Education secretary reveals children will be expected to continue home-learning through the summer holidays
13 May 2020, 15:30 | Updated: 13 May 2020, 15:46
Children's education expected to continue through summer holidays
The Education Secretary has said that school children will benefit from learning through their six week break.
Children will be expected to continue learning throughout the summer holidays this year, after the school year was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Education Secretary has said that teachers will be making assessments of what work should be done by learners through the 6 week break.
Gavin Williamson issued the advice after being questioned in the House of Commons.
He said: “It is important to support those children who are going to be facing GCSE’s next year as well as A Levels, B-Techs and other qualifications in years 10 and 12.
“We want all those children in those years groups to go into school to speak with their teachers.
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“Their teachers will then make an assessment of what learning and support they need to have over the following weeks as we approach for summer holidays, but also through the summer holidays children can benefit from learning through those six weeks.”
The decision to make these the first classes to return was "to ensure that the youngest children, and those preparing for the transition to secondary school, have maximum time with their teachers".
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Secondary schools and colleges are likely to stay closed until September, but pupils with exams will get more help in addition to their current online lessons.
Schools and colleges have been told to "prepare to begin some face-to-face contact with Year 10 and 12 pupils who have key exams next year".
The exact details of how schools will reopen is yet to be decided, however the Department for Education have stated classes will be divided into groups of no more than 15 pupils - and these small groups will not mix with other pupils during the school day.
The guidance also says that pupils should be kept two metres apart, but accepts that young children in primary school cannot always be expected to keep to that at all times.
