The move to remote learning, for the majority of pupils, has brought with it many challenges for teachers, young people and their families. While the current situation is far from ideal, teachers have been continuing to do all that they can to support young people via remote learning. The EIS has made advice on remote learning available on the EIS website and, here, we highlight some best practice.
The move to Remote Learning
Initial feedback from various groups at the Covid Education Recovery Group (CERG) is that the remote learning offer has improved significantly from the emergency situation of the first lockdown. EIS advice on effective pedagogical approaches can be found on the EIS website at www.eis.org.uk/Education-Advice/ Blendedremotelearning
At the insistence of the Scottish Government, Education Scotland (HMIE) plans to survey around 5% of schools weekly on their remote learning offers. Although it is claimed that this will be a light touch sampling exercise not involving teachers directly, the EIS has made clear that we believe this to be an unnecessary approach.
Members are reminded about the importance of looking after their own well-being in lockdown by seeking to control workload and separating out work and home life. Advice can be found at www.eis.org.uk/Working-From-Home/ HWB
EIS Remote and Blended Learning Advice
The EIS published updated advice on remote and blended learning at the start of this session. The guidance sets out the principles of remote and blended learning and provides advice on the “do’s and don’ts” of online teaching in the COVID context.
The EIS is clear that learning and teaching occur most effectively when teachers and pupils work together face to face in classrooms. This is acknowledged in Education Scotland’s recently published advice on remote learning which states that ‘remote learning will not replicate face to face in school teaching – in style, approach or hours of delivery’
SNCT and LNCT conditions of service must be observed in all cases and any involvement in online teaching must be capable of being delivered in the 35-hour working week and within the Working Time Agreement of the host school of the teacher who is involved in delivering online teaching.
There is no explicit statement in teachers’ contracts in relation to delivering online lessons and unlike the UK Government, the Scottish Government has not used its legal powers to instruct remote or online teaching. The EIS believes that teacher staffing of online teaching, whether delivered by teachers working from school or at home, should be voluntary.
LNCT agreements should make provision for the potential of the different home and personal circumstances of teachers working at home, some of which might render the delivery of live or pre-recorded lessons from home a significant challenge.
A collegiate approach to determining what will be offered to pupils while they are learning at home is advised. Colleagues will feel better supported to and more confident in providing a range of remote learning experiences in circumstances where professional dialogue has already taken place among colleagues, including senior managers, and where this is ongoing as required.
If a teacher is concerned for any reason about being asked to deliver live or pre-recorded lessons from home, they should raise these concerns with the school management team and seek advice and support as necessary from their EIS school representative or Local Association Secretary.
The Do’s
Where teachers are delivering online lessons in the context of COVID-19, either pre-recorded or on a live basis from home, teachers SHOULD:
- follow the agreed LNCT policies, protocols and guidance, including those pertaining to workload control
- communicate only through agreed official channels, e.g. GLOW or other local authority-endorsed digital platforms
- ensure that any associated communication with parents is in accordance with agreed policies and protocols, including those in relation to the roles and responsibilities of parents in supporting their children with remote learning generally and specifically to access any live lessons
- act in accordance with the EIS Social Media Policy and the GTCS Professional Guide, ‘Engaging Online: a guide for teachers’
- take all appropriate measures to protect their personal privacy and safeguard their professionalism, e.g. by ensuring neutral backgrounds and appropriate dress
- be aware that nothing shared online is private.
The Don’ts
Where teachers are delivering online lessons, either pre-recorded or on a live basis, teachers SHOULD NOT:
- share, or be asked to share, personal phone numbers, email addresses or social media IDs with pupils or parents
- live-stream lessons from their homes, unless they are using a secure platform, such as GLOW
- engage in any phone or video-calling with parents unless this has been arranged through the school in accordance with LNCT agreements, and with the knowledge and/or participation of the appropriate line manager and the consent of the teacher involved
- be compelled to use their own personal phones or other devices should they not wish to do so. The onus is on the local authority to provide any devices as necessary to support remote teaching.
Key Principles for Remote Teaching
- Schools must have in place protocols to protect staff and safeguard pupils, prior to the delivery of any online lessons, either pre-recorded or on a live basis by teachers working from home.
- Local Authorities should be responsible for the provision of all required hardware and software in relation to any recording or live streaming of lessons from home. The ability of Local Authorities to ensure the capability, reliability and security of digital infrastructure to enable the smooth delivery of online learning should feature in LNCT discussions relative to such provision.
- Arrangements for the delivery of remote teaching should be underpinned by the principle of equity, and provision made to ensure that pupils impacted by poverty have access to appropriate resources to maximise engagement with learning and to address the poverty-related attainment gap.
- Where teachers have concerns about the use of particular software, for example, in relation to the capacity of companies to access and harvest personal data, these should be raised with the school and/or Local Authority, with a view to alternative possibilities being explored.
- Whilst it is understood that senior managers have a responsibility to quality assure learning provision, this should be done on the basis of collegiate, professional dialogue with teachers. All staff should be involved in collegiate discussion about what the school’s remote learning offer will be and opportunities for professional dialogue among colleagues, including senior managers, should be created throughout the period of remote learning and teaching. It is not acceptable for quality assurance processes to be in the form of observation of live virtual lessons.
- The EIS is clear that priorities at this time should be streamlined to ensure that there is no additional strain on weekly working time within the parameters of the 35-hour working week.
- In accordance with the Scottish Government Guidance on Education Recovery, priorities should be centred around the well-being of teachers, as well as of children and young people, and be agreed on a collegiate basis. Teachers should be mindful of their own health and wellbeing and the need for an appropriate balance of priorities in this regard.
- Adjustments to the balance of normal pupil-contact time are recommended for digital learning contexts – neither children nor teachers should be engaged for the duration of the pupil day in screen-based learning and teaching. This would be an excessive and unhealthy demand to place upon pupils, is pedagogically unsound and is not conducive to maintaining good health and wellbeing among teachers working in relatively restricted conditions at home and without the usual supports from colleagues and senior management being in place.