Blended Learning and Attendance in Schools
How are students and staff adjusting to life during the Covid-19 pandemic? What are the problems encountered from a staff members prospective as well as those which may affect learners from different backgrounds and home lives.
Over the recent summer period we saw a number of algorithmically based moderations by the UK Government which lead to learners being graded based on a calculated aptitude for their subject rather than on teachers appraisals. Whilst teachers are often those that know their students best it can be useful to include some measurements of performance based on figures such as those from attendance. Following a summer of pitfalls and disputed gradings the UK governments has decided not to use algorithms to assess learner performance.
One of the foremost issues being encountered in the new term with the introduction of blended or distance learning (that is incorporating both face to face and distance learning components) which has become acutely clear to me is the importance of attendance and its link to attainment. I am a firm believer in the power and flexibility of home working and learning but it can be seen that there are flaws with this new system including a lack of preparedness for the new method of learning. At the start of the new term it is clear to me and many colleagues which of the new crop of learners engage regularly with the content we are providing for them and which ones have changed their habits or developed a more diverse way of working. Speck (2020) observes that many learners who were provided a clear structure and guidance over lockdown were more engaged and focused on their studies when re-entering traditional teaching. There is a great diversity across learners from different socioeconomic backgrounds which have not engaged with recommended learning but otherwise have positive home environments which were not adversely affected. However many who have had or have negative home environments are often those facing the greatest challenge when returning to the school. With many learners engaged in some form of blended learning assessing their engagement with lessons is essential to assess their performance. Doing this when the learners are at a distance is a challenge for teachers, Speck (2020) based on 3000 teachers’ opinions of the attainment gap following Covid lockdown disruption argues that this problem would increase if the learners are engaged in sessions but not actively learning.
What is the problem with attendance and attainment in schools and colleges?. When a learner is physically in a classroom, the teacher can record them both being present and regularly assess their engagement with direct questioning. One area that can be enhanced in distance learning is regularly asking the learner questions and checking for responses. This allows for both assessing engagement and attainment of their progress. This is essential when constructing a blended lesson where some learners are physically present and others are not. The learner needs to be engaged - not simply listening. Concerns around safeguarding and GDPR must be reconciled with the use of video recording as it is imperative that teachers have some way of monitoring engagement and progress. This is also of increased concern for OFSTED as if learners are not being taught the appropriate level of content for all modules this will disadvantage a generation (Gibbons, 2020). This also ties in with worrying reports from teachers and parents that are facing anxiety with students being back in the classroom. This has resulted in more parents wanting to keep their children at home but not due to rising problems with a school's Covid status but because of articles that outline problems with secure status. Schools are working hard to manage the learners on a rota system to limit the impact to a students mental and physical health but by problem articles causing greater concern attendance of physical lessons can and have decline in some cases (Roberts, 2020). We need a solution to keep learners actively engaged and learning both when in the classroom and away from it. Otherwise we will face an environment which disadvantages our learners as they face challenges of both dealing with the effects of Covid as well as engaging with assessments which they may not understand. Just what the impact is will not be known until research has been conducted around the long term effects on cohorts of learners progressing through college and university. The full picture of the impact may not be noticed until several years in the future but it is essential that we proactively address concerns as we become aware of them and do not become complacent. Ensuring learners are engaged in virtual and physical sessions is crucial as we navigate the “new normal” as well as looking towards future models. 2020 has been a year when we were not prepared for the effects of Covid on learning and assessments but awarding bodies will be looking to avoid making that mistake again in the future.
Next time I will be focusing on: Assessments for the Future.
https://www.tes.com/news/watch-teachers-worst-covid-gap-fears-confirmed
https://www.tes.com/news/ofsted-coronavirus-schools-remote-learning-lessons-not-aligned-curriculum
https://www.tes.com/news/coronavirus-schools-ofsted-13-schools-see-covid-led-home-education-rise
Technology as a tool to increase teacher efficiency and learner effectiveness
How should we in a post covid world effectively enable the embedding of technology in our schools in a uniform way which provides access to all.
Technology as a tool to increase teacher efficiency and learner effectiveness
Whilst the private sector has seen multiple products and systems innovate productivity in their workplace, educational systems have not yet developed at the same place. Yet whilst the educational sector has not seen the same rate of development in the technological areas aimed specifically at productivity and planning there has been some crossover between private and public sectors. These common themes often look at the measures of performance evaluationss of the institution and individual as well as the cost-benefit analysis for the organisation.
Outside of the educational setting where research and student successes are not the primary focus one disadvantage can be the cost of the technology. If the technology is not purchased by the organisation it is often down to individuals or students to purchase the tools. This can cause the best tools to be limited to a smaller number of students or teachers. The crucial element with embedding technology in the classroom and planning stages is to enhance productivity and quality through tools that allow for streamlining of the workforce (De Grip and Sauermann, 2012). Another area which needs to be addressed is how do we improve teaching practices and increase the adoption of new techniques effectively. When many Continued Professional Development (CPD) or training sessions look at short one hour sessions there is little evidence to suggest that these CPD sessions do much to enhance teaching outside of advertising a new product. These short CPD sessions have a low efficacy of success in the classroom and software, hardware and training need to be embedded within the professional development of the teacher to enable growth in the classroom. It has also been found in some sectors especially in the higher education arena that a shift towards a more rounded approach to training could actually enhance learning, and educating the teacher in how to use a software product, would allow for greater individual growth as well as the application of new techniques (Shortlidge and Eddy, 2020).
How technology is applied is equally important. Meyer and McNeal (2011) found that providing lecturers and professors with a tool is important but allowing them the freedom to shape the structure of this tool is also critical. In the current climate with online learning likely to continue to expand, technology is crucial to the growth in the education sector however, this should not take away from the creativity of the academic. In the Meyer and McNeal (2011) study they found that discussion boards and hosting platforms varied from forums to blogs or projects to support learner success. Some of the academic subjects also used these tools to create workshops for their students, external individuals and peer staff members all of which allowed for growth in the classroom and outside for both the products (qualifications) and productivity (learner success). Freeman, Haak and Wenderoth (2011) compared measures that utilised active learning and activity based learning to assess whether it bridged the gap for learners who exhibited poorer performance. It could be argued that if the elements of taught content were more closely connected to that of the assessment method it would improve the learners performance in formative assessments which can be measured over the course duration. If these events occur more regularly due to elements of repetition (which a software product can take from the lecturer material and use to automatically develop assessment material) the learner is likely to benefit from reviewing the taught material. This is also likely to save teacher or lecturer time (e.g. by reducing marking and preparation time of this material).
De Grip, A. and Sauermann, J., 2012. The Effects of Training on Own and Co‐worker Productivity: Evidence from a Field Experiment. The Economic Journal, 122(560), pp.376-399.
Freeman, S., Haak, D. and Wenderoth, M., 2011. Increased Course Structure Improves Performance in Introductory Biology. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 10(2), pp.175-186.
Meyer, K. and McNeal, L., 2011. HOW ONLINE FACULTY IMPROVE STUDENT LEARNING PRODUCTIVITY. Online Learning, 15(3).
Shortlidge, E. and Eddy, S., 2020. The Trade-Off Between Graduate Student Research And Teaching: A Myth?. Gale Academic.
The Effect of Planning on Teachers and Learners an Introduction
How do planning tools affect the progress of further education lecturers. We need to think about what tools we can use and how we can support lecturers as well as what affect this has on the learners progress. The tools that are provided need to be fit for purpose to allow the lessons to be easily auditable as well as promoting learner progress.
Utilising effective planning is crucial in the educational sector as teacher preparedness often directly correlates to their learner's success.
The teacher needs to have a solid foundation from their academic and professional experiences this is fundamental to give them the understanding of the subject they are delivering. Now in areas such as primary and high schools where the subjects are broad sourcing graduates from across their academic discipline, this could have negative ramifications as learners will be specialised in some areas lacking skills in others. In Further Education and Higher Education, the teachers are more specialised, however, their areas which the teacher will not be well versed in due to the level of specialism resulting in areas that they won't have explored therefore lacking in some areas. Now whilst in cases of schools, they can purchase some of the preparation on behalf of their staff this allows for teachers to alter the resources for their preferred delivery but best ensures uniformity (Grichland, 2017). However, alongside the teacher's academic ability the school needs to have confidence in the teacher's ability to convey their experiences and act as a role model for the next generation. Teachers need to be able to encourage their learners and in Further Education centre's this is often embedding wider career skills into the content of the lessons. The learners often reflect the teacher's beliefs in them so the teacher must be able to convey a positive ethos for the learner and management needs to be able to records this. Grichland, (2017) suggests that the teacher will allow the learners who lack the motivation to be inspired if they can present a positive message. This is most likely to happen if the teacher can embed the skills that reflect individuals who they admire in society these industry leaders can push the next generation and push the countries needs for greater productivity. It is often seen that tasks can establish a feeling of motivation and success in the learner so by making differentiated tasks that set the learner up to achieve as well as to fail without the fear of failure. The Attribution Retraining provides students a better focus and makes them more successful instead of focusing on failure.
With the importance of policies nationally and internationally such as in the US where the "No Child Left Behind" whilst policies focus on learner attainment and holding individuals to account but a focus still needs to be on accountability. However, as with a lot of work carried out in the area, it focuses on accountability without specifically outlining what resources can be provided to the teacher (Fong-Yee and Normore, n.d.). Part of the problem in this area is how ongoing teacher training whilst it should be developmental often the grading systems emulate a more oppressive system that does not correctly identify the areas for improvement and staff competencies. In some areas, this needs to be enhanced as the systems which are currently available to management to provide resources to the likes of OFSTED result in greater pressure on staff whereas systems should be in a place that allows for a consistent approach to assessment (Burnell, 2016). This system should enable managers to track the content delivered by their staff and make meaningful steps. This, however, must be provided for the staff member in a way that enables their progress providing resources that assist the planning process whilst simultaneously being a tool for auditing progress. Research by Bailey and Colley, (2014) looked at areas in particular which addressed time constraints on new teachers. They found that often where centres tried to improve attainment by encouraging teachers to spend more time with particular cohorts to improve results from groups of learners this resulted in students from high achieving groups feeling like low achieving students were favoured. This type of preconception then added to the emotional pressure as well as physical pressures on the teacher. Greater use of systems to differentiate on behalf of the teacher for the learner is something necessary to safeguard staff members management of their time as this time is often drawn from their preparation time. This can and does affect their morale, as they can get disheartened that their progress is inherently linked to performance measures of the learner. This is both necessary as well as problematic.
Bailey, G., and Colley, H., 2014. ‘Learner-centred’ assessment policies in further education: putting teachers’ time under pressure. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 67(2), pp.153-168.
Burnell, I., 2016. Teaching and learning in further education: The Ofsted factor. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 41(2), pp.227-237.
Fong-Yee, D., and Normore, A., n.d. The Impact Of Quality Teachers On Student Achievement. [online] Digitalcommons.fiu.edu. Available at: <https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=1054&context=sferc> [Accessed 22 August 2020].
Grichland, 2017. How Does Your Child's Teacher Influence Academic Performance?. [online] Structured Literacy | Pride Reading Program. Available at: <https://pridereadingprogram.com/how-does-a-teacher-affect-student-performance/> [Accessed 22 August 2020].