Remote Learning

It is likely that children will be using the Internet and engaging with social media far more during this time.  Our staff are aware of the signs of cyberbullying and other online risks and our filtering and monitoring software remains in use during this time to safeguard and support children.  

The academy will ensure any use of online learning tools and systems is in line with privacy and data protection/GDPR requirements.

Our staff will follow the process for online safety set out in our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy and ‘Guidance for using video in teaching at the Leigh Academies Trust’.

Teachers may live stream or provide pre-recorded videos. This approach will be used if it best suits the needs of their children and staff.

Live or recorded teaching sessions may be undertaken from a teacher’s home setting. The tool that should be used for any video conferencing with students is Google Meet. Students should not initiate Meet calls themselves.

In addition to the above the following must be met before proceeding:

• No 1:1 lessons or tuition, groups only. 
• Two adults on every Google Meet
• Where it is necessary to engage individual pupils, for pastoral reasons to check on safety and welfare, this can be done live but at least two members of staff must be on the same call.
• Staff and children must wear suitable clothing as they would for a working day in school;
• Any computers used should be in appropriate environment, with a wall, white board or similar being presented as a background;
• ‘Live’ classes should be kept to a reasonable length of time, or the streaming may prevent the family ‘getting on’ with their day;
• Language must be professional and appropriate, including that of any family members in the background;
• Staff must only use devices and platforms (i.e. Google Meet) provided by Leigh Academies Trust to communicate with pupils; 
• When outside the regular academy day, joining the lesson should be optional. The lesson should also allow the child to opt out of being on video but to join the session via audio only;
• Staff should record the length, time, date and attendance of any sessions held.
• Staff who interact with children online will continue to look out for signs a child may be at risk. 

Staff who interact with children online will continue to look out for signs a child may be at risk. If a staff member is concerned about a child, that staff member will follow the approach set out in this annex and report that concern to the DSL or to a Deputy DSL.

Children are expected to use our Google Meet etiquettes to ensure that the live interactions are high quality for all. 

•  An adult must be present in the house during the video call and must confirm their presence at the beginning of the video call before leaving their child to engage in the video meet. 
• These video meets have been designed to provide your child with the opportunity to interact with their peers and teacher in a virtual live environment. Adults are reminded, it is not an opportunity for you to engage on the video call and speak with your child’s teacher. As is the protocol, all questions for your child’s teacher must be submitted either through the Google Classroom or by contacting the School Office.
• Join the Google Meet at the allocated time only 
• The meets are optional, allowing the children to opt out if they would prefer not to take part. You will be provided with a sign up sheet through your child’s Google Classroom to sign up to one weekly slot that is suitable for you and your child. 
•  Your child will also have the option to attend via audio only should they not wish to have their camera on. 
• The door to the room where your child is carrying out the video call must be left open for the duration of the meet. 
• The video call must take place in an appropriate environment which safeguards the child’s privacy, for example; kitchen/ lounge/ dining room with a wall or similar area presented as a background. 
• Your child should be appropriately dressed for the video call as should anyone else in the household 
• Language must be professional and appropriate, including any family members in the background. 
• Once the video call has finished, you must ensure that the camera has been disconnected and covered. 
• During the video call your child may only use the platform that the school provides (Google Meet). 
• It is not permitted to make any recordings or take photos during these video calls. This is the responsibility of both parents/ carers and children. However, the video call will be recorded by the teacher in line with our safeguarding policy. Recordings will be retained for 30 days.

Pupils who are being asked to work online have very clear reporting routes to the academy in place so they can raise any concerns whilst online. As well as reporting to the academy they will be aware of practical, external support from the likes of:

• Child Line – for support
• UK Safer Internet Centre – to report and remove harmful online content

Pupils should hand their work in virtually by posting it to Class Dojo or through Google Classroom. It gives us the opportunity to track levels of engagement and identify where we may need to contact parents to offer support.

Feedback/Marking

Where possible, work will be set to allow pupils to work independently, but within current circumstances, praise and encouragement from home will play a key factor to ensure children are engaged.  Staff members will check in twice a day at 10:00 and 14:00 to answer questions on any difficulties in accessing the work.

Teachers will feedback on pupils’ work with detail at least once a day and review all other work through Class Dojo and Google Classroom.  Staff will also provide feedback through live sessions and pre-recorded lessons.

We recognise that some pupils, for example, those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), may not be able to access remote education without further support.  As well as work being differentiated by year group, an Inclusion Virtual Classroom is available for further support and guidance as advised by the school SenCo.

Where individual pupils need to self-isolate due to having been in close contact with a positive case or are waiting for the result of a Covid test, learning will still be accessed in the same way through Google Classroom and Class Dojo as indicated above.