. Where students are using smart phones to access their live lessons, we are sourcing laptops. We have already agreed to provide two laptops to such students and have two more laptops arriving soon for any other students identified as struggling to access remote education. We will continue to monitor the DfE Get Help with Technology service and make applications for eligible students for a free laptop and additional data. We continue to monitor the situation closely and provide support as required.
We encourage students working from workpacks to post or photograph and email in completed work for marking. New work will be posted as required.
How will my child be taught remotely?
When students click on the link to their live lessons there will be live teaching. This may be delivered either through group tuition or 121 online lessons, dependent on their existing needs and onsite arrangements.
Students are able to speak to the teacher as well as interact with each other. Although we strive to mirror onsite face to face learning to maximise student engagement and learning, the teacher may also set an independent learning task or ask students to watch a video clip during the live lessons.
For the few students who are have opted for workpacks, we phone regularly to offer support and guidance and encourage completed work to be returned for marking and feedback.
Students are encouraged to read up on topics to support their study as well as accessing our website links to PE, mindfulness and Assembly online videos. We also try to they support their wellbeing by encouraging reading for pleasure and getting fresh air and exercise during the school day.
Engagement and Feedback
What are the schools expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that parents and carers should provide at home?
Each student will be issued with a remote learning timetable. This sets out the days and time when the student can access online live lessons. A register is kept as to who is engaging with online learning and the students’ interaction and feedback. It is expected that students will engage in online learning and where required, staff will phone students up to remind them before their lessons and if they have not logged on for their lesson then the school will call home to make enquires and offer support where necessary.
Students who are having technical problems can call into the school as there is always a technical support team on hand to sort out any problems that a student or parent may have.
Students respond best when there are routines in place that support not only learning and accessing the curriculum, but also supports the students’ mental health needs too. Students were used to getting up and getting ready for school, and if these routines can be maintained in the home it helps the child to maintain their purpose.
It is recommended that the timetables are placed in a prominent position in the home, and the parent and carer reminds the child the night before of the time of the online lessons, as well as getting them to wash and be dressed before they begin their online live lessons.
How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?
Students’ engagement with remote learning will be recorded on a lesson by lesson basis. Tutors will highlight any attendance issues about attendance or engagement to our attendance officer and Senior Leadership Team. Each remote learning student has been assigned a Senior Leader and they will monitor attendance and engagement carefully on a regular basis.
Parents and carers will be informed if there are any issues with their child’s attendance or engagement. Support to resolve the issues will be provided where necessary. Any issues arising access to online lessons will be escalated as outlined above.
Parents of students attending onsite will be phoned in the morning if their child hasn’t arrived at school.
How will you assess my child’s work and progress?
Feedback can take many forms. Work that a student has submitted will be marked, comments made and a grade or level given. We aim to mark work and give feedback during the day and certainly by the next day. There may be whole class progress checks and feedback sessions such as a quiz or question and answer sessions. Work can be marked digitally, and results and feedback is instantaneous. All these methods are valid and effective and allows the teacher and the student to have a clear understanding as to what is required and when they have achieved it. Students who are working from workpacks can post or photograph and send their work via email.
Support for students with particular needs
How will you work with me to help my child who may need additional support from adults at home to access remote education?
We understand that some of our students will not be able to access remote education without support from adults at home and we have identified those students who we feel would benefit from face to face teaching in school. For students who are unable to attend onsite we adapt their timetable to their needs. We acknowledge the difficulties that this may place on families. The school will always work with parents and carers to support their child. We know that students with SEN do not cope well with change, and working at home in the middle of a pandemic can be extremely challenging. We will always treat students and families with care, patience and empathy and encourage them to share any concerns they have with the school.
Some students really enjoy the online interaction with other students if they are normally taught onsite in a group. For those students who receive 121 lessons, we are looking to implement opportunities for interaction with other students to support mental health and wellbeing. These sessions should allow your child to join in independently.
Remote education for self-isolating students
If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?
Where individual students need to self-isolate, we will provide them with a personalised timetable following their existing curriculum.