Learning From Home website created in VIC to support ECEC

A new website, Learning From Home, has been developed in response to the COVID-19 outbreak Victorian Education Minister James Merlino announced late yesterday. 

 

The website offers suggestions about contingency planning, giving the following suggestions about planning for children’s learning continuity in the event of closure:

 

• identify ways early childhood teachers and educators can initiate group or individual contact with children to maintain learning opportunities;
• implement activities with children by using available technologies;
• maintain contact with families to discuss and track the wellbeing of children and discuss the progress of children’s development; 
• Identify ways educators can improve the implementation and documentation of the service’s program and maintain educator practice.

 

Containing “age-appropriate, curriculum-based learning resources for early childhood education and care (ECEC) services and primary and secondary school students”, the website has been launched to help teachers keep students learning in the event an ECEC setting or school is closed because of COVID-19.

 

“We are preparing for every possible scenario during this outbreak to ensure Victorian (children) continue to learn – that is why Learning From Home is so important,” Mr Merlino said. 

 

In the event that the Chief Health Officer recommends an educational setting close due to a confirmed case of COVID-19, educators will continue to work remotely. The new website contains advice on communicating with children and provides educators with information on how they can best support student learning during a closure.

 

The website will complement existing online resources available, such as the Compass system, which is used to communicate with students and parents, and the FUSE suite of teaching resources. More resources and information will be added to the site over the coming weeks. 

 

While the Australian Prime Minister yesterday issued advice that education closures are not indicated at this time, Mr Merlino indicated the website was a proactive measure should this situation change in the near future. 

 

“The current advice from the Chief Health Officer and the Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer is that mass school closures are not needed at this stage – if this changes, we won’t hesitate to act” he said. 

 

To access the Learning From Home website, please see here.