Disappointed secondary schools are reopening

[wovengrass]

I'm hoping for a sensible exchange of ideas on this.
I understand the importance of children missing out on learning, but I can't help but feel that a full reopening of all secondary schools in the UK at the same time is madness.
I strongly feel that it would have been better to spend time/money on making home learning a realistic and standardised solution, as well as putting plans in place for the children that need further support. That way if any future outbreaks happen we aren't just hoping for the best and blindly following this idea that "schools must be the last place to close no matter what."

I also can't get my head around the logistics, locally. The local secondary that my nephew attends (there are several large ones near to me) has over 1000 students, many rely on public transport to get there. With reduced space on transport due to social distancing, I wonder how children will actually all make it to school on time? Many schools are also not allowing children who are late to enter, to avoid the crossing of year group bubbles.

Throw also into the mix that many adult will be relying on the same transport to return to work. I'm genuinely wondering how on earth it is realistic?

I think primary and nursery schools are a different thing entirely, and obviously childcare is a factor then also. But putting 1000 teenagers/young adults + teacher staff into a building with no masks and no country-wide home learning plan if things go wrong, seems absolutely nuts to me.

Just wondering what others think about this?

[Ke1o9]

It's a worry. Mine is at primary school and I am dreading cases ending up in the school.

I think it will end up in every school.
Some will get mildly ill
Some will get severely ill.
Some teachers will get severely ill.
Some parents will get severely ill.
Some parents and teachers will end up dying.

That's the reality. Why did the government leave our children home from march, just to throw them all back in at the start of autumn? It was never about us just the NHS. Now the beds are available he doesn't care about our children or us! I think at least 100 NHS staff have died.

It's the worst plan he's come up with so far. Absolutely ridiculous down to the last detail.

Parents cant go in the playgrounds but they can queue at the gates together is my favourite. Pe bags not safe is another. No hot meals is another.

So it's clearly not safe but we must keep going to restart the country!!!

I just hope lives are not lost to his crazy full time school again plan.

When parents have bad cases of covid are we still expected to look after our kids? Or are we allowed to be in bed? He's literally ignoring all the risks and problems. If your kids don't go to school you can have a fine too...... I agree he could have done more to gradually ease in and make sure it's going to be safe!!!

[Conniethesensible]

I heard you have to officially homeschool them if you’re not putting them back in school?

Situation is different all over, the local primary my daughter is at has just 100 kids so I’m not fussed. Where I lived in Ilford before, it was much bigger and probs would give me more sleepless nights.

[Useruseruserusee]

Many children are vulnerable to the virus too and it’s not just about death. My toddler is vulnerable and his surgical team believe he would be hospitalised as other children with his condition have been. I’m so relieved he isn’t of compulsory school age, even though DH, other DS and I will all be in the school environment.

[Monkeynuts18]

Well I agree that there should be a Plan B and home learning should be a realistic and standardised solution. The disparity in home learning support around the country, and between the private and state sector, has been shocking.

But I very strongly disagree that schools re-opening is ‘madness’.

It is important to appreciate that the benefits of school for many young people extend far beyond just ‘learning’. And home learning simply isn’t a realistic prospect for many.

What are the infection rates like in your area? In my area, there were 1.1 new cases per 100,000 people the week before last, and 0.0 new cases per 100,000 last week.

In the context of those figures, opening a secondary school containing 1,000 teenagers doesn’t seem like madness to me. In fact it seems bonkers to keep it closed.

[InDeoEstMeaFiducia]

Pretty fucking sick of secondary school children, they are still children or we wouldn't have pesky little laws about being able to work full-time at 14 and the like thrown under a bus for all this. They are just as important as primary and nursery age children. They deserve full-time school education to be available to them if they and their family chose to take it up. If you don't then homeschool your kids. Thankfully, you don't get to decide for everyone else.

[Crinkle77]

@ineedaholidaynow

We are talking Secondary Schools here so not such an impact on working parents.

As stated above a Plan B needs to be in place. More work should have been done by the Government to ensure that all schools could provide a good level of remote learning if needed, but they haven't.

Not much impact on working parents? Really? I don't know many people that would want to leave their 11-15 year olds at home all day unsupervised.

[IncrediblySadToo]

@WouldBeGood

Large numbers of teachers being off sick hasn’t happened anywhere else.

Such as where?

Where have they got senior schools, with 30+ in each class, back full time?

[boys3]

@stopgap

Do school districts in the UK self-govern by district or or is it central controlled? I’m English, but have lived in the US for twenty years.

Our board of ed has had to come up with three plans, submit them to the state, and then each district ultimately gets to decide what they are doing for the fall. Given that here in Connecticut we have benefitted from seeing the mistakes made in other states, a hybrid model seems to be the most realistic right now. The state is making sure that all children have access to laptops and optimal WiFi connections. The former head of the CDC lives locally, and even he has said no way will schools be in person for longer than a couple of months, and that’s with everyone in masks, sanitizing stations everywhere, classrooms at half capacity etc.

effectively controlled by whatever political diktat comes out of Whitehall.

[AlaskaThunderfuckHiiiiiiiii]

@ineedaholidaynow my 11 year old has just started secondary, as I said above blended learning would have had a huge impact on us all and my ability to keep my job

[CallmeAngelina]

@TableFlowerss

I’m very happy they are going back.

Home school your DC then if you’re that concerned. Stay at home and only leave the house when necessary.

RTFT.
Particularly the last couple of dozen posts.

[CallmeAngelina]

The Government doesn't appear to think we need a Plan B, as they keep parroting "Schools are safe," thinking if they say it often enough, people will believe it.
It seems it's working.

[OnlyFoolsnMothers]

What if the cost of that is the economy tanking even more and more unemployment? quite frankly I don’t think we should be shutting anything down further- but this government put two fingers up to children for the sake of adults, rather than follow the likes of Denmark. It’s time to put children first!

[CallmeAngelina]

It's like "cancel the fucking cheque" all over again on here.

[CallmeAngelina]

They deserve full-time school education to be available to them if they and their family chose to take it up.

Sadly, Covid-19 doesn't give a shit about that. What are YOU going to do about YOUR child when if their school has to close within a couple of weeks of term starting?

[Illuyanka]

Secondary school needs to open more than primary imo, and should be an option for those who wants to send their children. It's up to you to send them or not.

[ineedaholidaynow]

I wonder how many parents will be on here blaming teachers when their schools close and asking why the teachers hadn't done something about it

[PablosHoney]

YABVU

[CallmeAngelina]

@ineedaholidaynow

I wonder how many parents will be on here blaming teachers when their schools close and asking why the teachers hadn't done something about it

Yep. Let's open a sweep-stake on it already.

[WouldBeGood]

I’m not blaming teachers for any of this. I think schools have done amazingly with the crap government guidance and late decision making (I’m in Scotland)

[itsgettingweird]

@DumplingsAndStew

Why are people talking about no back up plan? Why would there be no back up plan? If you think your school are stupid enough to not have a back up plan, why do you choose to allow them to educate your children at all?

It's a standardised plan people want.

Lockdown showed that the facilities pupils have at home to access remote learning and the systems schools have to provide it varies.

Therefore students aren't getting a standardise education. They are all taking the same exams though.

[InDeoEstMeaFiducia]

@CallmeAngelina

They deserve full-time school education to be available to them if they and their family chose to take it up.

Sadly, Covid-19 doesn't give a shit about that. What are YOU going to do about YOUR child when if their school has to close within a couple of weeks of term starting?

I'm lucky enough that I can work from home, Callme. Sadly, life has to go on for even secondary school pupils despite Covid, however much some don't want it to. My child has already restarted school as am not in England. Tomorrow is their third day back. It's a pity the sky won't fall in the way some people truly seem to want.

[CallmeAngelina]

Well, thank you, WouldBeGood, but I reckon you're about the only one who isn't.

[LadyCatStark]

Oh FFS, there’s not been a single corona virus death in 5 weeks across our entire health authority, yet we should keep all our children at home?

[InDeoEstMeaFiducia]

@WouldBeGood

I’m not blaming teachers for any of this. I think schools have done amazingly with the crap government guidance and late decision making (I’m in Scotland)

I agree.