A culture of student agency and the effects on enforced online learning

Chartered College of Teaching ¬∑ A culture of student agency and the effects of enforced online learning   I recently facilitated some COVID-19 focus group discussions with UK teachers, and the phrase, 'What's the point?' was the reported view of many students who no longer believed in the purpose or structure of their education, after seeing external examinations so swiftly brushed aside without consequence. Were exams the only fragile thread connecting our students to learning? At Dulwich College Beijing (DCB), we waved goodbye to our students for the Chinese New Year break in mid-January, and the closure notices landed during the holiday. We shifted to online learning from the first day back on 3 February 2020, and have been in this mode since. Our online provision has been recognised by parents, students and other schools as extremely successful. Student learning and progress has continued to grow, and unexpectedly our waiting lists for admission have grown during th