Department of Education's Secondary Home Learning programme starts Monday

Children registered in Bayside and Westside Secondary schools will be receiving a structured home learning programme via each school's existing online platform as from Monday, March 30.

The home learning programme has been designed to support our children and their parents by providing them with a learning routine which provides structure and enables children to continue to develop key skills.

The activities delivered through the programme are designed to work within a home learning environment and are not aimed at replicating the classroom environment.

Students in Years 7, 8, 9 will receive a broad and balanced programme of activities over the course of each week.

There will be a number of tasks to complete each day and the students will receive a suggested schedule as a guideline.

Students in Years 10 and 12 will be tasked to complete a range of activities each week.

These tasks will be pertinent to the courses they are completing and benefit their future learning in their chosen subjects, the government said.

Additionally, all year groups will be provided with a selection of activities aimed at supporting children from a wellbeing and mental health perspective.

In preparation for Monday, the Department of Education is asking parents to ensure their child is signed up to their school platform and has access to all the required group codes.

Parents should contact Bayside and Westside for further information on the following email addresses: Bayside - homelearning@baysideschoolgibraltar.gi Westside - homelearning@westsideschoolgibraltar.com

The Department of Education is also working hard to structure some channels of support and guidance for all Year 11 and 13 students in both secondary schools and the College, recognising the challenging, unexpected and uncertain situation students find themselves in.

The department will be in touch with these students early this week.

It reassured all students that it would do everything possible to help young people realise their potential and ensure that students undertaking examination courses achieve the outcomes they have been working towards and deserve.

The Department of Education's Primary Home Learning programme which came into effect last Wednesday 25th March has got off to a very positive start, the government said.

All parents who have not yet signed their Lower and Upper Primary aged children up to the Home Learning platform are urged to visit www.education.gov.gi at their earliest opportunity and follow the steps specified in the 'Home Learning' section of the website.

The principal goal behind the Department of Education's home learning provision is to provide our community's children with a familiar structure and sense of purpose.

“During times of trauma, feelings of a lack of control can lead to anxiety and hopelessness,” the government said in a statement.

“Through the use of positive psychology principles, children will be encouraged to spend time on positive experiences; engage actively with a series of tasks; continue to connect and develop their relationships with others; have a meaningful sense of community; and experience accomplishment.”

“In this way, we can reinforce a sense of connection and continuity which will contribute towards children's resilience.”