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.

For details of what to expect where individual students are self-isolating, please see the final section of this page.

The remote curriculum: what is taught to students at home

A student’s first day or two of being educated remotely might look different from our standard approach, while we take all necessary actions to prepare for a longer period of remote teaching.

What should my child expect from immediate remote education in the first day or two of students being sent home?

Remote education will begin immediately for full school closure with work on SharePoint, regardless of whether the school is open or closed, so that any student who has missed school for any reason can catch up on missed work.

Please note: the kind of remote education will differ depending upon: 1) if a child is self-isolating because they have been identified as a close contact OR 2) a whole class/ year group is sent home to self-isolate.

All remote education will be provided via the Microsoft Teas platform for whole school closure or year group closure. All appropriate work will be set for students prior to the start of lessons and will also be available on the school’s SharePoint site.

Any questions or concerns should be referred to your child’s Progress and Guidance manager, who will be able to support you and your child.

 

Following the first few days of remote education, will my child be taught broadly the same curriculum as they would if they were in school?

• Remote education, where and when required, will be of high-quality and aligned as closely as possible with in-school provision and curriculum content.
• Students will access and be taught our intended curriculum. This is well-planned and well-sequenced so that knowledge and skills are built incrementally, and students have opportunities to retrieve and recall previously taught content.
• Students will have meaningful and ambitious work each day in several different subjects. Students will follow their in-school timetable.
• Microsoft SharePoint will continue to be used to access class materials.
• Microsoft Teams will be used across the school with all year groups to set students’ work and deliver lessons in the event of full school, year group or bubble being at home.
• On the ‘Student Home Access’ area of the School website, it will take students to the ‘Student SharePoint’. Parents/carers will find support guides and videos for Microsoft Teams and for students so that they can access the platform easily.
• All staff set homework using Knowledge Organisers and online platforms such as GCSEPod, Sparx Maths, Seneca Learning etc. depending on the needs of the subject.
• Students who do not have suitable online access will be provided with an electronic device in order to access online lessons.
• Those students with SEND who may struggle to access the remote learning curriculum will be provided with appropriate support and resources to ensure they can engage with remote learning including usual in-class support attending lessons where possible.
• Clarity about what is intended to be taught and practised in each subject will be provided through individual and class assignments on Microsoft Teams. Subject Leaders will carefully monitor and adjust curriculum plans, where it is deemed appropriate.
• Frequent and clear explanations of new content will be provided, either delivered ‘live’ by teachers, through pre-recorded teacher videos or carefully selected high-quality curriculum resources (e.g. use of GCSEPod).
• Where students are in school and only a small amount of students are self-isolating, all relevant resources will continue to be uploaded to Microsoft SharePoint for that subject and class. Students have the ability to ask questions via the ‘posts’ section of Microsoft Teams and, when convenient to do so, teachers will endeavour to respond.

Remote teaching and study time each day

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

We expect that remote education (including remote teaching and independent work) will take students broadly the following number of hours each day:

Accessing remote education

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

• Microsoft SharePoint will continue to be used for all students to access all class materials.
• Microsoft Teams will be used across the school with all year groups to set work. Staff, students and parents will continue to receive training in the use of Microsoft Teams (where appropriate) via the ‘Student SharePoint’ section of the website.
• All staff set homework using Knowledge Organisers and online platforms such as GCSEPod, Sparx Maths, Seneca Learning etc. depending on the needs of the subject. This will continue through all scenarios of self-isolation/lockdown.

 

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

We recognise that some students may not have suitable online access at home. We take the following approaches to support those students to access remote education:

• We will make every effort to ensure all students have appropriate access to a suitable device and an internet connection so that they do not fall behind with their studies.
• If a parent or carer requires more information or feels their child has not got access to a suitable device, in the first instance they should contact their child’s Progress and Guidance Manager (01325 300378) or via: [email protected]
• If students need access to printed materials, they can contact school in the first instance. Furthermore, some essential retailers are offering free printing for local school children.
• Where a student is completing their work via work packs, they should submit the completed work to their class teacher as soon as they return to school so it can be checked and assessed.

 

How will my child be taught remotely?

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

Some examples of remote teaching approaches that we will use at Greenfield Community College:

• practical, live teaching (online lessons) will be the main source for delivering learning; this provides students with curriculum continuity and the opportunity to be able to ask questions and speak to their subject teachers
• recorded teaching (e.g. GCSEPod, video/audio recordings made by teachers)
• use of assignments, Microsoft OneNote and Forms to capture students’ knowledge, skills and understanding at planned opportunities
• textbooks and reading books, provided by subject teachers in specific subjects, (e.g. English) are sent home when necessary for study
• commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences, e.g.
• GCSEPod
• Sparx Maths
• Seneca Learning
• Kerboodle
• EverLearner
• Focus on Sound
• commercially available websites supporting the teaching of specific subjects or areas, including video clips or sequences.

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?

In the instances, where any student who is self-isolating, they are expected to ‘attend’ their timetabled lessons. Where practical, this will be either logging in: to engage in the ‘live’ lesson (where it is a whole class isolation) or to download the work and completing it in the given timeframe and to the best of a student’s ability (when it is an individual student isolating).

Parents can support their child’s education by:

• planning each day with their child so they establish a routine and have clear expectations about the importance of engaging in their subjects and learning
• ensuring they have a clear and quiet place to study and engage in their learning with no distractions, e.g. television / games console
• checking that they have the necessary materials, e.g. a pen and paper to make notes
• making sure children have the planned break / lunch time they would in school
• checking that students have completed the necessary work for that day (and whether they have homework to do also)
• supporting the school and keeping in contact so we can help if there are any issues/questions.

 

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

• Teachers will take a daily class register where they will check students’ engagement with remote education (where it is a whole-class isolation). Teachers will also check students’ engagement with set work (in the case of individual student isolation). This information is then passed to the Progress and Guidance Team who will then check it. If students are not engaging in their scheduled lessons / work then contact will be made with home to check on the student and provide support, should it be necessary.
• We ask that parents/carers fully support us so that all students access and engage in their online learning.

 

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. Our approach to feeding back on student work is as follows:

• Teachers will use questioning and other suitable ‘tools’ to help gauge how well students are learning and progressing through content in the curriculum. This information will be used to adjust the pace or challenge (or intervene) of what is being taught, or to revisit explanations to ensure students’ full understanding.
• Regular quizzes / recall activities will be set and checked via self-assessment, where students will be expected to check what they have completed and act upon any feedback from their class teacher.
• Regular and meaningful feedback will be provided to students, in line with school policy. This will include both whole-class and individual feedback. Students will be given opportune times to act upon feedback so that misconceptions/errors are rectified quickly.
• During lessons, students will be asked questions and expected to respond to their teachers. Responses will be verbal, using the chat facility or via ‘hands up’. Such characteristics of teaching are important so students feel engaged and valued and teachers can check on students’ understanding and tackle misconceptions quickly.

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 not be able 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:

• Class teachers ensure remote learning is accessible for SEND learners by clearly identifying each part of the lesson, chunking the tasks set, providing differentiated tasks, model answers and suggested time limits. This is done across all subjects and year groups.
• Where appropriate, support staff will make welfare calls to check the work is accessible and offer further support.
• Our expectation is that SEND students participate in remote learning. In exceptional cases and on a personalised basis, alternative tasks may be sent home.
• Advice is given to parents/carers on strategies known to work in school to help support the engagement of individual students.
• Support is also given in terms of establishing a routine and realistic work expectations.
• Any concerns can be raised through the SENDCO.

Remote education for self-isolating students

Where individual students need to self-isolate but the majority of their peer group remains in school, how remote education is provided will likely differ from the approach for whole groups. This is due to the challenges of teaching students both at home and in school.

If my child is not in school because they are self-isolating, how will their remote education differ from the approaches described above?

• Students will continue to access their in-school timetable (albeit this is different during a full lockdown). This is: 5 lessons per day for Years 7 – 11.
• Where appropriate, students will access a Time 4 Success lesson with their tutor or House Leader.
• Work to be set using Microsoft SharePoint, although direct teacher input will be more difficult as teachers are still teaching the remainder of the class in school.
• Students will access their work via the Student SharePoint platform on the school website. All work will be set in weekly folders and subjects with accompanying resources. Students can ask teachers questions via the Microsoft Teams chat or posts facility. Class teachers will respond to students as soon as is practically possible.

How to access Microsoft Teams and Student SharePoint

Teams and SharePoint – Working from home guides

If there is a reason your child is unable to access the lessons via Teams, students can use SharePoint that covers the same work. SharePoint can be accessed via the school website or via the link – https://greenfieldcommunitycol.sharepoint.com/teams/StudentSharepoint

Students – what you should do:

• It is really important for your future to keep working hard and follow the school routine as far as you can.
• Follow your normal timetable, as much as possible.
• Complete all work to the best of your ability and as neatly as possible.

 

Parents/carers – what you can do if your child is studying at home:

• Provide a quiet space for your child to work in.
• Encourage your child to complete all work to the best of their ability and as neatly as possible.
• Ask your child about the work they are doing and help them where you can; a great way of doing this is by testing them on what they have learned.
• Keep your child’s email login details safe and remind them of them where necessary.
• If you have any general queries, please contact the school enquiry line on [email protected]