The background
Thirteen years ago I was given the responsibility of leading the autism provision in the school for children with moderate learning difficulties in which I was working. My head teacher would say to me, “Don’t come to me with a problem, come to me with a problem and a possible solution.” I followed his advice and slowly, over time, I moved from a position of firefighter to strategic leader. This problem-solving approach has stayed with me to this day. And so, ever since I started worrying about our daughter Ella’s transition back into school after lockdown, I have been trying to think of possible solutions. And solutions that might work not only for Ella but for other children as well.
The problem
We have a nation of children who have not received any formal education for over 8 weeks; possibly 5 months if schools don’t return until September. Some children will have been home-schooling and following their timetables and virtual learning plans diligently and to the hour. Others will have done little, if any at school work. Maybe they haven’t had access to the right equipment or their home environment does not afford any learning – perhaps staying out of danger is what they have been learning every day? Some children will be waiting to return to school with anticipation, eager to see their friends again and continue their learning. Others will be highly anxious about returning to an institution where they have no control; where all their fears are played out in front of them day after day.
So how can we ensure that all these children, with their very different experiences of lockdown, and their very different feelings about going back to school, can be transitioned as smoothly and effectively as possible? How can we meet individual needs? Is there one approach that can offer an answer? I think there is …
The answer
I believe that time and communication are two of the key elements that will be needed for effective transitions. Teachers, parents, carers and young people need time to talk; more time than would routinely be offered in parent-teacher consultations. They need to have the opportunity to share their unique experiences of lockdown and how they are feeling about returning to school. Maybe they have lost loved ones, maybe they haven’t had enough to eat. Perhaps they have witnessed violence and had nowhere safe to sleep. Or could it be that lockdown has been a haven of security and serenity within the family home and the idea of returning to school fills them with dread? Whatever has happened, the experiences will be different. This is why it will be paramount that there is time for sharing, for talking, for eliciting where each young person will be starting from when they come back into the education system again. And, to consider the individual journey each young person will need to go on in order to ensure an effective transition and a future of fulfilled potential.
But how can this be made possible? How can such time be structured and organised. Can there be a shared approach – an approach that can work across key stages and counties? I believe there can …
How can this be achieved?
By taking inspiration from the Achievement for All programme.
Eight years ago, when I was in role as a primary SENCO, our school joined the Achievement for All programme1.I was incredibly passionate about working on the programme because it was so aligned with everything I believe to be true about learning and enabling children to reach their full potential – it focuses on the whole child. Achievement for All’s aspirations are: “… to make social mobility real and help all children and young people across England and Wales to thrive emotionally, socially and academically.” After working on the programme, I became even more passionate about it. The systems and approaches it recommends really worked – the children and parents/carers I worked with were reporting feeling happier and academic progress was enhanced.
So, what is it from the Achievement for All programme that I feel can be rolled out to the nation at this present time? It is the structured conversation2.
What are structured conversations?
Structured conversations are meetings (conversations) organised between a parent/carer and a key teacher. These conversations allow the parent/carer an opportunity to discuss what is happening for them and their child, to share concerns but also to share aspirations (for their child). They are longer than the typical 10-minute parent-teacher meeting and end with the setting of shared goals – goals that focus on educational, social and emotional outcomes.
There is a clear format for a structured conversation with four distinct stages: explore, focus, plan, review. In the explore stage, there is an opportunity for listening and understanding; the focus stage involves identifying priorities; the planning stage is for agreeing on targets and outcomes and how these might be achieved whilst the final review stage looks at when further communication will take place.
At a time like this, it feels imperative that we utilise tools, such as the structured conversation, that will give education professionals the time to consider a young person’s emotional development as well as their academic. It has been well documented that pupils with better health and wellbeing are more likely to achieve better academically3. So, for this transition period, when young people are likely to be experiencing an incredibly complex array of emotions, it would seem imperative to ensure there is a focus on their emotional wellbeing as well as their academic targets. The structured conversation is the perfect vehicle to enable this to happen.
1Achievement for all. c2011. Achievement for All. [Online]. [11 May 2020]. Available from: https://afaeducation.org
2Achievement for all (2009). Achievement for All The Structured Conversation – Handbook to support training. England: The Department for Children, Schools and Families.
3Bradley , B & Greene, A. 2013. Do health and education agencies in the United States share responsibility for academic achievement and health? A review of 25 years of evidence about the relationship of adolescents’ academic achievement and health behaviors. Journal of Adolescent Health. 52(5), pp. 523-532.