Ministers are using powers under the Corona virus Act to require schools to offer pupils

Ministers are using powers under the Corona virus Act to require schools to offer pupils

By Onlykhabar News Media Thu 15 October, 2020 ( about 5 years ago ) 🎤640 Viewerseducation

Teaching unions reacted angrily to the move calling it a "grave error" which risks damaging the government's relationship with the profession.

It comes after official figures showed one in six secondaries in England were partially closed to some pupils. It comes as huge swathes of the north - east and north-west of England are under stricter lockdown measures. The government said it was formalising pupils' rights to remote learning. Ministers have insisted that schools will only close as a last resort in the event of widespread virus spread. The guidance, published on the Department for Education website, said: "The Direction means schools have a duty to provide education to children at home, as they do when children are in the classroom."

Instead, in areas where cases are high, schools may switch to a rota system of two weeks on, two weeks off. It added: "The Direction will help provide assurances to both pupils and parents that if pupils have to self-isolate at home their education will not be disrupted. "In these cases, continuing to provide education is an absolute necessity. "In the event of a confirmed case, schools are following the necessary guidance, including requiring small groups of children to self-isolate. "The Direction helps ensure this and sets a clear expectation on the high-quality education they should receive."

Heads were "taking steps to ensure they meet and exceed government and parental expectations for remote education, should circumstances require it," he said. But general secretary of the NAHT head teachers' union Paul Whiteman said there was no need to reach for legal powers as there was every indication that schools have taken their preparations for partial or full closure seriously. "Schools were crying out for the right support for online learning throughout lockdown, not least for disadvantaged young people who did not have the right IT or wi-fi equipment at home that would have ensured a continuity and parity of learning." "This government is once again trying to cut corners over Covid. The government is also facing growing pressure to make a back-up plan in case GCSEs and A-levels cannot go ahead.

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By Onlykhabar News Media Thu 15 October, 2020 🎤640 Viewerseducation
TAGS: Online Class Epsom College
Ministers are using powers under the Corona virus Act to require schools to offer pupils

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