Remote Learning Strategy


Meopham School

Remote Education Provision:

Information for Parents

January 2021

This information is intended to provide clarity and transparency to students and parents or carers about what to expect from remote education if local restrictions require entire cohorts (or bubbles) to remain at home, or if we have to ask students to self-isolate due to a positive case of COVID-19 in school.

THE CURRICULUM

The remote curriculum: what is taught to students at home?


As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, our approach to remote lesson delivery revolves around ensuring we are providing focused teaching, and enabling students to continue to make progress in their studies. At Meopham School this is centred around the Meopham House Style.

A student’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look slightly different from our standard approach, while we take all necessary actions to prepare for a longer period of remote teaching. However, from this point students at home will be taught in line with the planned curriculum, and will complete the same work as those who are still able to attend our school.


All students are part of a ‘Google Classroom’ for each of their lessons. This is where homework has been set and marked since the start of the academic year. All lesson materials and resources for all lessons are added to Google Classroom on a weekly basis as a matter of course. Where students are studying on site these provide useful revision and consolidation materials. For those at home it means they are able to access the same materials as their peers, and complete their work alongside the rest of the class. Any work they complete at home can be returned and marked via Google Classroom when the teacher marks the books for that class. In this way students who are self-isolating are able to follow their usual timetable of lessons.

Where whole class groups or year groups have been directed to self isolate, staff will continue to upload lesson resources to the Google Classroom for remote access. In addition staff will produce a pre-recorded supporting ‘Loom’ video which includes explanation, modelling or demonstration akin to that which would be given in the classroom. In this way they can guide students through the resources to aid progress and understanding. These will be available within Google Classroom, alongside the lesson materials.


Resources for all advisory (tutor) sessions will also be provided, including Loom videos of any assembly materials.

How long can I expect work set by the school to take my child each day?

We expect that remote education will follow the student’s usual timetable. As such they will have lesson materials provided which mirrors the subjects and lessons they would usually be taught on a daily basis. They should spend around 30 - 45 minutes per subject on the work that is set.

For KS4 and KS5 students there may be additional intervention and revision materials which they will be directed to complete.

On top of this, students will have homework set on a weekly basis in Google Classroom as per the usual homework timetable.

ACCESSING REMOTE EDUCATION

How will my child access any online remote education you are providing?


Our online learning materials are provided via Google Classroom. In order to access this at home students will need a device that can access the internet, such as a laptop, desktop computer, tablet or smartphone.

In most cases students are taking their exercise books home with them so that they have them with them at all times. If students are at home they should aim to complete their work in their books. However, if they do not have them they can complete and submit work via the Google Classroom. It would also be useful to have a notebook or lined paper available for your child.


If my child does not have digital or online access at home, how will you support them to access remote education?

If your child does not have access to the internet or an electronic device, please let us know as soon as possible so that we can help and support you on the email address mss-studentservices@swale.at


We take the following approaches to support those students to access remote education:

  • We have a small number of laptops or chrome books available for students to borrow. If this is something you would like to discuss please contact the email address above;

  • We also provide resource packs, paper resources, and revision booklets to support students;

  • If students are not able to submit their work online they should keep it safely and hand it to their teacher for marking once they are back in school. Where possible this should be completed in their school exercise book.


How will my child be taught remotely?


We use a combination of the following approaches to teach students remotely:

  • All lessons materials and resources are provided on Google Classroom for students to complete. These are all created using the Meopham House Style, and are fully differentiated to support the progress of all students;

  • All homework materials are set and marked on Google Classroom;

  • Pre-recorded Loom videos created by our teachers may be used to support, model, demonstrate and explain elements of the lesson;

  • Staff may share information relating to supporting materials and websites, such as BBC Bitesize, where appropriate. These will be in addition to, and not an alternative for, our own lesson materials.

To help students and parents access the correct resources quickly and easily we have introduced a Meopham School referencing system.

Lesson materials will be found within the ‘Classwork’ section of the classroom, and will be organised into termly ‘topics’. These will be labelled ‘Term X…’

Within each topic resources will be labelled as ‘Term X’ and then ‘lesson materials’, ‘classwork’ or ‘homework’, so that it is very clear what each resource is.

Lesson materials are the presentations which the teacher would display on the board if the lesson were in school. These will be cumulative, and students will need to select the appropriate week or lesson needed, based on where they got up to in school.

Classwork would be any materials or worksheets the students would have been expected to complete in class.

All homework will be appropriately labelled, with a deadline for completion.


ENGAGEMENT AND FEEDBACK

What are your expectations for my child’s engagement and the support that we as parents and carers should provide at home?


It is important that your child engages with home learning so that they continue to make good progress. Where possible we would expect them to log in to Google Classroom on a daily basis, and complete the lesson tasks set for them. If they have questions or difficulties they can send their teacher a message via Google Classroom.


We appreciate that if the situation arises where your child is asked to self isolate, often at short notice, it may present some challenges for you. We kindly ask for your support so that we can continue to provide high-quality education for your child during this time.


We don’t expect you to watch your child all day, and we would not expect parents/carers to get involved in remote lessons in place of our teachers. However, it would be really helpful if you can take an active role in your child’s learning by asking them about their day and what work they’ve done.


If you are able to, we would recommend creating a quiet learning space where your child can work without interruptions if they are working at home.


Our top tips:

● Try to encourage your child to be ready and dressed for the start of the school day, and to keep to their timetable;

● Distinguish between weekdays and weekends, and make it clear when the school day is over, to separate home and school life;

● Plan breaks and exercise into the day to help keep your child active.

Parents can choose to sign up to receive guardian summary updates from Google Classroom on a weekly or daily basis. This will inform you of work completed and/or deadlines missed by your child. You will have been sent an email regarding this in September. If you did not set this up you should email mss_classroomhelp@swale.at and a new invite can be sent. You must provide your email address, which should match the one we have on our system, and state your child’s full name and year group.

Tutors will also be available via the tutor group Google Classrooms. They are the students’ first port of call if they have any general questions, issues or well-being concerns. Tutors will regularly post material in the tutor Google Classrooms.



How will you check whether my child is engaging with their work and how will I be informed if there are concerns?


Our staff will be online and checking their Google Classroom on a daily basis.


If for any reason students are not engaging with the learning, we will use the following strategies to provide additional support:

● Contact via the Google Classroom from the class teacher;

● Phone call home from the class teacher or Learning Leader;

● Communication with parents via email.



Unfortunately we are not able to provide you with a log-in to your child’s account. You can however receive guardian summary reports as explained below.

How will you assess my child’s work and progress?


Feedback can take many forms and may not always mean extensive written comments for individual children. For example, whole-class feedback or quizzes marked automatically via digital platforms are also valid and effective methods, amongst many others.

It is an expectation that marking, assessment and feedback will follow the usual cycle. This means that KS4 and KS5 work is marked, and diagnostic feedback provided, on a two weekly cycle. For KS3 this is every three weeks. Where students are in school work will be completed and marked in exercise books. For students who are not in school work should be submitted via Google Classroom, and marking / feedback will be provided there, in line with the usual marking cycle for that class.

In the Google Classroom teachers will also be able to send messages to individuals or groups of students, and can respond to questions. As a minimum expectation this will be on a weekly basis.


All homework will be set and marked via Google Classroom.


ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS WITH PARTICULAR NEEDS

How will you work with me to help my child who needs additional support from adults at home to access remote education?

We recognise that some students, for example some students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), may find it difficult to access remote education without support from adults at home. We acknowledge the difficulties this may place on families, and we will work with parents and carers to support those students in the following ways:

  • Contact from the SENDCO to discuss concerns with the parents, and provide a centralised place for support;

  • Where appropriate a Teaching Assistant will contact the student and/or parent on a daily basis to check for issues and provide support;

  • Provision of supporting literacy booklets to aid student progress and understanding;

  • All lesson materials are fully differentiated and appropriate to the needs of the students in that class. The teacher may, if appropriate, also provide a supporting Loom video to assist with explanation, modelling and demonstration.


Remote education for individual self-isolating students


In some cases individual students need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school. In this situation students will access lesson resources via Google Classroom as described above. These will be the same as the resources used in the ‘physical lesson’, and will follow the Meopham House Style. They will be able to submit work, ask questions to their teachers, and receive feedback in line with the usual marking cycle via their Google Classroom.


Expectations for teaching staff who are self-isolating;

Unfortunately we do have times when a member of staff is self-isolating. If they are unwell resources will be provided, where possible, by other members of the department in the same way that cover work would be set. Any lesson resources or ‘Loom’ videos which have been produced by other members of the department may be utilised to support this.

If the member of staff is well enough to be working from home they will continue to upload resources to the Google Classroom. Where possible these will be supported by a ‘Loom’ video which can be played by the cover teacher in the classroom, or viewed by students who are also isolating, ensuring that the students gain input from their teacher, and that the Meopham House Style and expectations remain clearly visible.

Please keep in touch with us and do let us know if you’re having any difficulties with remote learning, or if you have any questions.


We have created a website to support students and parents. This can be found via the school website or via the link below:

https://sites.google.com/swale.at/digitallearning/home

You can also contact the relevant Learning Leader for your son or daughter:

KS3 Learning Leader (Years 7-9) - hannah.biscombe@swale.at

KS4 Learning Leader (Years 10-11) – rebecca.thornberg@swale.at

KS5 Head of Sixth Form – jenny.vik@swale.at


Finally we have a dedicated email for assistance if the other options have not enabled you to solve any issues.

Google Classroom assistance - mss_classroomhelp@swale.at