1. Lots of talk of children being “behind” when schools reopen due to school closures. Here’s my thoughts...
2. There’s no exams or tests this year. So what exactly are they behind in?
3. We aren’t talking about children in one school here, we are talking about children in a whole country, in a whole world... so who are they behind? The children from last year who had a full year of schooling? It’s not comparable.
4. These are children who will have survived a crisis like nothing we have ever known.
5. So when we get back into school l- the worst thing and most damaging thing we can do imo is try to catch children up by endless intervening, removing from class, booster groups...
6. Instead as a world we accept these children have had x months less schooling than cohort before, but they will have have x months at home with families working through the most difficult time in living memory...
7. So the way forward is to start from the child. Start from where they are at...not just academically, but socially, mentally and emotionally. These foundations come before everything else. We can’t predict the cost of this crisis for our children.
8. Accept these are new, unknown and challenging times. Accept we can not microwave children’s learning- but we can secure the foundations needed to learn for life... not just the next year in school.
9. Time to put psed, communication and effective learning characteristics at the heart of all education- not just the EYs. Once secure- the sky WILL be the limit.
10. These children will not grow up I literate or innumerate but they may well grow up traumatised if we don’t get this right.
11. This will require a massive shift in our education system. It will require bravery and vision from everyone in the sector. But if we care about our children- if we truly care and love them- then we have no choice. We need to stand up and be the change they need us to be.
Slightly ironic illiterate has a typo....
12. Here’s an idea... if we are not back til September- about 1st half term being a national transition time for all schools-all ages? Focussed on relationships, settling and maybe projects linked to interests or a really engaging text to kick things off.
All now neatly in this blog!
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