Remote Learning - Information For Parents

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

The academy lead for remote learning is Mrs Richardson, Vice Principal (e.richarsons@harrisbeckenham.org.uk).

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?

Harris Academy Beckenham will provide remote education which is high quality and aligns as closely as possible with in-school provision. Teachers will teach our curriculum which is ambitious, knowledge rich and well sequenced to ensure continuity of learning and progression for all.

• We will use Microsoft Teams as our digital platform.
• We will teach the same curriculum remotely as we do in school with further opportunities to master content via homework assignments, challenges from ‘Above and Beyond’ in every subject. Our ambitious academic programme is supported with strong pastoral support and a wide range of enrichment opportunities to help HABE stay connected.
• It will also include videos and audio explanations from the teacher or other online learning platforms to support the students to complete the assignment.
• Student will be required to use other learning sites as is the case for their homework APPS.
• Students will receive regular feedback from teaching staff.

While we are ensuring students have access to equipment and resources before going home, learning will continue as set out below for individuals isolating or working from home. Staff will be available to respond to needs as they arise between 9am and 3.30pm.

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?

Our Curriculum for all students is purposefully designed to be broad, balanced, and rigorous. The ambitious and challenging skills, knowledge and understanding we choose to deliver to our students is carefully selected sequenced. It is also deeply contextual to the local things that influence our students the most. Therefore, to alter this finely prepared Curriculum for remote learning we feel would be disadvantaging our students even further.

Learning at HABE begins with a Knowledge Retrieval task, followed by the Big Picture to help students develop new schemata and make connections between them. Knowledge Acquisition is where learners engage with the explanation and modelling of the core knowledge before launching into deliberate practice. During this element the teacher will offer support to those who need it. The lesson will end with a Knowledge Summary to support cognitive load, distilling the key elements of the lesson and how this sequences into the next lesson.

We teach the same curriculum remotely as we do in school wherever possible and appropriate. In all our core subjects: English, Maths, Science, Humanities and MFL students will learn same content at home as they would at school. However, we have needed to make some adaptations in some subjects. For example, our creative subjects such as Music, Drama, Art, DT, PE, and ICT all need specific resources that are not always readily available at home. Therefore, they have developed new and innovative ways to continue to engage the students and help them to develop the subject specific skills needed to make progress.

Remote teaching and study time each day

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

Students in Key Stage 3 (Year 7-9) will follow their normal daily timetable of subjects. Our lessons are taught as 80 minutes sessions on-site. Based on research and our own experience and feedback from the first national lockdown, this strategy will lead to higher levels of engagement and student understanding.

Key Stage 3 average daily hours: 5 Hours

Key Stage 3 average weekly hours: 15

Students in Key Stage 4 (Year 10-11) will follow their normal daily timetable of subjects. These are exam groups and therefore we do not feel they can afford to miss any opportunity to have contact time with their teachers.

Key Stage 4 average daily hours: 5.5 Hours

Key Stage 4 average weekly hours: 20 Hours

Students in Key Stage 5 (Year 12-13) will follow their normal daily timetable of subjects. This varies for each individual student based on the combination of subjects they have chosen. For Key Stage 5 this will include both remote lessons as well as designated study time within the school day.

Key Stage 5 average daily hours: 9 hours per subject per week

Key Stage 5 average weekly hours: 6 Hours per subject per week in addition to their online APP homework.

Accessing remote education

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

All our remote learning is set through Microsoft Teams. All students should know how to access this online platform.

Some subjects will also use additional online learning platforms:

• Maths – Sparx
• English – Bedrock Learning
• Science – Educake
• Geography – Educake 
• Spanish – Duolingo
• DT – Seneca

All work is submitted to the teacher either vis MS Teams or through these other platforms. When the work is set it will be clearly explained how it should be submitted.

If you have any questions about accessing these online platforms, please contact the class teacher directly using MS Teams. If you are unable to access MS Teams please contact: info@harrisbeckenham.org.uk.

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:

• All students with SEND will have a Personalised Learning Plan in place led by our SENCO and SEND support team.
• All parents of students with SEND will be involved in the process of remote learning through discussion with the SENCO and Year leader.

Remote education for self-isolating students

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

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 set all students work through MS Teams with:

• All students have been trained and taught how to use Microsoft TEAMS.

• Upon notification of working from home, parents and students are asked if they have the technology at home to access learning remotely. If students do not have a device, the IT assistant and VP will provide a laptop and a dongle for internet access if required. The IT department will provide remote support to ensure ease of access and to troubleshoot any problems for the parent and student. Parents can contact info@harrisbeckenham.org.uk should they need further support and assistance. If problems with remote access still exist, the Academy will offer a place on site to access lessons or provide paper copies of work; this will be a last resort as we know that accessing the lessons is the best option.
• Devices will need to be signed for and they will be checked for damage upon return to the Academy.
• Students will be provided with pens, paper and other stationery items should they need it.
• All the work will be completed on MS teams via MS Assignments, Word documents emailed or via One Note. Students can upload their work directly and can use photos to show that the work has been completed.
• See our How to Use MS Teams guide for further support to parents on how to access MS Teams.

Students will always follow the planned Curriculum regardless of absence in Core subjects. As with whole groups, for some creative subjects this is not possible due to specialised equipment and resources. Each case will be looked at individually and appropriate work set by teachers to ensure students do not miss out on significant knowledge, skills and understanding being gained by their peers on-site.