Post Covid, engagement in learning has been a key area of need for many schools and young people. Anxieties run high, emotionally based non attendance is a key factor but the time spent out of education has also had an impact on lesson attendance for many. Many young people are increasingly attending school but struggling to remain within lessons or go to lessons at all. Support plans around these young people often involve punitive measure which can increasingly lead to more time out of school completely, pushing the re-engagement further away. For some, the point of school may have been muddied by the time out. As adults, many of us have considered our own values and needs – do we want to be working as many hours as we were before? Do we want to live our life at 100mph? Many left the workforce who were able to, many others cut their hours down. Covid gave us a chance to slow down and think about who we are and what we want to be/do.
Our young people may have done similar. School curriculums have narrowed over time and an increasingly academic focus has provided fewer opportunities for young people. The hook of school seems to have disappeared as those areas that were once much loved have disappeared. Students would endure the least favourite subjects to attend the ones they love. Styles of teaching have become increasingly narrower and scripted in many quarters, further leading to a lack of variety in learning that may not cater to all needs.
In order to help young people with re-engagement in learning I have produced this infograph with a pathway to supporting them at all stages, whether they are in school and not attending, or not attending at all. Please find the link to the PDF below and also the image. Let me know what you think on twitter @DanH_9.
