| NSW Department of Education

2021 COVID-19 Learning from home:

Principals checklist
Schools should review their plans to support the ongoing delivery of education for students
in the event there is a period of time students and staff are unable to attend school. This
situation may arise during the year due to a large number of students or staff being required
to remain in self-isolation for a period of approximately 14 days or a period where the school
is directed under public health advice to only remain operational for children of essential
workers if an outbreak of COVID-19 were to arise in the local area.

Schools should review and ensure they have plans in place for the following:

• the recommencement of remote learning and working arrangements at short notice

• provision of learning resources and relevant technology to support educational
delivery to minimise disruption to student learning
• communication systems to remain connected to students, staff and parents and
carers
• student welfare and learning support services.

Schools will be advised if they are required to transition to remote learning and provided
with appropriate support.

Schools should refer to the learning resources available at Learning from Home.

Please use this checklist as a guide to commence school operations in Term 1, 2021, noting
that it is important to continue monitoring relevant related information on the Departments
website.

education.nsw.gov.au
 School pandemic plan
All schools should have a plan in place that can be efficiently activated in the
event of the school or number of schools impacted by a pandemic or event.
Continue to review this on a regular basis and make any adjustments based on
updated advice issued by the NSW Department of Education.

Ensure family contact lists are up to date, easily accessible and there is a clear
plan to deliver and manage calls in a short timeframe if required.

Familiarise yourself with the current department guidelines specifically

Response protocols for COVID-19 cases.

Access Learning from Home to assist with preparation for continuity of

education if your school is impacted by an outbreak of COVID-19. The
following links will assist you and your staff to access relevant materials.

Specifically for secondary settings

• Statewide Staffroom for teachers – join colleagues and curriculum
specialists in a collaborative and supportive workspace in MS
Teams. Explore and share resources, access advice from our Learning and
Teaching curriculum advisors and always be in the know with the latest
curriculum information.
• Learning Sequences for teachers – access learning experiences for all
stages (7-12) and learning areas. Available in digital and non-digital
formats, resources can be adapted and modified for all learning
environments.
• ABC educational programs and resources – Stages, 4 and 5 – ABC TV
Educational programs and resources are available for students
indefinitely. Many previously aired episodes are now available for streaming
on ABC iview and for subscribers on Enhance TV. Programs are
complemented by standalone resources that can be completed without
access to the internet or a device.
• HSC hub – share resources with your students that are aligned to NSW
syllabuses. Discover hundreds of high-quality, on-demand video lectures,
demonstrations and other engaging content for all learning areas.

Specifically for primary settings

• Learning Sequences for teachers – access 7 weeks’ worth of learning

experiences for all stages (K-6) and learning areas, including STEM.
Available in digital and non-digital formats, resources can be adapted and
modified for all learning environments.
• Learning packages for teachers and students – complement learning
programs with self-guided videos and explicit teaching activities for students
learning from home. Choose from Literacy/English, Numeracy/Mathematics,
Physical Activities and other learning areas. We’ve been hearing that
GetActive@Home and Art Bites have been particularly engaging and fun.

© NSW Department of Education, Feb-21 1

 • K-6 Statewide Staffroom for teachers – join colleagues and curriculum
specialists in a collaborative and supportive workspace in MS Teams.
Explore and share resources, access advice from our Learning and
Teaching curriculum advisors and always be in the know with the latest
curriculum information. 
• ABC educational programs and resources – ABC TV Educational programs
and resources are available for students indefinitely. Many previously aired
episodes are now available for streaming on ABC iview and for subscribers
on Enhance TV. Programs are complemented by standalone resources that
can be completed without access to the internet or a device.

Additional resources for specialist settings can be found at Diversity and

inclusion.

Specifically for early Childhood Setting including Department Preschools

• COVID and Early Childhood Education and Care

Ensure that your school leadership team are able to send messages to parents
and carers through your existing communications platforms, including outside
of school hours.

Supporting student learning

Prepare communications package to parents and carers to clearly articulate
organisation of learning from home if required.

Where possible, organise to provide devices to students who do not have

access to these at home and are required to learn from home due to health
concerns, quarantine or a move to learning from home.

Organise and/or prepare resources and plans for how learning from home will
operate for each of your classes, stage/year groups subject areas. Schools
should be prepared with at least a two-week plan in place to facilitate remote
learning at short notice.

Ensure that there are clear protocols in place for students who are learning from
home including check-ins with school staff to provide support and monitor
progress.

Be mindful of the risks associated with using cloud-based applications,

especially surrounding privacy and child safety, including bullying.

Familiarise all staff with the eSafety.gov.au website which provides specific
advice regarding COVID-19 including:
• an online safety kit for parents and carers
• an online safety booklet for parents and carers
• advice for school leaders keeping schools and learning safe online

2 2021 COVID-19 Learning from home: Principals checklist

 Ensure that students and families are aware of any changes to programs that
run externally to the school including VET and Employment Pathways.

Supporting staff
All staff have access to the updated COVID guidelines published on the DoE
intranet.

All staff have access to the planning resourcing and materials to move teaching
from home if required.

All staff are aware of their roles and responsibilities during a period of working
from home.

Appropriate planning in place to support vulnerable staff.

Organised agreed alternative working arrangements are put in place for all staff
to include both access to the school (if permissible) site and working from
home.

Ensure that staff are reminded of access to Employee Assistance Programs if

required.

Ensure that all staff including yourself are aware that additional wellbeing
support for staff.

Regularly check in with staff who are in mandatory quarantine or directed self-
quarantine.

© NSW Department of Education, Feb-21 3