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.

Extra cabins and a row of portaloos in my school would mean zero outside space, none.

And re portaloos you’d need loos with small lower down bowls and seats. Infant loos are tiny for a reason. Who is going to accompany the 4 and 6 year olds who will inevitably get spooked outside on their own or lock themselves in. Every available member of staff will be assigned a bubble to teach and sticking to it, unable to mix with others to do somebody else’s’ loo run.

Grasspigeons nobody pretends to give no shit about anybody or anything! But the truth is, if nobody is prepared to look for a solution for the problems, we will never move on and out of lockdown!
I think my work has got it right - medium sized national company with several offices / deparments. Top down communication from head office to middle managers: we need to go back from 1st June onwads. This is how we see it could work, this are the resources we have available for your department. Please tell us what you think. Middle managers go to team leader and general workforce to discuss proposal, looking at their specific site / offices / needs and looking at how it can be put into practice. This has been communicated back up, and things are being put into place to make it work.
Same could happen with schools, government, communicate down to council, we need to open up using all available facilities. Council does stock take of available resources and communicate with head teachers to find out needs. Head teachers communicate with teachers what / how things can be put into place to make it work. But that would require some common sense all round!

I’m not sure that there’s any point in trying to convince people who think all we need is some corporate bullshit out of the box thinking and a can-do attitude that it might be a lot more complicated than they’re imagining. Sadly, we seem to be governed by people that would rather talk bollocks about such things that actually think through the details and carefully plan anything too.

Because safeguarding issues, accessibility and inclusion, staffing issues, safety issues, resource issues and so on, and on and on can just be brushed aside for some back of the fag packet poorly thought through ideas.

And, obviously, the teaching profession is utterly devoid of anyone willing or able to ‘think creatively’ or to innovate. There’s been absolutely none on the over the past couple of months. It’s all just been business as usual for the lazy dullards. 🙄

Um Yivdo ya not think schools are doing that.🤔

Well op, I can’t wait to hear your solution.

Would you prefer no concessions to the killer virus that’s going around and watching the death rates go up? Or have you a solution to needing double the space and staff overnight for half-sized classrooms?

I think part-time schooling is the only way for now.

@Kazzyhoward @grumpyorange @Grasspigeons. Thanks for your suggestions. Some good ideas here. I wish there was some way teachers on the ground like yourselves could be consulted and be able to feedback these ideas up the chain to government and union head level. There’s lots of positive suggestions on the ground but at the top, all I can see and hear is tumbleweed and crickets and hysteria.

There is literally no point in having any ideas in education - you can't do anything, nothing is possible...there are obstacles with every solution, I'm sorry I was being a little too over ambitious, it must be very hard for ideas people to work in education it's so negative.
Given the response on this thread I'm more impressed than ever at what our local Scout Association has managed to achieve over the years.

This place is do odd , on one thread there are people going to barbecues and mixing with family and quote ‘ not worrying about social distancing ‘ because the risk is minute and on here talking about children and teachers dying . No wonder we are all confused ,.

...and @Peaseblossom22 there are posters going nuts if their neighbour goes to the shop too often, or who won't go in their garden if the neighbour is in theirs, or who are complaining because people are going to the park (even when socially distanced) because it's NOT ESSENTIAL. Yet it's fine for teachers to be in an enclosed space with 15 kids who can't socially distance.

From SAGE:

We believe that decisions on school opening should be guided by evidence of low levels of COVID-19 infections in the community and the ability to rapidly respond to new infections through a local test, track and isolate strategy. There is no clear evidence that these conditions are met. Until they are it is not safe to open schools on June 1.

Delaying a school re-opening by two weeks (to 15th June) approximately halves the risk to children, and delaying the re-opening till September is less risky still.

www.independentsage.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Independent-Sage-Brief-Report-on-Schools.pdf

People should also read this:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings

We have had portacabins, portaloos, all we need now is the renting of marques to be added and we have the full set.

Bi11abong - my post is about good communication on every level. I have no doubt that some is happening, but some is obviously not otherwise unions and government would sing from the same hym sheet. It's not an individual's fault at all not even a head teachers ... but of course you can take the blame if you want to be a scapegoat- Boris will need one!

the problem with innovation is it needs things like money, space, staff, all sorts of other resources...the problem with UK education is that it lacks money (and has been underfunded since 2010 in a major way), space is at a premium (halls being multi-purpose as dining halls, for example), staff are in short-supply before you even taken into account issues such as shiedling and the staff that do exist have been paying for the basics out of their own pockets for years.

The average teacher may run to a class set (or 5) of pritt sticks several times a year but hiring land and portacabins is way beyond their salaries.

If you want creative, collective wisdom, experience and knowledge could undoubtedly do wonders but we would need unlimited resources and for parents to accept that things would not be the same.

@nobodyimportant

That isn’t SAGE.

The SAGE publications are here:

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/886994/s0257-sage-sub-group-modelling-behavioural-science-relaxing-school-closures-sage30.pdf

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/887014/s0300-tfc-modelling-behavioural-science-relaxing-school-closures-sage31.pdf

And more here:
www.gov.uk/government/groups/scientific-advisory-group-for-emergencies-sage-coronavirus-covid-19-response

The reason other countries like Denmark are managing is because they have a gov that care about their people living.
They closed down/ or managed the cases they had.
Our gov just let thousands upon thousands die.
There's hardly any comparison.

Yanbu OP. It's a complete disgrace. As a society we have decided that although 500-600,000 people die every year from all sorts of things, only Covid matters and we are going to let down a generation of children in a way we haven't done since the 1947 Education Act.

'Independent SAGE' is a politically motivated, far left agitator to SAGE. It is not SAGE.

Given how enthusiastic the lockdown fanatics have been about SAGE, it's deeply disingenuous to jump on another bandwagon that comes along because it might better suit your agenda.

@RitzSpy No, no point in having any ideas in education. Teachers are the least creative people, didn't you know? We don't have ideas, we don't plan and deliver fun things for our pupils. Ever. Do you volunteer with the Scouts? You should train to be a teacher, show us how to be positive and do what the Scouts do.

There's a massive difference between having a "can't do" attitude and being aware of the need to follow safeguarding guidelines, surely? We can't just do away with safeguarding policies and procedures, you must see that?

@SallyLovesCheese Oh the irony of the gap between 'what about those poor children who are living in awful schools, we must get the schools open as soon as possible' and 'we must get the schools open at all costs won't someone think of the economy'. Can't wait to see how the Government is going to double the workforce to manage 15 kids to a class. it simply isn't going to happen. And yet some parents still insist opening must happen and all must return full time. It isn't going to happen.

Let’s not forget this government’s thinking that TAs are unnecessary. Now they want them teaching bubbles.😂

Due to underfunding staff have been cut. I’ll say it again, you reap what you sow.

RitzSpy

There is literally no point in having any ideas in education - you can't do anything, nothing is possible...there are obstacles with every solution,

What a whiney response, there are many innovative ideas in education, there have to be because there is fuck all money to do anything.

I'm sorry I was being a little too over ambitious, it must be very hard for ideas people to work in education it's so negative.

I think that the correct answer to this is

Given the response on this thread I'm more impressed than ever at what our local Scout Association has managed to achieve over the years.

So you are comparing a school against a small local organisation where parents pay fees and that for some reason companies seem to like supporting.

Nothing annoys me more than IndependentSAGE. Imagine if all those who just missed out on SLT position at schools joined together and became independentSLT and then offered criticism and advice about the way a shool should be run causing confusion and mayhem for the parents! Anyway, that's not why I'm posting.

Regarding innovation I think teachers have done an amazing job for online learning. Many of them qualified before the internet was even invented, but here they are giving lessons online with no or only very basic training. I have been truly amazed at the quality of online learning and work is marked electronically and feedback given. I think that in normal times if a teacher was expected to start delivering lesons remotely they would receive extensive training for this and if it became more usual for all teachers it would probably be covered as part of teacher training. These teachers have had nothing but are doing great work. I do think that there is a lack of appreciation for what has already been achieved.

And regarding returning to school, teachers are innovative and it is not a competitive industry. If someone finds something that works it will be shared and improved upon. But for those teaching it is yet another huge mountain to climb at a time they would usually be winding down for the year so it is not really surprising that many have had enough. They are only human.

YANBU it is a disgrace. The unions had a golden opportunity to be positive about the value of education and the vanguard encouraging teachers who are reluctant to go back and suggesting solutions. Instead their throwback-to-the-70s chippiness about those government' and unmitigated politicisation has generated a contempt for teachers as lazy luddites.

I could teach a group of around ten every day in my back garden. I'd stand on my trampoline so they'd all see me but stay 2m away.
Is that imaginative enough for you?
(May be bitter just now as putting hours of work in today when I should be off)

(Oh and also reading absolute claptrap about teaching unions not valuing education. What's next, the BMA don't value health?)