TEACHERS at south Essex schools have kept education standards high despite struggles of Covid lockdowns, inspectors have revealed.

During the pandemic, Ofsted has been carrying out checks and monitoring the progress of children, despite the challenges of home schooling.

Here the Echo looks at the reports see how schools have adapted to helping struggling pupils:

  • At Barons Court Primary School and Nursery, Avenue Road, Westcliff inspectors found some evidence of children forgetting or struggling with skills.

The report says: “Some had forgotten letter sounds that they once knew. Teachers are using additional phonics and handwriting lessons to help pupils catch up.

“Some pupils in Year 2 and Year 3 had lost their stamina to read independently for long periods of time.

“Leaders have introduced a wider variety of books across the school. Teachers have also given pupils more opportunity to read in class.”

  •  Inspectors also visited St Thomas More High School, Kenilworth Gardens in Westcliff and found some children were behind but teachers were working very hard to improve standards.

Inspectors noted how some pupils arrived in Year 7 with weaker writing skills than would normally be the case. The report says: “Some pupils in Year 8 have not developed the same level of reading comprehension as the school would normally expect at this time.

“Leaders have adjusted the English curriculum to make sure that pupils revisit key knowledge more often than is usual.”

  •  Teachers at St Bernard’s High School, Milton Road in Westcliff changed the order of what they teach and planning for the practical content in some subjects to be taught later in the year.

Inspectors also found how leaders say that sixth-form students did not fall behind in their learning during the summer term, when schools were only open to some students.

  •  Dedicated staff at Ghyllgrove Primary School, The Gore, Basildon spent more time than they normally would teaching personal, social, health and economic education. Inspectors also found how leaders are giving additional support to pupils’ mental health and emotional well-being.

The report says: “Where necessary, teachers are re-visiting some learning in other subjects from the summer term.

“Teachers are changing their planning for topic lessons, taking into account pupils’ different starting points.

“The school has a resource base for deaf pupils.

“The pupils would normally have some lessons in the base and some lessons with their class.

“Currently, the pupils are either taught in the base full time or in their class full time, depending on the specific support pupils need.”

  •  Over at De La Salle School, Ghyllgrove, Basildon, inspectors told staff the priority in Year 11 is to support pupils with mathematics and English.

The report says the school employed extra staff to help with this.

  •  During the visit to The Eastwood Academy, Rayleigh Road in Leigh the Ofsted inspectors noted how leaders and teachers reviewed which aspects of the curriculum had not been covered fully between March and July 2020.

The report says: “ You have created a separate timetable which would be used if you needed to send a ‘bubble’ home or if the school was required to close as a result of Covid-19.

“Teachers plan to use video conferencing to teach lessons while pupils complete a workbook.

“The curriculum would mirror that taught in school.”