Professor Mick Waters: Planning to get learning going again

When the government closed our schools, the natural concerns were about examinations and pupils not losing out. There was less voiced concern about what else children might be losing in an educational sense. Missing so much schooling will have an effect. For some, the six-week summer break is an annual interruption to progress. How will an overall gap of so many weeks affect the learning of children of all ages?

So, what is the potential learning loss?

First, the loss of learning in the sense of missing out on the planned content and how far the children will have slipped on the ladder of planned learning. Obviously, we can see from a chart what children have not ‘covered’. Some re-structuring planning could address this.

Second, and vitally, there will be the loss of more rounded aspects of learning, the things that are often learned in the context of schooling through experience of doing. Developing learning attitudes, working together and building confidence are in some ways harder aspects to retrieve.

Third, a potential loss of a range of social behaviours to support learning felt variably by children. Those who find it hard to settle after a weekend and worse after a holiday are going to be struggling in the autumn this year.

The three areas of loss, and others, will each have been felt differently by different children when they return to the rhythm of schooling over what has been an extensive period of time. For some children, the ‘lockdown’ will have been a strange but quite rich period: two parents at home with extended conversations the like of which they rarely get the chance to enjoy in busy working weeks. Parents who have created a structure each day and balanced the stimulus of selected web-based experience with some routine ‘schoolwork’ and the continuing enjoyment of good books, being in the garden through spring and summer, talking about flowers and butterflies and clouds.

For some children, home is a different set of circumstances entirely. We know that poverty follows some children through the summer holiday; how close does it get in several months? Some children will have had a paucity of stimulus for weeks on end, confined to a small home with no outside space and with parents with little notion of how to structure a day, let alone how to help them with their learning. Some will have had the experience of being ‘at school’ but in a very different environment, perhaps with the underlying concern about having a parent who is a health worker.

Numbers of children, very sadly, will be aware of death in their family or nearby in a way not felt in generations. Most are resilient and we sense they will adapt and bounce back. They are, though, affected by what they sense around them: the drama, the unease, the ceaseless talk of numbers and the tension and the sadness.

The school system will need to think through how best to get children’s learning moving again and how to best recover the range of losses. More than we might have imagined, our children and young people a going to need a school experience that is truly rounded.

The Curriculum for Wales defines four purposes. The adjectives that describe these require deep consideration as we help to build learning momentum when we get back in action. More than ever, we need to think carefully about the implications of terms such as ‘healthy’, ‘confident’, ‘enterprising’ and ‘ethical’ in our approach to learning and building a sense of real purpose in our young.

Schools are already being appreciated for their response. What can we do as we re-start schooling and recover the learning loss that might accrue? How do we make up the learning loss in terms of content ‘coverage’? Should we ‘super boost’ our teaching and, in doing so, risk losing a significant proportion of children’s enthusiasm? For the very youngest children in Reception and Year 1 could we run a sort of hybrid with some fundamentals ‘starting again’?

In key stage 2, can we find ways to help children learn the ‘essentials’ of some themes so that big ideas can develop. Egyptians is important inasmuch as it fits with studies of Greeks or Romans to help children get the big idea of ‘civilisations’.

Primary to secondary transition, always a challenge for a proportion of youngsters, will this year require new thinking. Children have left their primary schools, cast to the four winds and re-configure in their new schools without the normal farewells and acclimatisation. Arriving to be faced with baseline testing or an atmosphere of pressured urgency to catch up will suit many and disenfranchise others.

Do we need to see the start of Year 7 differently? Are there things we could do over the summer to smooth the way?

Could children in Year 6 receive a ‘welcome pack’ from their secondary school containing videos of a walk around the school and some staff talking to them about their role? Could we include some things for them to do before the new school year which would be used in the first few weeks? Many secondary schools use a ‘flipped learning’ approach; could we build that on a bigger and more imaginative scale?

Could children be sent a ‘remit’ for some activities over the period at home? Different subject disciplines could collaborate and ask children to produce things to bring in September. The list of activity would need to be accessible by all, including something to make, some things to research, study, write about and draw. We could include two books from a range of twenty for them each to read and review with a view to discussing in groups on arrival. We could add some practical maths to do around the home: some measuring, using standard or arbitrary units, fractions or geometry maybe…the sorts of things that apply concepts. There could be some science experiments; most homes have a cooker and a kettle, some water and a window. Comparing results would provide the chance for pupils to build that learning rapport with others that they will need. It will also offer teachers insight on ‘baselines’ without an assessment.

Teachers will have many ideas. Such activity would give learners a taste of the private study experience that so many find difficult in sixth form or university. Such a project might set expectation that learning is self-managed and the teacher’s role is to provide a pathway and make sense of the thinking that develops.

Further consideration is needed but the ‘problem’ of getting going again could present an opportunity, especially in terms of curriculum and pedagogy. Let’s embrace it with the growth mindset that we tell children is so important.

Professor Mick Waters

Mick Waters works with the schools in the West Midlands in raising standards. He has also worked at national policy level with the Welsh Government offering advice and support to the education reform agenda and has been instrumental in the development of the professional standards for teaching and leadership and assisting teaching. 

Keith Towler: Youth work in Wales rises to the challenges of the lockdown

We are now plunged into a public health crisis where the dependency we have on one another is central to our ability to ‘flatten the curve’, ease the pressure on our wonderful NHS and ultimately to save lives. The response of youth work across Wales has demonstrated its creativity, dedication and practicality of approach. As youth centres and projects have closed during lockdown we're seeing youth workers and youth support workers supporting the repurposed schools, delivering free school meals, devising digital methods to make contact with young people and responding to their concerns, needs and requests for assistance.

The Welsh and UK governments have given very clear direction during lockdown. It starts with a simple and clear message to stay at home, to only go outside for food, health reasons, for one form of exercise or for work if it is essential. When you are outside you must practice social distancing. This is a difficult and challenging time for everyone.

There has been quite a lot of media attention given to the impact of all this on children, families, older people and those who are vulnerable. But what about the impact on our young people? The young people that youth work is here to serve. How does it feel for them? Vulnerability can take many forms and I confess to thinking about those young people who are homeless, those whose well-being relies on social interaction and contact with a trusted adult, those for whom their home is not that safe a place to be, those who are vulnerable to exploitation, those who are care experienced, those who suffer anxiety and stress, those in the secure estate and those who are facing problems paying the rent and making ends meet.

Youth work is, of course, demonstrating its worth once again and stepping up to the challenge of supporting those young people during this unprecedented time. I have heard that some local authorities have determined for themselves that their youth workers are key workers but that is certainly not the position across Wales. As the furloughing of staff begins to take effect we could see many of the skilled youth workers that young people rely on in ever-short supply. The funding uncertainty, particularly for those in the third sector, is also causing concern.

In my view, youth work should be recognised as an essential key service that is delivered by youth workers in the third and maintained sector. Its fragility as a sector is in sharp relief to the value it holds for young people.

Let me use this opportunity to share how youth work in Wales is working in response to COVID-19. All local authorities and those working in the third sector closed their youth centres and projects by the end of March. That did not mean that their work came to an end. Far from it in fact as a large proportion of their work including staff and resources moved to online forms of delivery and contact with young people. Youth work values are shining through as connections are maintained with young people so support, advice and guidance can be delivered. Youth people have always spoken about the importance of the trusted relationship they have with their youth workers and at this time of crisis that relationship is incredibly valuable.

A high number of youth work staff in local authorities have been moved to support the re-purposed schools and childcare hubs. This work is incredibly important of course but it is also really pleasing to hear that in many situations this has seen positive relationships being built and reinforced between school and youth work staff, including a greater understanding and respect for the different approaches of teaching and youth work. It is great to see the education family really coming together at a time of crisis.

Other local authority youth workers have also been asked to help with the delivery and distribution of free school meals, and maintaining their work across other services for example in youth justice, social care, health, housing and accommodation settings.

While uncertainty about the financial future for some in the Third Sector after COVID-19 is real, there are some fantastic examples of brilliant work going on. Examples include:

• the Cwmbran Centre for Young People delivering construction awards and Disney quizzes
• KPC Youth in Pyle near Bridgend using social media to encourage fun and running local initiatives
• ProMo Cymru’s support and learning on digital solutions for the whole youth work sector
• Swansea MAD delivering on promises to help out communities of need with practical support
• Scouts Cymru keeping everyone’s spirits up with limitless, it seems, activities to help young people during these difficult times
• NYAS Cymru’s vital advocacy and support for care experienced young people
• Mess Up The Mess engaging young people through the medium of online theatre
• Media Academy Cardiff offering therapeutic services with trained counsellors and conducting assessments on children caught up in the youth justice system
• the Urdd providing activities and resources for young people to enjoy at home, developing their learning and skills in the medium of Welsh
• Consortia of voluntary organisations including Boys and Girls Club Cymru, Youth Cymru and Swansea MAD offering online ‘Ask a Youth Worker’ drop-in online sessions
• the Meic helpline service for children and young people up to 25, is of course still available, 8am to midnight seven days a week in both Welsh and English
• CWVYS is still working hard supporting its member organisations providing information and guidance and holding regional meetings.

And I could, of course, go on.

At a meeting of the Interim Youth Work Board for Wales - one of those video conferencing meetings we are all getting used to - we agreed that we needed to suspend some of the work we are doing to focus our attention on the youth work sector’s response to COVID-19. In the absence of a dedicated website or information portal for youth work in Wales we want to increase the reach of good quality information for youth work practitioners and managers across Wales. Work is already underway and we want to develop resources, tools, training and guidance so youth workers can inform their local efforts with the support of a national approach.

Given that so much communication activity has so far been aimed at children and families the Board want to ensure that engagement with young people is undertaken. It's important that we inform young people directly during this time, to explain the steps they can take to protect themselves and others, and to respond to their concerns, particularly those who may feel marginalised or vulnerable. Young people have a part to play in the response to COVID-19. The Board want to work with the Welsh Government and partners to put mechanisms in place to ensure we not only hear the voice of young people, but that we also find a way to respond to what they say.

One last thought from me…

It is an absolute pleasure to see how youth work has also not lost its sense of fun and recognises the importance of play even in times like these. From videos of youth workers playing keepy uppy with toilet roles to providing fun quiz nights, music and singing workshops, online quiz nights, exercise routines, art and craft ideas and home based creative hairdressing. The value of youth work in Wales is here for all to see. Long may it all continue.

Hear more from Keith Towler and get the latest news, updates and developments in youth work in Wales by signing up to the Welsh Government's Youth Work Bulletin.

Keith Towler

Keith is the Chair of the Interim Youth Work Board for Wales. He was the Children’s Commissioner for Wales (2008 – 2015) and is currently an independent consultant. He is a respected children’s rights expert with over 30 years’ experience in social work, youth work and youth justice roles.

Parentkind asks: what are parents’ worries about the impact of coronavirus?

When schools closed in Wales, England and Northern Ireland to help slow the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19), many parents felt a range of emotions. There was initial relief that they and their children would be able to self-isolate and stick to the social-distancing measures the government has recommended for all of us. Here at Parentkind we fully supported the closures as a necessary safety measure, especially to protect teaching staff who were already off sick in large numbers before the decision was taken to close school doors.

But parents were left with major concerns. How can they, especially those who work, manage from home when their children need home-schooling under virtual quarantine conditions? And what about the possibility of a full academic term (or more) of learning that their child will miss out on? What about those pupils in cohorts that were scheduled to take exams this summer? How best can parents support learning at home, and are they confident to do so?

This uniquely worrying time has raised many challenges and asked so many of us to address fundamental questions about family life, guiding children through a crisis, and the role of parents in education.

Many Parentkind staff are parents and have wrestled with the same questions. To gain an understanding of what parents are going through during this pandemic, we put out a survey to our social media followers to gauge their reaction. We were encouraged that in under five days, almost 700 parents (691 in total) representing 1181 school children across the three nations we operate in gave us their views. This level of engagement demonstrates the strength of feeling among parents. The results have given us a snapshot of parents’ major concerns in the week that school closures and the wider ‘stay at home’ messages were announced. Of course, the situation is changing daily, so we will check in on parents’ responses over time and keep you posted. But in the initial aftermath of school closures, here is what parents told us:

Key statistics

On a scale of 1-10 (where 1 is not at all worried about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their child's education, and 10 extremely worried) almost a quarter of parents (24%) selected 10/10. The average across all parents was 6.8/10. In Wales the average was (6.4/10).

Parents’ biggest concerns for their child include:

• falling behind or missing out on learning
• exams being cancelled
• lack of socialisation
• the health of loved ones.

Parents’ biggest concerns for themselves include:

• meeting work commitments
• financial implications
• the effect on mental health and stress levels.

Only one in ten parents (11%) said that the crisis would have no, or very little, impact on their own lives whilst a small minority (7%) said they thought the school closures would have a positive impact (citing increased family time and reconnecting with their children). Less than one in five parents (19%) feel very confident to support their child’s learning at home.

What else did our research show?

Fulfilling work commitments is the major concern parents have for their own futures. Asked about the effect school closures might have on parents, rather than their children, almost half the parents (49%) mentioned work. This was in connection to having to juggle work with childcare, but financial concerns and fear of job losses were also common themes in free text feedback.

However, on the plus side: Home-school communication has been great. Once they had closed, 93% of parents said their child’s school has shared details of arrangements for learning at home during the closures, 7% said they hadn't. Of those 7%, it's possible that their school provided details shortly after they filled in our survey.

For further details, see the full School closures and coronavirus Parent Survey Report. We will closely monitor parents’ views as home-schooling, self-isolation, social distancing and (for many) working from home becomes the new normal, and we’ll see how, if at all, parents’ views change. Check back for updates and further information at Parentkind.

Promoting engagement between business and the education sector isn’t just a nice thing to do, it’s an absolute priority if we want to realise the full potential of the Welsh economy. With businesses telling us every day that access to people and skills is one of their biggest concerns, developing a future talent pipeline is more important than ever.

So, where does responsibility lie for ensuring young people get the skills they and future employers need? The answer doesn’t lie with schools, colleges and universities alone. Business also has a vital role to play. We need to see firms stepping up and helping both our schools and our higher and further education providers to develop young people and prepare them for a world of work that’s rapidly changing.

Offering young people a range of quality career choices, and inspiring them with practical hands-on experience, is one of the best things businesses can do to help the next generation of workers. But it’s not just young people that benefit.

Firms themselves benefit as they become more embedded in communities and have the chance to become familiar with the best talent available locally. And let’s not forget about teachers, lecturers and careers advisors. How many of us have heard about over-stretched careers services and educators of all kinds having to talk about careers they’re not hugely familiar with? Businesses have the experience and expertise to lend a hand.

But best of all it can help the Welsh economy, because investing in education and skills might seem a bit ‘back to basics’, but it’s one of the things proven to boost productivity. And it if there’s one thing we know for sure, it’s that productivity across Wales could do with a shot in the arm.

So, what are firms doing now? Fortunately, the answer is quite a lot. There are some brilliant programmes taking place across Wales that are delivering for businesses, young people and educators. At school level these often take the form of in-school talks, work experience and site visits. But for those in colleges and universities, there are great placements, vocational training schemes and apprenticeships.

Let me take one school example, SPTS in Newport and their work with St Julian's primary school - an area of where we know there are high levels of deprivation. SPTS visits the school to talk about what they do and the kind of jobs they offer, and then take children into their local facility where they manufacture capital equipment for the semi-conductor industry.

Getting the kids into the clean room and putting on the protective suits is a whole lot of fun – roaming around the site like characters from a science fiction film. And it’s not just the kids that enjoy the experience, the teachers and SPTS staff get involved too, all the while creating a positive impression of what a career in engineering and manufacturing could offer.

That’s just one example. I could easily have talked about the BITC Business Class scheme, the Cardiff Commitment initiative run by Cardiff Council or the many brilliant apprenticeships and vocational training programmes around the country. While we’ve got lots of examples of great practice, what we lack is consistency.

If you run a business and want to start setting up formal links with local schools or colleges, where do you go for information? Do you just start speaking to them and hope that you hit on something that works? But what if you don’t know what they, or the young people, really need or how a programme could fit into an already stretched curriculum? Wouldn’t it be great if you had a kind of ‘one-stop-shop’ for information and advice? 

I think we can answer those questions and one of the biggest assets we have is our size. Yes, Wales is a pretty small place, but that gives us the chance to be bold and try things that simply wouldn’t get off the ground in larger economies. Why don’t we make a commitment to join-up engagement between business and education, learning from each other and sharing best practice? 

A bit of national coordination would really help businesses that are trying to fulfil their social and educational obligations, as well as find promising future employees. I really don’t think that’s an impossible dream. We’d love to see Welsh Government agencies sitting down more regularly with businesses, schools, colleges and universities to make that happen. At CBI we’re more than happy to play a role as a go-between. 

So, what is my big take-away on business-education engagement? It’s that businesses, regardless or size or sector, can make a huge impact on a young person’s life and should play a more important role. So please, if you feel that you or your business could help inspire the workers of the future, then don’t be afraid to put your hand up. We might still be working on a better architecture for engagement but, as others have shown, making a difference is possible and the rewards are enormous for everyone.

Ian Price

Ian Price is Director of CBI Wales, the voice of business in Wales. He began this role in January 2017 after 11 years of being Assistant Director for both Wales and South West of England.