Category: Corona

School Trips Update – 23rd April, 2020

Please see the below letter from Neil Finnie, Service Manager at Fife Council, regarding school trips.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to get in touch by emailing bellbaxterhs.enquiries@fife.gov.uk.

Education & Children’s Services Directorate

Education.Services@fife.gov.uk


Our Ref: NF/CM

Date: 23 April 2020

Dear Parent/Carer 

SCHOOL TRIPS

Those of you who have committed to your child taking part in an excursion over the coming months will be aware that the UK government has issued instructions to Local Authorities.   

In the case of overseas excursions, they are advising against non-essential travel for an indefinite period.  For UK based excursions, they are advising that both residential and non-residential trips should not be organised, primarily to protect social distancing measures.  

As lockdown restrictions are progressively lifted and the availability of international travel improves, this position will change, however, we do not know when this will happen. 

Consequently, schools are working with tour operators and external providers to determine the most efficient way to refund monies paid to families where excursions are cancelled on the basis of this UK Government advice.  

In most cases, we are bound by their terms and conditions, with an element of monies paid directly to them being a non-refundable deposit.  You would have been advised of this at the time of securing your child’s place on the excursion.  Non-refundable deposits cover fixed costs incurred by providers and without retaining these, many will struggle to remain operational whilst their businesses cannot generate an income. 

However, we absolutely understand that for some families, your circumstances may have been impacted by the virus.  Schools are working with their tour operators and external providers individually and are doing their upmost to return all monies paid by you.  This is taking some time to work through, and we would ask you for your continued patience. 

Your school will maintain contact with you to keep you informed of progress.  For specific enquiries, please contact your child’s school by email at this time. 

Yours faithfully

Neil Finnie

Neil Finnie

 

Service Manager (Policy & Prevention)

Education & Children’s Services Directorate,

Directorate Operations Team,

4th Floor Rothesay House,

Rothesay Place,

Glenrothes, KY7 5PQ

SQA Update – 21st April, 2020

Message from Maria Lloyd – Head of Education at Fife Council

The SQA provided a further update today on how schools will determine estimate grades, bands and rank order to be submitted to SQA to allow them to make awarding decisions this year: https://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/93920.html

Across all of our schools, we are working to ensure that our young people get recognition for their hard work and receive the qualifications they deserve. The SQA have asked us to subdivide each existing band, place learners within these band categories and then to rank order their learners within each estimated grade. The estimated grades submitted to SQA will then allow them to use this information along with, where available, prior attainment to ascertain whether a centre’s estimates this session are consistent with outcomes in previous years.  All of this information will be used by the SQA to finalise the award outcomes. The SQA will continue to support us in this process through online advice and our teachers will be able access this.

Be assured that our teachers have worked with our young people for a significant period of time and have a range of evidence to draw on, in order to make an accurate professional judgement of what they are capable of achieving. This analysis will allow teachers, departments and schools to arrive at an estimated grade which best reflects the work and the progress your child has made and therefore makes a best estimate of how they might have performed if they had completed coursework or folio and final exam.

To further support teachers and departments across schools, Fife has produced quality assurance materials and provided all necessary data to support our staff in making these estimates.

I again ask you for your continued cooperation and support in this process and not to contact schools for these estimates.

The SQA have also committed to further support through the post results service, which this year will be an appeal process.  Results will still be issued to young people by 4 August. We continue to strongly encourage all young people to sign-up to MySQA, the online and text service, as a direct way to receive their results. Further information is available for learners, parents and carers in the Frequently Asked Questions section of the website.

While I accept that this whole process is very different to the normal exam diet, I am confident that by working in close partnership with SQA and across schools, the hard work of Fife’s young people will be properly recognised and accredited.

Free School Meals Update 3rd April, 2020

Free School Meals

Payments are now being made in lieu of free school meals.  Parents/carers will receive £11.50 per week, per child into their bank account every Wednesday.

Anyone who thinks they will now qualify for this payment can find the full list of entitlement criteria and application form at www.fife.gov.uk/schoolbenefits

Parents who had applied and whose children were receiving free meals prior to 23rd March, and had previously provided bank details for payment of school clothing grant, should have received their first payment on 25th March and a letter.

New applications are being dealt with as a priority and anyone who has made a new application should start receiving payments from the week after their application.

Anyone who thinks they will qualify for this payment but has not previously applied, or was not previously entitled and their income has now reduced, can find the full list of entitlement criteria and application form at www.fife.gov.uk/schoolbenefits.  If they don’t have internet access or experience issues submitting an application they can contact the Benefits & Council Tax Team on 0341 55 11 55 and the application will be taken over the phone.

If a child appears on the entitlement list but a payment hasn’t been received, or for any other queries or issues with their payment, parents should contact the team on 03451 55 11 55.

School clothing grants are also available for those on a low income.

SQA FAQs – 30th March, 2020

27 March

Dear Pupils, Parents and Carers,

We appreciate that this is a very difficult time for you. We have collated details of the most common questions we are being asked just now which we hope is in some way helpful. As soon as the SQA release the ‘alternative certification model’ we will share it with you. At this moment in time we don’t know any more than you do and therefore share your frustration.

Please appreciate that the detail of the information below could change in-line with new SQA guidance but is correct at this date.

 

Will my achievements this year be recognised?

Yes. Pupil achievements in all courses will be recognised this year. The SQA will ask teachers to provide an estimate grade for each pupil in each course. The estimate must be based on evidence but will include all pupil achievements throughout the year and not only summative and prelim results. The SQA will also look at other information, including prior attainment, where appropriate e.g. achievement in National 5 if being presented for Higher this year. Estimates will not be sent to SQA until towards the end of April. Estimates are still being provisionally agreed by teachers and PTCs based on the factors mentioned above.

 

What happens if a pupil did not complete the coursework for a subject?

The latest SQA advice, issued on Tuesday 24 March, stated that schools are now not required to submit coursework for marking in Higher or Advanced Higher courses.

For National 5, most of the coursework has already been submitted to SQA. However, the SQA have now confirmed that coursework which was due to be picked up from school for marking in April and May will not now be collected.

 

Can a pupil still complete and submit coursework to the SQA online with their teacher?

No. Every course is unique, with different course arrangements. The reason that coursework cannot be completed and submitted to the SQA online is that it will not be accepted by the SQA and, for some subjects, coursework must be completed under exam conditions – timed, without notes, and in full view of a teacher. We therefore cannot have a ‘one size fits all’ approach to coursework which is one of the reasons why the SQA have decided that schools cannot submit work online this year.

 

Why should a pupil continue to complete online tasks set by a teacher when the school cannot submit any work to the SQA for marking?

We are currently awaiting more information from the SQA about estimation of grades and fuller details of the SQA’s approach to certification this year. We will update families and pupils once we know more. The SQA have advised us that teachers may, however consider pupil work as part of the ‘body of evidence’ they use to decide on estimate grades. Therefore, teachers will continue to work with pupils online to ensure we have as much information as possible when deciding on estimate grades. It is therefore vital pupils keep working!

It is also important that pupils continue to engage with teachers online because that will allow them to develop the knowledge and skills needed to progress to the next level in that subject.

This also applies if a pupil is currently in S6 and preparing for college, university or an apprenticeship etc. If a pupil does not continue to work online, when they are able to do so, then not only will a teacher have less evidence to work with when completing estimate grades, but pupils also risk being ill-prepared for continuing with academic study, or work after the summer. We recognise, of course, the importance of ensuring that pupils who are unwell, or who do not have effective access to IT, are not disadvantaged, and we will work with the SQA to ensure this is not the case.

 

Will I receive certification for achievements this year?

Yes. The SQA have explained that that results will be issued no later than 4 August, as planned. The SQA are also encouraging pupils to sign up online for MySQA.

 

How do teachers decide on an estimate grade?

An estimate grade is normally based on several different factors including how the pupil performed in any formal assessments/prelims. Also, performance in any coursework, practical or performance elements and a teacher’s professional judgement of progress, based on evidence produced throughout the year.

This year we know these estimate grades matter more than ever. For this reason, once we have more information from the SQA, we will work with all teachers to make sure that estimates are a good representation of pupil performance.

 

Does a disappointing prelim grade automatically mean a poor estimate grade?

No. In many cases a prelim does not provide ‘full’ evidence of a pupil’s likely performance in the final exam. This might be because the prelim only tested a portion of the whole course, or it has been improved on by other exam practice after the prelim, or there is other coursework that is not included in a prelim grade. We know that there is often an improvement in performance between prelims and a final exam and we will also take this into account where appropriate.

 

Can a teacher tell a pupil what their estimate grade is, or what grade they will be awarded by the SQA?

No. We are still waiting on more information from the SQA about estimation of grades and fuller details of the SQA’s approach to certification this year. We will update you further once we know more.

We know that grades will be based on coursework (where this has already been submitted), teacher estimate grades and prior SQA attainment from previous years (where appropriate). We normally submit estimate grades towards the end of April and, in the same way as other years, teachers cannot know what a pupil will be awarded for a course and will not know until Tuesday 4 August when pupils receive certificates.

Estimates provided by the school will form only one part of the process. It is the SQA who will make the final decision and not the school. Please do not contact teachers directly about your estimated grades. They will not be able to tell you what they are.

 

A pupil has produced work at home – can that contribute to the estimate grade?

Yes. As mentioned above, pupils should continue to work with teachers online to ensure that teachers have strong information to support their finalisation of estimate grades. However, our main aim is to be fair to everyone, so because of the current challenge’s families face, we cannot expect all pupils to complete all tasks teachers set. Although every pupil who can should do their best to complete tasks set by teachers. Pupils should not worry if they cannot complete tasks due to factors out with their control. No pupil will be disadvantaged.

 

Other areas of concern that that we have been asked about:

What about UCAS applications?

UCAS have provided a statement on their website stating that the grades pupils receive will be as valid as those in previous years, and that there is no reason for the usual admissions cycle to be disrupted. Universities UK has confirmed that institutions will be flexible and do all they can to support pupils to progress to higher education. Remember all young people in the country are in the same position.

 

Will a teacher’s estimated grade be the same as a pupil’s UCAS predicted grade?

No. Predicted grades were provided in November, and were based on teacher judgement at that point. Estimated grades will be based on much more robust knowledge of pupil progress in courses and might differ from grades provided at the time of UCAS applications.

 

Can pupils still apply for courses out with school e.g. full-time college courses?

Yes. Fife College and all other providers of courses out with school are currently closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. However, Fife College staff are continuing to work remotely and will continue to process all applications.

 

Will Education Maintenance Allowances (EMAs) continue when the school is closed?

EMA payments will continue. It is assumed that pupils are accessing learning online via GLOW and Microsoft TEAMs or other appropriate digital platform.

What if a pupil needs support with what to do next? How can they still get help with this?

We remain committed to supporting our leavers into a positive destination and will do all we can to continue to offer our support during these uncertain times. If a pupil has any questions then they should contact their Guidance teacher directly.

 

What if pupils or parents have any more questions?

Pupils and parents should contact the relevant Guidance Principal Teacher via e-mail in the first instance. All communication is welcome.

SQA Exam Diet and Skills Development Scotland Support Update

EDUCATION AND CHILDREN’S SERVICES DIRECTORATE
Maria.Lloyd@fife.gov.uk
03451 555555 ext. 480217
Your Ref:
Our Ref: ML/EF
25 March 2020

Dear Parent / Carer

SQA Exam Diet and Skills Development Scotland Support

You will now be fully aware the 2020 exam diet has been cancelled. Inevitably this means there will be some uncertainty for our young people who were preparing for exams. I want to reassure you and your children that teachers, who know your children best as learners, will be doing everything they can to ensure they are awarded their best possible qualification(s).

Part of what teachers do already is to gather ongoing evidence throughout the year for completing courses for qualifications. This includes completing coursework, assignments and folios.

Our teachers will work hard to use all available evidence to support their professional judgement to give accurate predictions. I want to emphasise that there is no need for your child to be in school to complete work. We now know following the updated announcement by the SQA on 24 March that certification will be based on predicted attainment, coursework and assessment from throughout the year.

The SQA will provide further details on the estimation of grades as soon as possible and they will inform us of what they will need from teachers and the approach that will be taken to certification. At this stage I would ask you not to contact your child’s school as we are still awaiting further instructions from SQA.

The SQA have indicated that their post-results service will be free of charge this year. This service is when the school are concerned about the grade your child has been awarded and they can request a clerical review. Parents cannot request this directly to the SQA.

The current SQA system has a large amount of statistical information that will allow for checks and balances to be made to ensure a fair outcome for your child. This includes statistical checks on the normal pattern of attainment across a school, a subject area and across the local authority. We will continue to work with SQA to ensure the hard work of our young people has been properly recognised and accredited fairly.

Skills Development Scotland (SDS)

I also wanted to take this opportunity to inform you that SDS are still continuing to do the following: –

  • Provide career, information, advice and guidance for all young people. Our school careers advisers are endeavouring to maintain contact with pupils and they are looking at how we can further develop on-line services to support them. This will be done via telephone, Skype or online. To speak to a Careers Adviser call your local centre on 01592 645180 (Kirkcaldy Centre) and 01383 745610 (Dunfermline Centre). Details of all our centres can be found on My World of Work. Calls are being automatically re-routed to advisers (all of whom are home-working). Messaging can be provided for your comms channels if needed. Please be reassured that SDS Careers Advisers will continue to proactively contact pupils to offer them ongoing support.
  • Work with the SQA and other awarding bodies in relation to Foundation Apprenticeships. This work will support their guidance for individuals and learning providers to ensure that the effects of disruption are minimised and that wherever possible, apprentices and learners are not negatively impacted in the longer term.
  • Share social media posts from SDS social channels to inform teachers, pupils, parents and carers of our ongoing support.

As soon as we have any further information we will share this with you. Thank you in anticipation of your ongoing support.

Yours sincerely

Maria Lloyd

Head of Education (Secondary Schools and Specialist Support)

 

SQA Exam Diet Update 25032020