Little moan about the strikes…

[Postcovid]

DC has likely ASD and ADHD, year 2. His cohort I feel has been really affected by Covid as it is.

His school is 3 form entry. In the whole school only 3 classes are closing due to strikes - his class, one of the reception classes, and then one year 4 class. They’ll be closed on all of the four strike days while the rest of the school carries on.

This isn’t a direct attack at teachers striking, they have their reasons.

But I’ve just had to deal with a meltdown from my DC because we’ve booked him into (expensive) childcare for the day, we have no family nearby to look after him for the day and we can’t take time off work. His little sister is going to reception as normal so makes it very tricky for him.

I wrote to school asking if anything could be done for him on the strike days given he has SEN, and was essentially told “theme the breaks”.

I’m not interested in the “well if you care about your SEN child then you should support the strikes” because I’m dealing with the here and now, today, and a further four days where my SEN DC is going to feel the impact of the strikes. Whilst the vast majority of his school is able to carry on as normal.

You know, adding a crying laughter emoji at the end of every comment doesn't make you amusing, it makes you sound stupid! Teachers vent because they are worn down by trying to do a job while being constantly denigrated by the parents of the children they are trying to educate.

@YouDoHaveAChoice yes this was exactly what I thought, and the majority of the parents of my DC's class, including the ones without SEN. It does seem grossly unfair. My DC class is going to miss out on almost a week of school in a month and the other two Y2 classes will have been in as normal on those days. I'm more annoyed at the school's management.

Because teachers are in different unions and non striking ones can’t cover the classes of those who are striking

Have you written to the head to ask for their justification of this approach? I would do that, cc-ing the head of governors and pointing out the inequality caused in the children’s education and the unequal financial pressure that will face the affected families. Ask for clear justification as to why they consider this reasonable and what plans they will be putting in place to bring the affected children into line with their peers.

Are you sure? At our school there is provision only for kids of key workers and vulnerable families - presumably they are spread across numerous classes and will be grouped together for the day, covered by whichever staff are working.

Surely ahead teachers have the right to distribute their staff however they see fit?! They can’t be banned from using a teacher to teach specific kids, surely?!

Schools are not allowed to asking non-striking staff to cover classes for those on strike. This is guidance sent out to heads.

In many schools, the vulnerable children will be cared for by support staff-it’ll be childcare, not curricular lessons.

You can’t cover for a striking teacher and staff should refuse. SLT may try to cover amongst themselves but non striking staff should stick to their own classes only

Well it’s not me that I’m finding amusing

it is the situation of teachers saying that an inflationary pay increase will attract teacher but failing to see all the threads where teachers moan about a multiple of things and the insistence that they are striking for children’s education. So why muddy the waters with a pay rise too?!

So will they next be striking about difficult parents?!

I bet many of them bloody wish they could!

My support for the teachers is waning the more I read about this. There is simply no justification for a roulette where kids whose teachers are striking suffer while others carry on as usual and heads have no power to mitigate that. Unjustifiable.

@Whatislove82 I think you may be misunderstanding the strikes completely. Teacher aren't kegally allowed to strike over lots of things- but they can over pay. So they are striking over pay but trying to raise awareness abd educate others over conditions. Do you work?

Turn your ire on the Govt. They know what the strike rules are and they've known since August strike action was highly likely, but it wasn't until Monday that the Ed Sec sat down with the unions to have talks about averting today's. She gave them ONE HOUR of her time and refused to make a pay offer. That's how much the Govt values your children's education.

True, they will not work, the Govt has zero intention of offering any more than around half the current rate of inflation, so 5%, to any sector.

what is happening in education now will effect you in the coming months/years, longer term it will effect you due to lack of a skilled & educated workforce.

imho unless unions are prepared to just walk out, including NHS workers, indefinitely, they are just wasting their time, this govt will not understand anything less, learn from what French workers do.

oh I have no doubt. Along with all the other issues

Yes private sector not teaching

Thank. Fuck

Take the time off work or stop complaining. If you have a child with extra needs then ask for carers leave.

This. Sadly, a day or two here and there will do fuck all for the cause. It would be an utter nightmare for parents if teachers just downed tools and walked out but it would get the government back to the negotiating table.

"Stope complaining" @madeyemoody ? Would teachers accept that as a response to their strikes?

@GPTec1 the teachers at my DC school have all been there for 20+ years. The older ones anyway, which most of them are.

@Whatislove82 exactly! definitely stay there- public sector is a mess. No one will want to go into public sector jobs in next few years...... see why the strikes will benefit all? Recruitment is so so low and retention terrible.

Wilfully obtuse or just good old fashioned case of stupid. And of course they work in the private sector.

I understand your point OP but

Sorry for being selfish but I care most about my own DC, not those to come in 20 years.

This short sightedness is part of the reason why education is in such a mess.

“Of course”!

@Postcovid of course you’re concern is your DC and that’s totally reasonable. It’s a shame that it got to this point but sad to say I don’t blame them. The government hasn’t been listening and SEN provision is particularly poor. That means your DC has been affected by that and potentially will continue to be whilst this goes on. Teachers don’t only care about pay but realistically that’s the reason they need to strike. I’m sorry that it’s so tough for your DC, I hope that perhaps someone will listen to the state the education system is in.