How to support GCSE students unable to attend school

When studying for GCSE, it’s important for students to attend every lesson or else it can result in missing crucial parts of the curriculum. Therefore, when a child is unable to attend school, it can be difficult to help them stay on top of their learning. 

At Your Favourite Teacher, we offer a learning solution for students who are unable to attend school for various reasons. Our courses are designed and delivered by expert subject teachers and all topics are mapped in line with the core GCSE curriculum for English, Maths and Science. 

Reasons why students are unable to attend school:

Whether it’s for a short or longer period, there are many reasons why a student may be unable to attend school. So, we’ve broken down the different types of planned and unplanned absences and how you can support these students with Your Favourite Teacher.

School exclusion

Students may not be allowed to attend school because of their behaviour, resulting in fixed-term exclusions from school. When a student is served an exclusion, it can sometimes be a mad dash to gather work from all their teachers. 

For exclusions over a longer period, statutory learning must be delivered from the 6th day of the exclusion. Using an online learning tool like Your Favourite Teacher ensures that the excluded student can continue with their GCSE learning from day one of their exclusion. 

Subject teachers or pastoral leads can allocate lesson modules on the platform that cover the current topics being taught in class with the click of a button. This means there’s less chance of any missed learning and the courses can be easily accessed from any type of device. 

With the help of instant reports, teachers can also easily monitor the progress and engagement of the student while they are working remotely.

School refusal

Depression and Anxiety disorders among students are becoming increasingly common and can lead to long term school refusal. This can make it difficult for them to keep up with the content being delivered by their teachers and cause them to fall behind their peers. It can also be challenging for schools and families to continue providing work and feedback to the student and ensure students are equipped to take their GCSE exams.

Your Favourite Teacher offers high-quality online GCSE lessons delivered by subject specialist teachers in a familiar and low-pressure learning environment. Learners can work through lessons at their own pace which gives them control and can help to reduce anxiety and missed learning. 

Students may only be absent for a short period and require a short-term learning solution while their attendance is addressed. Meanwhile, other students may be absent for a longer period and have more complex needs. In either case, we understand how difficult it can be for teachers to monitor their progress.

Your Favourite Teacher makes it easy for teachers and pastoral leaders to access engagement and progress reports. This can help to monitor the performance of the student and easily identify any issues. 

Internal exclusion

Students who misbehave, sometimes end up in internal exclusion, meaning they are present in school but not allowed to attend lessons and can again result in missed education. But this does not mean that they should have to miss out on their GCSE learning. 

Often, pupils will bring work from their class with them. However, if their exclusion is extended then there can be a wait until other work is found for them or low quality ‘filler’ work can be offered. 

In this case, students require high-quality lessons that they can work through themselves without the support of a teacher. With Your Favourite Teacher, inclusion managers and pastoral leads can allocate lessons in line with the topics being taught in the classroom and ensure continuity of the core curriculum. 

Medical absences

In some unfortunate cases, there may be students who are unable to attend school due to medical issues. This may be because they are having surgery or even treatment that stops them from being able to be present within their lessons.

Since schools have returned, there has also been an increase in students testing positive for Coronavirus which means they have to stay at home. They would then need to self-isolate for at least 10 days which is a long period of time to miss out on. 

To ensure continuity of education, teachers can use Your Favourite Teacher to build a bespoke program of learning for these students in line with the topics being studied in lessons. Students can then work through the topics and courses at their own pace and whenever it suits them. 

As a teacher, you are then also able to monitor their engagement and progress, whilst communicating any feedback you have through the platform. This will help to give the student the encouragement and guidance they need to progress with their learning. 

Support absent GCSE students with Your Favourite Teacher

Your Favourite Teacher can be used by teachers to support students who are absent from school and ensure they don’t miss out on their GCSE curriculum. 

Looking to use Your Favourite Teacher to support your students? Request a demo so we can discuss your needs and walk you through the platform. To discuss the sign up of your school, please contact kate@yourfavouriteteacher.com.

You can also follow this link to view a sample video lesson.