With the closing of schools across the UAE, private schools have tried and trusted home learning programmes that will ensure minimal disruption to student’s learning.
“Whilst students are well versed with using online methods of learning, a complete switch from an in-person learning environment to a 100 percent online learning environment is highly likely to cause stress and anxiety for students and parents,: said Dee Saran, Deputy Head Learning and Teaching at Dubai College.
“Disruption is also the creation of invention and innovation, and reminds us all that we need to remain adaptable in an increasingly changeable world.”
Saran shares her top tips to alleviate the stress that rapid unforeseen change can cause:
Tips for students
• Students should try and treat the day like a normal school day and organise themselves as they would do the night before a regular day.
• They should have all of their books and resources in one space ahead of the start of the day, these learning habits will ease the transition.
• Students may also want to use headphones to help them to focus during live lessons if they have siblings running around at home.
• Keeping up with the demands of flipped learning will take discipline and resilience so keeping mobiles out of reach would replicate the conditions of a classroom setting.
• Most students can often be overscheduled with the number of activities they do in the week, this can be seen as a positive for families as it will give them more time to spend time with one another as a family…perhaps too much time for those that are not used to it!
• Most importantly, they should take care of themselves and ensure they are getting outside, staying active and able to speak to adults and peers that care about them.
Tips for parents
• The challenge for parents will be to balance working from home or a distance whilst trying to support their child’s needs, the best advice for parents it to make sure that their child is comfortable in accessing the platforms that the school is set to use.
• It would be useful if they sit down and discuss the Online Home Learning Responsible Agreement so that their child is clear on the expectations that the school has made.
• It will be imperative that students have access to a space which is quiet and ideally in the vicinity of an adult if possible.
• Most schools will try and keep to the times of the day, being on screen for that long is unhealthy at the best of times so it will be really important that students are able to get out of the house for some fresh air during break times and lunch times and expend some energy.
• The lack of social interaction with their peers will also be hard, parents can create opportunities for their child to ensure that they see their friends throughout the week.
• They can also utilise the school counsellors for online sessions to support students and parents.
