As is the case with most senior leaders in schools, I have been reading through the DfE’s Guidance for Full Opening since its publication on Thursday 2nd July. The typical mulling over implications, considering what they will look like given the practical realities we face with Covid-19 and considering how these can translate into policy.
With remote learning, there are some strong implications for schools that need to be considered, these go beyond what is outlined in the contingency plans outlined in Section 5.
1. The Need to Consider 1:1 Deployment at scale – Section 1 of the documentation requires schools to meticulously clean plastics (which will include communal IT facilities) between bubbles or classes. Combine this with ‘Section 5’ asking us to prepare suitable remote learning and now is a prime time to consider 1:1 devices for students. This is obviously a huge investment, but it it worth considering that the catch-up grant guidance by the Education Endowment Foundation (available at https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/public/files/Publications/Covid-19_Resources/Covid-19_support_guide_for_schools.pdf) which the DfE link to talks about investing in technology on Page 6. Moreover, LGfL is currently running the ‘Bridge the Divide’ scheme which allows school to purchase a Lenovo 100e Chromebook for £127.99 (https://national.lgfl.net/smartbuy/devices). Then there are charities such as the Learning Foundation who can help your school put in place sensible finance schemes to allow families to donate towards devices (https://learningfoundation.org.uk/). Now really is the time to go 1:1 for so many reasons!
At the very least, if you’re not prepared to go that radical – investing in wireless trackpad keyboard combos will help people have their own interface devices for any communal IT should be considered a minimum standard (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rii-Wireless-Keyboard-Stainless-Raspberry/dp/B00EDBXB8K?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_3).
2. VOIP Telephony, Cloud Storage and Remote Desktop facilities – If both support and teaching staff will be isolating with any symptoms and under Section 1 Paragraph 8 are advised to avoid contact with others even if they have a negative test, there will be lots of staff needing the flexibility to work off-site. We’re used to facilitating this already. However, now is the time to invest in a strategy in ensuring this is fully comprehensive. If you haven’t already, consider running school phone systems on VOIP setups such as Google Voice or 3CX so that telecoms can be used off-site and from any web browser. Also, if you haven’t already, now is the time to invest in Cloud Storage so that files work off-site (Office 365 or GSuite Registrations are free for schools and the DfE will even pay for a company to support the setup process). It is also worth investing in Remote Desktop technology so that any Windows applications can be accessed from home. Windows Server 2016 and 2019 can even stream applications to any web browser (I wrote a piece on this last year).
3. Offline Resources, Surveying Students in September and “Offline Guardians” in Google Classroom – In the event of a lockdown, Section 5 requires schools to quickly deploy high quality online learning to those with the internet and offline resources to those without it.
Firstly, consider a detailed study to drill into the access needs of your student. A template of a Google Form that does that can be accessed by clicking here. Access is not a matter of students having a device and an internet connection. We need to consider how many devices are in the household, cramped home conditions that make it difficult for them to get on with work and any other barriers they have (such as a weak ADSL internet connection shared between lots of household members).
If you use Google Classroom. One member of staff could be setup as a ‘Guardian’ on Google Classroom (and added to their Classrooms as a student as well) for any students you identify with access issues. That creates a clear point of contact and responsibility for printing paper copies of Google assignments and communicating with home about the work that the student should be doing during a lockdown.
4. Telepresence and the Hybrid Classroom – The biggest implication from these guidelines, as I’ve said earlier, is that teachers may be isolating at home but are well enough to teach. Alternatively, students may be at home and able to work while they isolate. This is the most likely “new normal” for the coming years. To facilitate this, there needs to be a minimum of a webcam with a microphone in every classroom in the UK. To use Google Meet or Microsoft Teams properly only a 720p camera with decent audio is really needed. These can be purchased from suppliers such as Amazon or CPC fairly easily. Although audio is likely to be an issue in the Classroom so the gold standard would be to have Google Meet Video Conferencing kits in every Classroom (https://gsuite.google.co.uk/intl/en_uk/products/meet-hardware/). Although, in reality – 720p webcams with some higher quality microphones may be all we can afford as schools. If the DfE is super serious about hybrid learning I think we’d see a massive investment in proper video conferencing equipment for every school – Just in case anyone from the DfE is reading this and has some spare money…https://gsuite.google.co.uk/intl/en_uk/products/meet-hardware/!
Alternatively, a Chromebook that is moved around by a teacher would be a fair compromise (and a lot cheaper).
5. Second Lockdown Training – Section 5 asks schools to make sure that teachers are all confident with remote learning platforms. Even if you think you have a great e-learning culture and remote working culture – I would urge you to spend a few days reading back over the servicedesk tickets that came through to your IT staff and into your inboxes. You will, undoubtedly, spot gaps. If you use G Suite, look at the admin console and look at how many staff know how to assign quizzes in Google Classroom (Drive -> Forms) and what people are after in terms of facilities.
I still consider our staff very tech savvy and quite tech resiliant. However, there are gaps that need patching and people who seem to have slipped through gaps with certain practices and technologies.
You need to review that data and plan accordingly for your needs.
If you found remote learning a problem – reaching out to The DfE’s EdTech Demonstrator programme to get some high quality coaching and mentoring is a good idea (https://edtech-demonstrator.lgfl.net/).
Good Luck! I’m sure we’ll all get there!
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jerry miller
Thanks for this great list!