If you’d asked me just over a month ago what I knew about distance learning, I’d have most likely looked back blankly and not been much help.
I suppose I’ve always understood the theoretical concept of teaching remotely, but, like many teachers, it hasn’t ever been something that I’ve needed to practise.
Fast-forward just over six weeks, and teachers have been catapulted into the murky world of the unknown.
When faced with great challenges, our profession always adapts, and that is what we have done now. Different schools and trusts have taken different approaches, but we are all providing support to our children.
Coronavirus: Teaching teenagers remotely
It hasn’t been an easy ride, though. The road has not been without its bumps and there have been some big lessons for me, not just about distance learning but about how resilient learners can be and equally, how fragile education can be.
1. Less is more
From the outset, we kept things as minimal as possible with regard to infrastructure. Home learning was a new concept for a lot of staff, as it was for teachers up and down the country, and it very quickly became apparent that excessive demands on staff and children would lead to monumental meltdowns on both sides.
For me, it became clear that replicating the school day was an absolute impossibility for both camps. Teachers have had immense pressure placed upon them as they are forced to merge their home and work lives. Students are in the same boat.
So one of the first lessons I learned was that the concepts of “school” and “learning”, as I knew them, couldn’t just be shifted into another context.
In an ideal world, teachers would teach lessons and all students would attend online - job done. It was obvious from the outset that things wouldn’t be this simple. Whenever a school adopts a new model, it takes time to refine it and to iron out any creases. For example, in the case of remote learning, there have been issues of making work accessible; making sure learning is appropriate for our English as an additional language students, who may be lacking their usual support; and more general logistical issues.
To manage this, we found that starting off simple allowed us to set work immediately, whilst buying us some time to consider how to most effectively tackle the issue of distance learning. Even a few weeks has allowed for staff training and creation of adapted resources. Not only has this kept workload lower, it has also meant that staff and students have a solid base from which we can now build.
2. Transparent communication is key
Distance creates complications, particularly with the ambiguity that arises from always having to communicate remotely. Being in a room with people is very different to dialling into a video call: you lose the intricacies of communication and a big chunk of the human factor.
Similarly, setting a student a task is a lot more straightforward when you are there to help them through it. Distance removes a lot of our interpersonal communication ability and this can be difficult to make up for.
One way around this is to keep messages really clear. Try not to send out too much communication, and make what does go out crystal clear, avoiding any vague references. In situations like this, any ambiguity or vagueness simply leads to an onslaught of communication back.
In addition, confusion in communication increases anxiety levels for staff, parents and students; something that we can all do without right now.
Sending out heaps of work to students in one go is overwhelming. Instead, drip-feeding them content weekly has proved to be much more manageable for staff and learners alike.
Something else I have found is that people interpret expectations in very different ways when they work remotely from home. Where some like to work during their normal school day, others simply can’t do that, due to other commitments. Without clear communication, there can be a huge amount of added pressure for those who care for others or have young children, especially in the given climate.
3. Shared efficacy is more important than ever
I have always been a huge proponent of the collective approach in schools, but now, more so than ever, pulling in the same direction is paramount to success.
Although in situations like this, you worry about those closest to you, what I have learned is that teachers are willing to sacrifice so much to do their jobs and to teach, protect and nurture the children in their care.
Having a collective approach brings staff closer together. It has been so humbling and really eye-opening seeing the amount of staff willingly volunteering to put themselves in harm’s way, with no personal protective equipment (PPE) or any kind of training, so that others can do their jobs and children aren’t in situations in which they may be in danger. Whereas in normal teaching time, the collective goal may be an incentive or an approach, now it is simply to do what we can to provide for those who need it most - and to keep everyone as safe as we can.
4. Avoid asking what’s next
It’s natural to want to see an end to all of this, but something that is really apparent is that we can’t focus too much on “whens” and “what ifs”. The rumour mill is spinning and schools are at the centre of a lot of the stories in the news about what comes next.
Keeping our return in mind is of paramount importance, there is no denying that, but what is more important is what we are facing now and for the next few weeks. Distance teaching is yet to be mastered and, in reality, as the time goes on, the strain on students and parents increases more. No two weeks are the same and each new day presents different challenges.
Nobody knows exactly what is next and although we may find some solace in predicting or planning for it, distance learning is something that is so complex that we must not become complacent with the day-to-day.
Adam Riches is a senior leader for teaching and learning, specialist leader in education and head of English. He tweets @TeachMrRiches and is the author of the book Teach Smarter
