So sad for the lack of innovation in uk regarding schools reopening

[emptyfridge]

Watching newsnight about schools reopening. So sad to see the contrast to the approach here in the uk and how they’ve dealt with this abroad. We need to start thinking about the impact of all this on children and drop all this crap about home learning for the next year.

The Danish politician was impressive - along with their policies - so open and creative.

I didn’t see newsnight, can you summarise?

No doubt you’ll be shit down in flames OP but I agree with you...

Oh yet another chance to moan about lazy teachers. How do you know there's a lack of innovation? Have you been in every school in Britain?

shot 😳

I agree, OP.

Sorry what?
My classroom is all set and I’m planning a ton of stuff for those returning. Won’t be the same but we will have fun somehow.
Think it might be too soon but hey ho, we will give it a shot.
Not sure what you mean?

Sorry - did you mean Question time?

And if you knew how much planning is going into this...despite the frankly crap Dfe guidelines being released several times a day.

@OwlinaTree

I did t read it as the OP was having a go at teachers at all. I assumed it was aimed at the higher powers and the ones deciding to keep them off- not at all having a go at teachers, it’s but their fault.

I think they’ve made a u turn due to all the parents kicking off and the it’s not safe hysteria.

Let’s keep them off until September then when they all do go back they’ll have weekend immune systems as they’ve not been allowed to mix.

So all the normal (the all year round ones) bugs and germs will have a field day, not to mention the winter ones that will appear and then on top of that, we’ll add covid in the mix.

Yeah let’s keep them off because that’ll be much better when they do go back 🙄😫

@emptyfridge

YABU because your post is very very vague.

what innovation would you like to see?
Who are you blaming?

If you want a Denmark style opening then its the government as they are the ones stopping it.

You may also want to have a look at the major differences between t situations of the two countries.

It's absolutely dreadful what a decade of underinvestment in schools can do

So many teachers spend their own money buying essential supplies

Dh took the one laptop left in his school (out of 8 for 1400 pupils) to a kid in South London today

Yes, you read that right - his bog standard comprehensive in a deprived area of London has 8 laptops to give out...

Can you imagine how many kids don't have access? Less than 2% of work is being done by the children

It's almost like some teachers want to be made redundant. I know it's not all of them, but some of the head teachers in recent news stories have gone for full on histrionics.

The Danish politician was impressive - along with their policies - so open and creative.

Denmark is in a very different position to the UK. In part linked to swifter action than the UK government - they locked down a week before the UK. They also closed their borders. So far they have had a total of 55 deaths quite a contrast to what's happened here. Their government also worked on the assumption that children spread the Coronavirus just as much as adults and consulted extensively with unions and other educational bodies about when and how to re-open schools:

The vice-president of the Danish Union of Teachers was responsible for detailed negotiations with the education minister, the health authorities and other teaching unions. The aim was to make sure that everyone was happy with the safety measures put in place to ensure an orderly return of younger pupils to classrooms on 15 April.

“As unions, we were taken so much into account and we were consulted so much that we felt quite safe about this,” Lange says. “We said to our members that we think that we can actually trust the authorities and that it will be OK to go back.”

www.theguardian.com/education/2020/may/17/denmark-can-teach-england-safe-reopening-of-schools-covid-19

So yes, there's more than a thing or two our government could have learnt from Denmark.

They haven’t made a u-turn. It was never definite the schools were going to start going back on 1st June. It was maybe but definitely no earlier than. And it’s the test/track/trace ability that is likely to be the deciding factor. If your looking for someone to blame the current government would be a good start for failing to do what virtually every other developed country managed to get sorted weeks ago.

And if we’re looking at what other countries are doing, Spain and Italy are better comparators since they had similar outbreaks to ours. How is return to school being done there?

There's very little that the Uk has done to cover themselves with glory, all that talk about amazing planning...who knows why we fucked it up so much (we have a good idea) but apparently now's not the time to talk about it - wait another 6 months till we've fucked it up even more - then the people who made the decisions will be excused and we will be told that lessons will be learned...some time...when we have more money and people want to pay more taxes - aka never and not likely.

Ah, once again, someone posting a claim in complete ignorance of the majority of the facts.

Aside from the many, many other points I could raise, are you even slightly aware of how massively under funded our schools are, compared to the likes of Denmark?? Under staffed, under resourced, under equipped, yet millions of bloody hardworking, stressed, anxious school staff up & down the country will be trying desperately to take care of these little people, make their days fun, address their fears, educate them...all whilst being terrified for their own safety & that of their own families & children.

But hey, you make your snarky claim from your high horse.

And what age do Danish children start school? Are they expecting 4 yr olds to be in bubbles?

@gingerbiscuits perfectly put. It's truly astounding how many people don't realise how underfunded schools in this country have been since 2009.

We shall teach them on the beaches, we shall teach them on the landing grounds, we shall teach them in the fields and in the streets, we shall teach them in the hills; we shall never surrender.
Is that creative and open enough?

We are still aiming for the big fast death curve, just like Sweden. Nothing to see here.

Yes, Denmark with their 561 deaths... exactly like UK then...
Or Spain, where deaths are in similar number to UK, oh yes, and where children weren't even allowed out to exercise for ten weeks.

I'm an ex-teacher and now work in schools in a mental health role - I don't think the OP is teacher-bashing (you'd best not be, now I've stood up for you OP!).

I think she is referring to the fact that on QT tonight there was talk about how the Danish government has facilitated a different kind of education - not a return to normal, but the innovative use of empty theatres and museums as learning spaces, as well as things such as sailing school and forest school. It has allowed social distancing, protected the 'bubbles" of children, whilst also offering children an enriched experience. It does sound brilliant and I think UK teachers would absolutely embrace this with flexibility and creativity, if only they were allowed to.

This would be an absolutely perfect time for the DfE and government to re-evaluate what kind of education we give to our young people, but it won't happen, everyone will be put back on the treadmill as quickly as possible, and I suspect the system will haemorrhage even more teachers.