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Reopening our secondary school: here's what we learned
By Paul Topping on 05 June 2020

The executive headteacher of the British School in the Netherlands explains how the school geared up to manage the return of its senior school cohort this week

Socially distanced urinals in a secondary school in The Netherlands
Headteachers' instincts are to keep schools running. Snow days, burst boilers, winter flu – we have contingencies and can make adaptations but we're always open for learning.

Coronavirus, however, brought a new perspective to decision-making around school closure and has, without doubt, presented my biggest set of challenges in 15 years of headship.

Nearly three months on, our two senior schools have just reopened with the majority of our 1,200 students back in classrooms on alternate days, starting on 3 June.

How did we get here? Here are some key takeaways from this time:

The logistics
The new normal, already a cliché, is also a misnomer – since practice in all schools is governed by context.

We have reconsidered every element of a student's day, from the moment they pass through the school gate to their final footsteps out, ensuring that distancing is maintained at all times.

In a busy secondary school, with so many students usually moving between corridors and classrooms, this meant completely reshaping the school day, timetable, and flow.

Most learning spaces can accommodate up to 11 students, around half of our average class size and so we have created two populations based on surname to be in school alternate days.

Lesson duration has been reduced, settings and groupings changed and lunchtime modified. We've also staggered arrival and departure times for key stage 3 and KS4/5 with school now ending at 2.30pm to allow students to use public transport out of peak hours.

Industrial quantities of yellow signage and stripy tape adorn our building to reinforce one-way movement and painted distancing lines and directional arrows are de rigeur outside.

This is also true for areas that might not be so obvious – for instance, making taped pens available so students can't park their bikes too close to each other.

We've also had to mark out queuing areas outside of toilets and in a block of four urinals, taping up the middle two so that distancing can be maintained.

Decision making
Executive and senior leadership teams have had to be at their most optimistic and innovative to embrace the strategic and logistical challenges.

Clear, assured messaging to all parties has been essential. With five campuses (two secondary and three primary), a coherent and consistent approach in decision making has been critical.

Valuable lessons to inform future decisions were learned through the experiences of primary schools opening in May as well.

Rapid planning
Keeping pace with changing government protocols has been a challenge, as was throttling up when the green light for opening secondary school sites was lit just three weeks ago.

We've had very short time frames in which to make big decisions impacting on thousands of people: school transport; year groups to return; internal assessments.

Nothing has been straightforward and we have steered away from absolutes on issues such as masks, for example.

Flexibility is an important tool in keeping anxieties in check.

Building confidence and allaying fears
Two of my main priorities in preparing to return have been the building of staff confidence and encouraging colleagues to take ownership once more of our building.

Staff were, understandably, nervous about being in close proximity to 500 other humans for seven hours each day.

Empathy and compassion have been as important as pragmatism and planning in winning hearts and minds.

Virtual staff meetings of up to 160 people, with SLT members managing questions on the chat, individual video calls with colleagues to help address specific concerns, and support from HR and medical teams has been received well.

Through all this, I've been so proud of teachers and support staff.

Their professionalism and sense of perspective have always been to the fore and their positivism has instilled confidence into our whole community.

The student response
We forget sometimes how adaptable young people are and I have been delighted at how positively students have responded to our new circumstances.

There has been a minor battle with Year 10 to avoid hugging (they are so pleased to renew friendships) and we need all students who are timetabled for PE to come dressed for sport (since we can't use changing rooms).

Otherwise, it has been a smooth operation and one thing has been abundantly clear – students have really missed their teachers.

Overall remote learning hasn't been a painless process and returning post lockdown has certainly exercised our grey matter but calm and purposeful leadership has seen enabled us to manage the extraordinary.

Inclement weather and hot water issues will forever seem a doddle.

Paul Topping is currently executive headteacher at the British School in The Netherlands, in The Hague, having joined the school in 2017. The BSN is a multi-campus school with 2,500 students on roll.

Anyone wishing to speak with Paul to find out more about how his schools reopened is welcome to contact him via Twitter: @PaulTopping62.

[ONeill]

All schools opened in the north to take key working kids in, and my wife on computer most of the day

What's she doing on the computer?

[Milltown Row2]

All schools opened in the north to take key working kids in, and my wife on computer most of the day

What's she doing on the computer?
[/quote
Shopping

[delgany]

For the benefit of trailer and oneill et al.
About half of 1100  schools are open in the north to provide  supervision  for all school aged children.
The schools  that are open had key workers who accepted a place in that school . There were 1200 children being supervised on Wed 3rd .
School staff supervise on a rota. Those not in school work remotely to deliver home - learning and ensure vulnerable children are okay. Whether you question that or not - is up to you.

My own school had parents who turned down the offer of a place because they were frightened of  covid 19 cross infection.

Schools that are closed - had no key workers accept a place . Staff are working remotely and attending school on a rota to complete school based tasks .

Schools were closed by the Dept of Education for health and safety of pupils , staff , parents , grandparents and childcare providers. There is a pandemic , schools had to close , you need to get over these things and move on and stop criticising the school situation. 
No school would choose to be closed , no teacher would wish to have to predict grades . They are in a position not of their making

[Kidder81]

The teachers are also going to milk this as long as they can and are in no hurry to get back to work

[Milltown Row2]

The teachers are also going to milk this as long as they can and are in no hurry to get back to work

Milk it? The government has closed the schools because of the pandemic, once the government has a safe route to bring back the kids, teachers will follow.

You'd think the teachers had a say in this? The unions may have a view on what's best but it's the education dept that actually run things and if told things are safe, they'll go back!

[armaghniac]

Milk it? The government has closed the schools because of the pandemic, once the government has a safe route to bring back the kids, teachers will follow.

I heard the INTO biological warfare unit broke into the lab in Wuhan and released the bat virus so that teachers would have to teach online in April.

[trailer]

All schools opened in the north to take key working kids in, and my wife on computer most of the day

All schools are not open. Some central schools are providing child care for key workers. There's no teaching happening. That's it. So let's dial down the 3 cheers for teachers.

Should all teachers be in school then? What's your idea of what should have been happening this past 3 months? Should the likes of me be looking after your 2 year old?  You're right btw, there is no teaching happening. In my class yesterday I had a P2, P4, P5 and two P7 children. All from different schools and all doing different work provided by their school. Should I be teaching them all the same thing. I help with any problems they're having in their work but I'm not teaching lessons.

Look my view is that schools should be open with kids in attendance and teachers teaching. I appreciate that the powerful teaching unions will not allow that for reasons unknown.

[Milltown Row2]

All schools opened in the north to take key working kids in, and my wife on computer most of the day

All schools are not open. Some central schools are providing child care for key workers. There's no teaching happening. That's it. So let's dial down the 3 cheers for teachers.

Should all teachers be in school then? What's your idea of what should have been happening this past 3 months? Should the likes of me be looking after your 2 year old?  You're right btw, there is no teaching happening. In my class yesterday I had a P2, P4, P5 and two P7 children. All from different schools and all doing different work provided by their school. Should I be teaching them all the same thing. I help with any problems they're having in their work but I'm not teaching lessons.

Look my view is that schools should be open with kids in attendance and teachers teaching. I appreciate that the powerful teaching unions will not allow that for reasons unknown.

Schools should be open when they are safe, if you think it's safe to go into a room with 31 people in it then go ahead. I haven't seen one guideline that says it's safe to be in a room with that many people

[Jim Bob]

All schools opened in the north to take key working kids in, and my wife on computer most of the day

All schools are not open. Some central schools are providing child care for key workers. There's no teaching happening. That's it. So let's dial down the 3 cheers for teachers.

Should all teachers be in school then? What's your idea of what should have been happening this past 3 months? Should the likes of me be looking after your 2 year old?  You're right btw, there is no teaching happening. In my class yesterday I had a P2, P4, P5 and two P7 children. All from different schools and all doing different work provided by their school. Should I be teaching them all the same thing. I help with any problems they're having in their work but I'm not teaching lessons.

Look my view is that schools should be open with kids in attendance and teachers teaching. I appreciate that the powerful teaching unions will not allow that for reasons unknown.

Reasons unknown ? There's a pandemic didn't you know ? Schools aren't safe at the moment for  pupils to attend so the local government closed them in March

[trailer]

LOL. Well teachers should stay away from Gym classes, and shops and coffee takeaway places. All the gaffs that I have met teachers over this past few weeks. It's laughable, it really is.
A child's education is paramount. It is the very definition of key work.

[STREET FIGHTER]

Some absolute nonsense being spouted on here....

Looks like a few people need to look at the Schools their children attend....

The school my kids attend have done a brilliant job advising and teaching online....brilliant in fact....

Its not their job to babysit them through the pandemic.....that's my responsibility....

So far and maybe not ideal (as I have worked non stop through it all.....not a teacher by the way)...we've managed.....including teaching the kids out of hours and at the weekend...

Challenging? Yes....but that's what a parent is there for...and I am more than happy to do so instead of teacher bashing...

[From the Bunker]

Some absolute nonsense being spouted on here....

Looks like a few people need to look at the Schools their children attend....

The school my kids attend have done a brilliant job advising and teaching online....brilliant in fact....

Its not their job to babysit them through the pandemic.....that's my responsibility....

So far and maybe not ideal (as I have worked non stop through it all.....not a teacher by the way)...we've managed.....including teaching the kids out of hours and at the weekend...

Challenging? Yes....but that's what a parent is there for...and I am more than happy to do so instead of teacher bashing...

Are your kids in the North or South?

[ONeill]

LOL. Well teachers should stay away from Gym classes, and shops and coffee takeaway places. All the gaffs that I have met teachers over this past few weeks. It's laughable, it really is.
A child's education is paramount. It is the very definition of key work.

Saw 2 teachers in an off-licence at midday yesterday and it looked like they weren't long out of bed.

[trailer]

Some absolute nonsense being spouted on here....

Looks like a few people need to look at the Schools their children attend....

The school my kids attend have done a brilliant job advising and teaching online....brilliant in fact....

Its not their job to babysit them through the pandemic.....that's my responsibility....

So far and maybe not ideal (as I have worked non stop through it all.....not a teacher by the way)...we've managed.....including teaching the kids out of hours and at the weekend...

Challenging? Yes....but that's what a parent is there for...and I am more than happy to do so instead of teacher bashing...

That is definitely not my experience. And besides there is no risk in teaching children with regards to Coronavirus, unless you are over 70 and live in a nursing home.