To wonder why teachers are not teaching my child?

[Nickynackienoo]

I am a nurse redeployed to itu. Doing 13 hour days and stressed up to the eyeballs at the moment. My children (12 and 8) go to school on my work days and on my days off i keep them at home with me according to the government guidance. As far as I can tell, the teachers at school are just childminding and not teaching anything. How is it that they can have just 4 kids in the school and not manage to get them to do at least some work? How can I possibly do the job of a teacher on my days off? They have send so many links via email that I can’t make sense of, it’s so overly complicated. Surely as key workers they should be doing the job they are being paid to do? I must be missing something, can someone fill me in?

So instead we put key worker kids at a disadvantage as their parents are not able to provide input?

Well, what do you think is happening to the kids of other non key worker parents who have to still work full time? People really need to realise its not just key workers who have to work

@Nighttimefreedom

GreytExpectations
So you just don't help at all. Don't even say, theres a computer do you know what you need to do today

What the hell are you on about? This sentence doesn't even make sense at all.

I am a key worker and had to do first or second on-call. School emailed us Google online class login and addEd that all key worker‘s children will be completing their homework in school so no need to worry. I can’t thank them enough for this.

Both myself and dh are teachers. In both of our schools the home learning tasks are being facilitated. So pupils are provided with computer access etc and they can get on with the tasks set. It’s impossible to actually teach a lesson because of the mix of ages/pupils and the amount of staff that are in. However if a pupil is stuck then a staff member will try their best to help. If this isn’t happening at your children’s school OP then you need to speak to them and explain your situation to see if they can help at all. Threads like this will not help you get the outcome you want. Unless of course it’s to cause extra stress and upset to a whole profession 🤷🏻‍♀️

Or kids whose parents can't or won't help. It is impossible to make everything fair. The children who are in school are being looked after and I'm sure they must get time to do set work. Would teachers really refuse to help a child who is stuck?

@Teateaandmoretea - state schools and state school pupils do not have the same resources that private schools have - most of my pupils are sharing a family laptop. Three kids all needing to complete 3-4 hours per day. We've loaned as much tech out as we can but we just dont have enough for one chromebook per pupil. Meanwhile, we are all planning for how we catch pupils up. Regularly meeting via zoom with SLT and providing plans, taking online courses, redesigning the curriculum. If you believe nothing else, believe that teachers are trying their best for their kids.

Keyworkers kids will get input from the teacher looking after them, the same as a parent would provide.

And how long until a teacher slips into "teaching mode" and that basic support becomes much more? It's like asking any specialist a question in their area but not expecting them to give you a standard answer that any old Bob off the street would say.

*This is getting so ridiculous. Can everybody on here play sleeping lions or something and be quiet for an hour?!?

Or just go to bed.

And get back up on the other side.*

I can't be doing with all the heroes and villains shite either. Teachers are not heroic, they're simply doing a job for which they are well compensated. I don't think it's too much to expect that children in school could get some support with the learning set by their class teacher. Especially if there are only four children in the entire school.

*Runs for cover

@Really12345
And the posts about how we should have “enquired” about the teaching provision before sending child to school if we were concerned engaged parents, how should I do that?

You look at the school website and then email them to ask? Or you could actually phone them. Why on earth wouldn't you do this before sending your child to a school that you are not familiar with?

GreytExpectations I was responding to this

There's a fine line between a little support and full on teaching when it comes to what teachers can do. Eventually with teachers that line will get crossed due to their specialist knowledge that parents won't have.

You seem to be saying you'll end up giving these key workers children an unfair advantage, and therefore shouldn't offer even the most basic support.

Sorry you found my sentence hard to understand.

@GreytExpectations

You suggest the same here

And how long until a teacher slips into "teaching mode" and that basic support becomes much more? It's like asking any specialist a question in their area but not expecting them to give you a standard answer that any old Bob off the street would say.

@Whatsername177 that’s the point the OP was trying to make. Key workers kids aren’t getting the same opportunity to do the home learning that kids at home are getting. In some places they are actively being prevented from accessing the home learning while in school. The OP doesn't want 1:1 teaching she just wants her kid to be able to access the materials they would if they were at home.

My daughters normal school are doing zoom classes and assemblies and setting work that I am getting in trouble for not doing. She is not allowed to do this work while in school. Several other posters have said the same, the poor kids are supposed to be in school all day being bored and then go home and do a full days schoolwork before bed. Several teachers on here have confirmed that their hub schools are not providing access to the work set by the normal teachers.

None of the key worker parents on here are asking for taught lessons, simply that the children in school are facilitated to do the work provided by their own teachers, for older kids this probably means they need a computer and for the younger an adult to sit with a few of them to keep them on track with their worksheets, same as wfh parents are trying to do. Some schools are doing this some are not. I have seen posts from teacher who are teaching other people’s kids in their school but whose own kids are not getting taught in the school they go to. I think the blame is with the LA who are not making it clear to schools that 1) key workers kids are not an inconvenience but individuals 2)they are not lepers and can be touched (and the LA should be providing PPE) 3) it isn’t against the law to help with the home learning 4) the chosen hub school should be appropriate for the age of the kids with the right size toilets, tables and toys if they’re young and computers if there not

It’s shit right now for everyone but I have been made to feel like rubbish by my LA and hub school for sending my DD in and she has been made to feel bad as well so I am wfh from next week. Some LAs are just rubbish I’m afraid. In the context of my work I also have to contact the LA about some vulnerable children and the LA are providing no provision At all despite the children being at risk. Clearly taking the children into foster care is a bigger cost and involves some serious mixing of households but that’s a different budget and department so not on the radar. without any respite this and many other familieswill be heading over the edge soon and more people like me will be leaving front line work to care for our own kids. It’s just rubbish

@Nickynackienoo if you don’t get home until 9pm is your school open so late or is someone else looking after the children?

snappy what on earth has that got to do with my plea for peace and quiet and an end to all this bickering???

@Really12345
Absolutely agree with everything you've said. Honestly don't know how anyone could disagree with a word of it.
I've had enough now. I'm out.

@dickensinthepark well obviously before I picked her normal school I did all that and had a settling in visit and an open day. But this isn’t normal times.

it’s a hub school at a senior school site as in all the kids in this part of the county go there as all the little village primary’s have closed, It dosent have a “website”. The website for the senior school that is normally there tells me about their GCSE results - very relevant to my three year old DD.

I got an email the night before she started from the LA saying she had a place. I found out the DDs school was closing on the Friday, called the LA as directed by my school and they emailed me the Sunday night. No contact details for the school. My contact was through the LA who found the place after my daughters school closed. I now have a phone number but it’s not always answered as the office staff are obviously not in. Parents are not allowed on the premises due to infection control. I got shouted at the one time I tried to go in. I have no idea what is going on there, that’s why I’m removing her. I was trying to save lives by staying in work after my daughters school closed but thanks for the implication that I am just a negligent parent

And how long until a teacher slips into "teaching mode" and that basic support becomes much more? It's like asking any specialist a question in their area but not expecting them to give you a standard answer that any old Bob off the street would say.

So you'd rather key worker's children got less help than other kids instead of getting more?! Ridiculous. Why should these people's kids miss out on adult support because their parents do important jobs. Lots of teachers have kids themselves and of course they help their kids with school work at home when needed. I'm sure their expertise means their help is more useful and I would never ask them to stop helping their children because it's unfair on my kids who only have me to help.

It is not just key worker kids in school of course - though most of them don’t turn up there is another group who should be in school and absolutely should be being supported not just ‘minded’; vulnerable kids. These kids are already at a disadvantage and a few weeks of extra teaching will probably not do much to even up their life chances. If being taught encouraged parents in this group to send them in then they should be being taught!

So instead we put key worker kids at a disadvantage as their parents are not able to provide input?

erm....I am teaching from 8:30am - 3:30pm during this crisis via the Internet. What is you think my children are doing whilst I'm doing that?! What advantage do they have whilst I am working? What about all those other parents who are working from home at the current time - in what way are their children advantaged whilst they try to manage phonecalls, skype meetings and their actual work?

Keyworker children are not the only children who are unsupported at this time.

You seem to be saying you'll end up giving these key workers children an unfair advantage, and therefore shouldn't offer even the most basic support.

I'm suggesting by giving basic support it could leave to more specialist support, yes.

Sorry you found my sentence hard to understand.

There really is no need for that snarky response. This is why people quote other posters on here, makes it easier to understand what you are responding to. Maybe you could consider doing that?

@Really12345 Exactly I really don't think any reasonable person could object to a word you say. Are we really so desperate to make sure key workers' children aren't advantage that we're going to actively disadvantage them. Then write abusive messages to them accusing them of being entitled because they want their kids to do the same work as the kids at home?

I'm suggesting by giving basic support it could leave to more specialist support, yes.

I think it's fairly obvious you're just arguing for the sake of it now and you know full well you're in the wrong. You're saying that because your support might be slightly more helpful than parental support you'd rather they had no support at all and were prevented from accessing the education their peers are getting? And you think people are entitled for objecting to that? You can argue that till your blue in the face but no one is going to take it seriously because it's clearly barmy.

The website for the senior school that is normally there tells me about their GCSE results - very relevant to my three year old DD.

@Really12345 Obviously the GCSE results are not of any relevance but there will be a phone number for the school and a contact email address such as [email protected] which you can email. Alternatively an option would be to have phoned/emailed her own school to ask who to contact or even the LA to ask who to contact.

I was trying to save lives by staying in work after my daughters school closed but thanks for the implication that I am just a negligent parent

If that is how you feel then that's down to you. I made no such implication.

Why should these people's kids miss out on adult support because their parents do important jobs.

Errm, so all other working parents who aren't ICU nurses or key workers aren't considered important? You do realise working parents even from home cant be available all day for support either. I'm suggesting that the current set up with teachers at school should stay in place. I was just pointing out sooner or later that line will get crossed. Therefore those kdis are already at an advantage so why should they also receive formal teaching on top of that?

@Lostmyshityear9 Surely your children are on their computers accessing their home learning? You presumably have some breaks in which you can keep them on track and quickly answer questions. That's what I was doing when I was woring full time yesterday. Some key worker children are being actively prevented from doing their work and aren't being given any support. No one is asking for 1-1 tutoring all day.