Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Online learning ‘unsustainable’
A MUM has said remote learning is “unsustainable” for some families due to poor internet connectivity.
Microsoft Teams issues have delayed learning for thousands of pupils and it could take several weeks for some technical faults to be resolved, according to Education Scotland.
One bug identified in December is preventing many users from joining chats and lessons, and delays in messages being received.
But for Ruth White, who lives in Glen Prosen in Angus, the service problems are just the tip of the iceberg.
Her three sons, who are in S3 and S4 at Webster’s High School and P6 at Northmuir Primary, were ready for their first day of remote learning – only to be denied access.
The family have battled with poor internet since moving to the Glens in 2012 and say they are lucky to reach a connection speed of 1Mbps.
She said: “The boys weren’t asked to be constantly online during the last lockdown. They just had to go on and download their assignments and complete and submit them.
“This time around they want to run a normal timetable online and they can log in and the teacher will be there during that time to teach them.
“That is impossible here because it glitches and stutters the whole time. It’s completely unsustainable to continue to try to work this way.”
Ruth said she is particularly concerned her son who is in S4 will not be able to interact with his teachers.
“The school is very understanding and has reassured us he will not be badly affected as a result, as assignments can be downloaded and completed separately,” she said.
“But it may well be that kids living in Kirriemuir will get to have whole periods interacting with their teacher but that’s just not something that’s available to us.”
Ruth also said balancing homelearning with working from home as an estate administrator for the Glenprosen Estate was made impossible by the frustrating Teams outage.
She added: “The fiasco was also hugely annoying for us all because I’m trying to work from home as well.
“My son who is in S3 couldn’t download any of his assignments so it was a completely wasted day in terms of school work.
“My eldest managed to download a couple of assignments before it all went pear-shaped.
“He worked on those and completed them within a few hours.
“There’s a real concern about the quality of education they’re getting in lockdown and I think that demonstrates it perfectly.”
An Angus Council spokeswoman said: “Where families have indicated they have no internet connection we have been able to provide Mifi portable internet connections.
“Families who have specific difficulties with accessing online learning should liaise directly with their school in the first instance.”
Education Secretary John Swinney has promised to address the issue in the Scottish Parliament today.