Today we completed our first onsite testing walkthrough. Here are some thoughts.. 1. Planning is vital. We looked at a number of phases- planning , training, communication and walkthrough. Rather than rush we have tried to plan so it works effectively.
2. Our plan made clear who the key site operatives were. It’s vital that the right people have the right roles. We designated 3 site leaders and have made sure that they are all SLT. We were lucky to get some help from Bury LA. 👍
3. We have made sure that all people in the core testing team have completed all the training (sounds obvious), but this helped in the walkthrough as we could all spot errors etc. One of the leads led a full team online briefing yesterday, and training completion was mandatory.
4. Registration online is time consuming. This part needs to be carefully considered, and mass testing of a whole school could fall down on the registration process. It took our volunteers longer to register online than complete the test. We may model registering with pupils.
5. The actual testing is straightforward, and the results etc were simple to decode. It’s vital that schools keep their own records of the results. Staff felt better after the walkthrough, and this will really help when more pupils are tested.
6. Upscaling to whole school is something I suspect will be vital to schools reopening. We should be planning for this now though, in terms of extra people. This is a worry, as bigger scale is harder to quality manage etc.
7. Schools should give thought to impact of time of day on testing. If a teacher tests positive in the morning what is the impact? Same with pupils. Consider the challenge of test timings and if pupils should go back to class etc.
8. I’m happy to share our school critical path, just follow and DM me.👍
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Grade Awarding 2021 - a thread. 1. For pupils and parents; it sounds daft but there isn’t much you can control right now. Teacher will play the main role in awarding grades, and there may well be some time or formal exam for subjects. But we don’t know exactly what yet.
2. What we do know is that all work pupils have done, their resilience over such a difficult time, their drive to keep going will make a difference to them. It’s never been more important for pupils to keep going, and keep engaging with the provision a school provides.
3. To our pupils? Have faith that the work you are doing will pay off. Please don’t lose heart right now. We love you lots and we all want you to excel. We are always here for you.
Some observations on the week; 1. School leaders nationally have done an incredible job. The logistics of moving to instant remote learning is mind-boggling. The profession as a whole should be proud. And people are welcome to express some appreciation.
2. Teachers need time and space to deliver raised stakes remote learning. Systems/delivery will evolve over the next few weeks. I’m so proud to lead my teachers. Tech may let us down at points though. If someone’s internet goes down at home (as has happened) don’t ‘report us’ 😩
3. Support staff in all schools need as much recognition as teachers. These people in my context deal with attendance, well-being, handing out laptops and testing. Never think a school is just full of teachers - support staff are gold dust. We couldn’t function without them.
For the parents and pupils of @stmonicas - a thread. 1. Parents please do not worry about what will happen over the next week. We have already put in place measures for Thursday and Friday. I will share further information in the coming days when we have processed new guidance.
2. Year 11 pupils - we are not yet clear what the next steps will be for you. You know that we will as ever to everything we can for you. We love you all very much and are so proud of you. You need to keep working as we will still need to do assessments when you are back in.
3. Year 10 pupils - you need to keep committing to your studies - we are proud of you too!! Every lesson we offer you needs to be embraced so you can achieve aswell as you can.
Being a Headteacher today- a thread. 1. I’ve been following numerous tweets about teachers being pitted against HT’s or SLT today. I’m don’t pretend to speak for anyone but myself, but here is my two-penneth. I’m a secondary Headteacher.
2. I’m tired of this back and forth. It is frustrating when @NEUnion make statements that initially seems designed to ruin my day. I know that’s not what they are doing but that’s how it can feel. I am expecting ‘the letter’ to arrive anytime now.
3. As an HT my anger comes from the inability of national leaders to work into the way they expect our sector to. There is a deep-seated frustration amongst educators that we are held the most stringent levels of accountability, but are led by people with..