Occupation: Founder and CEO
Company: The Good Play Guide
Location: Hitchin, Hertfordshire
About business: The Good Toy Guide was created to provide an independent, expert accreditation service for children’s products.
About expert: Amanda has a PhD in Neuropsychology, the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education and over 20 years experience working with children and families.
1. What’s the biggest benefit of online learning vs a traditional classroom setting?
It provides a method of learning that some children may find more accessible than classroom-based learning. This includes children with autism who don’t engage in social learning activities. Plus, it can be taken at a child’s own pace and repeated where necessary.
2. Should schools and the government pilot a hybrid / remote learning model to allow children to be homeschooled?
Yes. Children in care, in hospitals, refugees, those feeling the effects domestic violence or in traveller communities should be able to access online learning to complement or substitute for missing classroom learning.
3. How do you think remote schooling could work best / be managed?
A national online curriculum that is delivered through multi-media to allow children to engage with the content in the way that best suits them with access to support from a trusted adult or more able student when needed.
4. How do you think digital learning will change the future of education?
It may be the biggest factor in closing the gap between the groups listed above and those who are able to attend school regularly. It will also increase the number of homeschooling families. Hopefully it will raise the overall level of education by making learning more widely accessible.
5. How can the government help improve digital learning?
Increase access to the internet, including funding for devices for low income families, as well as free data access to educational sites.
6. What advice would you give to your younger self while at school?
Don’t worry about being good at the stuff you don’t enjoy. Focus on the things that really interest you.
7. What was your biggest struggle in school, and how did you overcome it?
I was failing a-level chemistry in the lower sixth and had to decide whether to stick to it or not. There was a new option to do an A/S level in psychology so I had to decide whether to plough on with chemistry, which I wasn’t enjoying and not doing well at, or to switch to a subject that would get me half the UCAS points but was in a subject I knew I’d enjoy. I switched and the rest is history!
