Remote Education

At Gosforth Academy, high quality remote education, when needed, will ensure it meets the following essential requirements:

Flexibility for all those involved, allowing students to focus study time with live lessons (when deemed appropriate), personal study and other delivery methods.
A variety of teaching methods used, keeping true to our principles.
Reliability of provision delivered by teachers and accessed by students building structure and routine.
Equity of access for all students in our care.

We will continue to deliver our usual curriculum remotely, in the same way as we do in school, wherever possible. Clearly the methods of delivery will be very different, but a broad and balanced curriculum is central to what we do. Where this is not possible or not appropriate, such as in some subjects where practical skills require equipment or facilities for them to be developed, our subject leaders will adjust sequencing suitably.

We will continue to provide remote education that is equivalent in length to the core teaching that pupils would receive in school. This would mean, as a minimum, students in Key Stage 3 and 4 would receive the equivalent of five hours of remote education per day. Although Key Stage 5 is not included in this requirement, we will provide them with remote education that is equivalent to their usual study programme.

Please understand that the productivity of different students working at home can vary, and also, in terms of how quickly the same student works from one day to the next. By delivering the remote learning expectations outlined above, teachers will attempt to provide a suitable quantity of work for students in their classes. Please get in contact with class teachers where there appears to be too much work or where additional tasks are required.

Accessing Remote Education

We use Microsoft Teams to set assignments for our students. This should be checked on a daily basis, as well as their school e-mail address. Any invitations to live lessons that take place will come through this, and it is also a useful way to contact teachers to seek clarification or to submit work where this is requested. To access Teams, students will require internet access.

Departments across the school have successfully developed the use of live lessons as one of many important strategies used to teach students remotely. It has been trialled and used successfully in school, and has provided a safe and effective learning experience for our students. We will use Teams to deliver live lessons when necessary, with all such lessons being linked to students’ school e-mail addresses.

Live lessons, when used, via Teams are intended solely for students within a class and, as would be normal practice in a classroom setting, it would not be deemed appropriate for parents or students from other classes to view or comment upon a lesson that is delivered remotely.

In addition, there are also a number of websites that provide resources to supplement any teaching. Some examples of these include Oak Academy, Seneca, Educake, Dr Frost and BBC Bitesize who offer educational lessons and resources for secondary school students. The following links are some other examples of what is available:

Delivery of Remote Learning

We believe that the subject specialists are able to best determine the specific resources and delivery techniques to use as they deliver their curriculum. The platforms we use, such as Microsoft Teams, are developing the services they provide and we will continue to develop our practice to ensure that transferable skills will continue to help students in their future learning and careers.

We continue to recognise and agree that research, guidance and advice offered across the sector suggests that the quality of teaching is more important than the delivery method, with variety playing an important role.

Engagement and Feedback

Students continue to be expected to engage with all work that is set by their teachers or live lessons on Teams. Student engagement will be checked throughout by each subject with departmental and pastoral staff contacting home where engagement becomes a concern. We appreciate the challenges that remote learning presents for families and appreciate the support of parents in this matter.

We acknowledge the essential role formative and summative assessment plays in the progress students make. This will be carried out in a number of ways, including verbal feedback using Teams, questioning in live lessons and written feedback. Teachers will provide this feedback in line with the assessment policies.

Additional Support for Students with SEND

We expect to use various methods to support those students experiencing challenges to their ability to engage fully with remote learning, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and those with difficult pastoral issues. This support primarily is via contact from our Student Support Base and our pastoral teams, but will also extend to the flexibility of approach in the delivery of their curriculum. We feel flexibility in these circumstances is particularly valuable in meeting the wide range of needs and circumstances that present and encourage the support and engagement of parents in this process.

Remote Learning FAQs

With regard to remote learning and live streamed lessons, the key message at Gosforth Academy is for us to focus on providing high quality work, maximise engagement and provide effective feedback to students. We see this as being critical to the successful delivery of remote learning, and appreciate all the support offered by parents with this.

We also understand the need to maintain contact with students throughout any periods of remote learning. When needed, this may be in in the form of pastoral and welfare checks as well as students having the opportunity of contact with their class teachers during live streamed lessons or pastoral staff, where further support is needed.

In answering the questions below, we hope that you will understand our approach to remote learning for students when face to face teaching is not possible and why we have adopted it.

How will students know what they have to do?

We use Microsoft Teams to set students their work or assignments. They should check this on a daily basis through any period where remote education is necessary, as well as their school e-mail address. Invitations to live lessons that take place will come through this, and it is also a useful way to contact teachers to seek clarification or to submit work where this is requested. To access Teams, all you need is internet access. There is also a Teams app that students can use on their phone. Subject teachers and departments will provide work that should:

Be set using Teams. Instructions will be provided by teachers as part of the assignment.
Be set to ensure that students will have a comparable amount of work to the lesson time that is being missed.
Be, relevant, meaningful and ambitious with appropriate sequencing. This will be in line with the departmental curriculum plans.
Offer the opportunity for formal assessment and feedback, in line with department assessment policy and statutory guidance. This could be through feedback on Teams, during a live lesson or by some other means.

How much work should students have to do?

Teaching staff will set work that will/would be completed in class during the week. It is apparent that student productivity at home can vary greatly, but teachers and pastoral staff will challenge those who fail to engage. Additional work will also be provided by departments to ensure students have enough to challenge them. Work could include content coverage, a range of class activities, assessments or homework provided for the rest of the group.

How often will students receive their assignments?

They will receive them on a weekly basis or lesson by lesson basis, depending upon the curriculum and the work that needs to be completed. This may be one assignment per subject (although this may be more for Sixth Form where two teachers share a class and deliver different elements of the course) or several assignments consisting of a number of smaller tasks, PowerPoints or other activities. Further work may need to be set as teachers deem necessary.

How will new subject content be taught remotely?

There is no single strategy that is the right one for all subjects, given the obvious differences involved in their delivery, and we believe that subject specialists should decide upon and use a range of activities to do this.

Teaching staff will continue to use resources such as narrated PowerPoints, where deemed appropriate, which will be linked to Teams assignments. This will allow students to hear their teachers’ voices, and have key information on the slides highlighted, much like they would do in the classroom. Where this is not possible or deemed appropriate, students are urged to contact teachers to seek additional clarification on topics that are new and/or challenging for them.

Departments have successfully developed the use of live lessons as one of many important strategies used to teach all students remotely. Throughout, we have followed guidance and prevailing circumstances to ensure this is done safely for those involved. This has been trialled successfully in school, providing safe and effective learning as well as additional capacity. Live lessons are just one tool available to teaching staff that can improve the learning of students.

What can students expect in terms of feedback from their teachers?

We expect teachers to provide formal feedback in line with the assessment policy within the department, meaning that students will be assessed at the same intervals as they would have whilst in school. This may depend on the content and stage of delivery but please contact the relevant department if you would like further information. Assessments will be set as part of the assignments on Teams or some other means, but this will be monitored by the Curriculum Leader of the department. It is essential that students and/or parents make contact with teachers where further feedback or support is required.

Other assessment and feedback opportunities will be provided in a less formal manner. This may include verbal feedback during a live lesson, e-mail contact, quizzes and telephone contact where appropriate.

What should students do if they have difficulties with their work?

Students should make contact with their teachers using their school email account or Teams if they need any further advice, support or guidance with regards to their remote learning. This may be to ask questions about the content or the tasks that have been set or because they have been asked to communicate with teachers as part of the assignment. Students may also have the opportunity to address any difficulties during live streamed lessons as they are taking place.

Why is the remote learning at Gosforth Academy different to that offered at other schools?

We have and will continue to offer a provision that is different to that offered in other schools; no two schools have exactly the same circumstances and rationale. We have looked to develop our provision to ensure that is in line with the DfE guidance, but more importantly ensure that it fits with the very specific characteristics of our school. This needs to be accessible, consistent and appropriate for each course we offer whilst being safe and manageable for each student involved.

During any Remote Education period, we will continue to review what we offer, and liaise with other similar schools in the area, sharing our practice with them when asked.

Why may all lessons not be live streamed?

We will continue to examine the efficacy of this provision and the research in this field as we aim to ensure that our provision is consistent and as effective as possible, whilst focusing on the key elements of successful delivery – quality resources and feedback, and ensuring that engagement is as strong as possible.

Why may students not follow their normal timetable?

We hope that students will adopt strategies that are right for them, and, in most cases, this will be the use of a structured day of study. Live lessons, where available, will also take place in the normal timetabled lessons so these periods should be prioritised at all times.

We are also very aware that families have a varied level of availability of devices at home for their children to use, and that some are finding it difficult to manage the competing demands of their children for access to them. Having to be online at specific times for specific lessons means a lack of flexibility for students and for staff, when all lessons are delivered in this way. This has the potential to complicate learning still further for students whilst access to teachers would also be severely limited. This is central to why we continue to not insist on students following their normal timetable at home in full.

My household does not have wi-fi and/or adequate devices at home. What can I do to make remote learning easier for them?

There are a number of Government schemes which we are involved in which aim to improve access for students in this situation. Please get in touch with class teachers, pastoral staff or Ms Stanley if this is the case, as they may be able to help. This includes Sixth Form students.

How do I know what work that has been set and how well my son/daughter has been engaging?

You can ask your child to show you their Microsoft Teams account to check the assignments that have been set and any scheduled live lessons.

We will contact you if there are concerns over the engagement of a student. This will be by the class teacher or department lead in the first instance, but the relevant pastoral team where issues persist.

How can I best support my son/daughter as part of their remote learning?

Routines and accessing the help of their subject teachers is very helpful for students in periods of Remote Education. Following the structure of the school day, making sure that live lessons are accessed and work is being completed will help your child keep up to date with their education.

There are also a number of websites that provide resources to supplement any remote teaching. Some examples of these include Oak Academy and BBC Bitesize. The following links are some examples of what is available:

Where can I find out more information about remote learning and the expectations placed on schools?

Please use the following links to understand more about expectations of schools and helping to ensure that your child is able to learn safely online.