Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Education – in the Senedd at 2:56 pm on 13 January 2021.
Since I tabled this question, the future generations commissioner has also commented on this issue and she's described online learning as being patchy and inconsistent, and there are grave inconsistencies between not only different education authorities but individual schools within those authorities, and I'm not just talking here about access to equipment and connectivity; there is also inconsistency in terms of how many hours children are expected to learn every day, what kind of work they could expect, what digital platforms are used. Some receive face-to-face learning online, while some don't and only receive worksheets to complete. Now, I don't know if you would agree with the future generations commissioner that you should have done more to ensure consistency across Wales by providing greater guidance for schools and local authorities as a Government, because the upshot of the inconsistency is that we have a postcode lottery, where some children are gaining and others are losing out, and all that does, of course, is exacerbate the inequalities that are already too prominent within the education system in Wales.