Most independent schools and top-performing state schools have rolled out full days of live lessons via Zoom and other video platforms since the new national lockdown came into force. But large numbers of secondaries and primaries, particularly in poorer areas, are relying on pre-recorded lessons, YouTube videos and online worksheets for their pupils.
In a poll of 800 parents last week, almost a third said their children were not receiving any live lessons, suggesting that as many as three million pupils may not be having interactive video contact with their teachers during the lockdown.
So much for the teaching unions being concerned for the welfare of children...
...militant teaching unions – which strongly urged teachers not to live-stream lessons last summer – said teachers must be able to choose whether to live-stream lessons or not and that it should only be used ‘when essential’.
And who gets to decide that? They do!
The National Education Union appeared to suggest that only pushy parents want live lessons, adding that the call for live teaching is ‘often related to minority, but insistent, parental pressure’.
I thought it would be a goal of teaching that parents should be interested in their children's education? Silly me!
And just to run salt in the wound, you won't believe the excuses they come up with...
Guidance from the NASUWT teaching union even raises privacy concerns about pupils recording teachers’ live lessons on their phones and uploading them to pornography websites. The union ‘strongly advises members to not participate in live video lessons to pupils’ homes unless they are sure that measures are in place to prevent such inappropriate practices’.
You couldn't make it up, could you?
The Teaching Unions want parents involved in their children's education the same way the Royal Mail was involved in the Great Train Robbery.
ReplyDeleteConsidering the state of education in the country I can only assume the unwillingness of teachers and their union to run live, or even recorded, lessons over the internet is fear that they will be shown up to the parents as useless in teaching anything to kids.
ReplyDeleteIt is not difficult, or even very different, to teaching a normal lesson in a classroom, it just requires a little more organisation and a good knowledge of what you are teaching.
My child's school has been recommending the BBC as a learning resource. Which is a bit like recommending Radio Moscow during the Cold War as a resource to learn about democracy.
ReplyDeleteMy job used to involve visiting factories to do onsite maintenance. Often I would have to undergo health and safety training before being allowed anywhere near the factory floor. This usually consisted of me having to sit in front of a computer clicking through a slide show. This was followed by clicking through a multiple choice quiz to make sure that I was paying attention. How much regular school work could be done this way? I wonder if a lot of stuff could be done in a kind of video game format where you have to qualify for the next level? Anyway, if online teaching is going to be done nationally, won't you only need a handful of teachers to do it? Maybe that is what teachers' unions are afraid of, most of their members being automated out of a job.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of online teacher porn, am I missing out?
At least I know where to send my son for a decent online lesson now, porno sites. What a world.
ReplyDeleteWhat's to stop teachers uploading their lessons to porn sites? Cut out the middleman (or child).
ReplyDeleteAs a victim of the secondary modern system which ran solely for the benefit of the teachers it's interesting to see absolutely nothing has changed. The teachers then we're a self serving waste of space and if reports are correct they still are.
ReplyDelete"...the same way the Royal Mail was involved in the Great Train Robbery."
ReplyDelete🤣
"...is fear that they will be shown up to the parents as useless in teaching anything to kids."
The ones that bother to take any notice, yes, Undoubtedly!
"My child's school has been recommending the BBC as a learning resource. "
Well, of course!
"How much regular school work could be done this way?"
ReplyDeleteWell, once you've swept the image bank for 'trigerring' images, plastered it all over with warning signs, arranged for councelling...
"What's to stop teachers uploading their lessons to porn sites?"
Their lack of technical ability? ;)