To feel in despair for the kids

[JudesBiggestFan]

My son was one of 400 children sent home from two bubbles in his high school today to isolate for 14 days. He's in Year 7 and it was his fourth day in his new school.
He'd been catching the bus, made a new friend, had settled in so much better than I hoped after the past few chaotic disrupted months. And now he's home again.
Not only that, he is now going to miss his cricket presentation and first two football matches of the season, not be able to see friends and family, all for the pleasure of three days of schooling.
And I can see this happening over and over and over again. Luckily childcare isnt an issue as I work from home, but I'm just so sad for kids missing out. Six months off and it seems we're back where we started with no end in sight

Having said that, in a way the current system is a numbers game. Some children will have to self-isolate early on. The majority won't have to.
For example, Edinburgh was planning to allow children into school for just 1 day a week. Schools have now been back for almost 4 weeks. So children have already spent much more time in school than they would have done in a term if the originally proposed blended learning in Edinburgh had gone ahead. If they make it through to the half term holidays, They'll have spent more time in school than Edinburgh was offering them for the entire school year.

I’m suggesting we follow Sweden
Kids are going to catch this
It’s pretty inevitable
The long term impacts of restrictions, lockdown And impacts to health on other diseases through not getting treatment is more concerning to me.
I know that’s not a popular view on here but it’s mine
I don’t believe in sending 150 children home in a ‘bubble’ because 1 child is positive, no

@AldiAisleofCrap yes it has. I'm not putting forward a perfect fully formed solution but I don't think a starting point of sending whole classes or year groups home is right.

@AlexaShutUp what about parents who have to work outside the home though, who can't be there to provide the safe environment for blended learning? And knock on effect for economy.

I think what this is throwing up is there is no scenario that doesn't impact certain groups very badly (hardly rocket science but worth saying!). For me, on balance, sending children home should be a last resort not the first reaction. I believe that children should be the last, not the first to 'have their lives put on hold'.

@millymollymoomoo putting the moral arguments of the Swedish approach aside, the U.K. is nothing like Sweden. The demographics are totally different, over 50% of Swedish households are single occupancy and a myriad of other reasons why repeating the Swedish approach with a totally different demographic would lead to a totally different scenario. Sweden also went on line for its eldest schoolchildren. Most conveniently ignore this.

Kids are going to catch this. It’s pretty inevitable

And then give it to their teachers, who will then be off sick (and some may die) and schools will have to close again. And give it to their parents and grandparents.

Children also been sent home here already. What a term this is going to be!

@Trottersindependenttraders

'There is. It's part time school. Parents didn't want it.'

Parents didn't get a say in it!

It would be great to have a choice and options. It would work better all round.

@Mustfly

It just feels wildly disproportionate to be keeping 400 most likely healthy children away from their education, social life and sports for yet another two weeks on the off chance they have the virus. It feels like we have the worst of all worlds here...a half hearted, too late lockdown that didn't eradicate the virus yet has caused an economic crash. The second we've all gone back out again the virus was still right there, waiting. And I have three children, in preschool, year 4 and year 7, all different institutions. The winter ahead looks dismal with lockdowns over and over again fir all of them. I just feel completely helpless to give my kids the education I would have wanted to and always prioritised. I just wish I could trust the government knew what it was doing. Fat chance!

Your first sentence is exactly why sending entire bubbles home is necessary, and will continue throughout the year. The spread could potentially be far reaching between all those activities and classes (and those of their siblings). If we want our teachers and instructors/coaches to feel safe, we have to exercise controls somewhere.

We can't have it all right now, and yes, it's very shit. But this is why there is danger in sending kids into school based on 'oh it's their normal autumn cold', and also, the potential risk of asymptomatic spread.

Completely agree. I was so depressed today. My daughters class teacher said their was no 'differentiated work' available because of Covid. So my bright maths loving daughter has to sit going through year 3 maths when she needs to be pushing on into more advanced stuff. She's Year 5 - capable and excited - she missed six months of school and now this. I can feel her love for learning ebbing away

Do you know what really irritates me. The fact that everyone’s so keen to get their kids back as education is so important.........yet any teaching professionals who dare to counter the message that everything will be fine and school will be normal are told they’re appalling teachers etc etc

If you’re all so desperate to get your kids back in front of these amazing teachers then try bloody listening when they tell you the plan is not sustainable.

Oh yes I’m sure you’ve all had lovely bubbly e mails from your kids schools and when you drop them off their teachers are bustling with enthusiasm but that’s the party line. Hear what they really think the situation is via the grapevine or ask teaching staff/Heads on social media and they’ll tell you next few mo the will be a shit show at best.

If I sound frustrated it’s because it’s so bloody predictable and not many will allow a compromise and I feel sorry for the staff and kids with exams looming who will lose out.

@absolutelyknackeredcow there’s no home learning for my child who is at home isolating while we wait for a test.

It's tough. Really tough, and I feel for you, OP.

I'm predicting the same thing will happen once the universities start back. If 'indoor interaction' is reduced from 30, as indications today suggest they might be, then any plans they have for blended learning are going straight to the dogs. And that's without the noise the unions are making about it. We'll be back where we started, with non face-to-face teaching delivered via Zoom etc.

Poor students.

I’m sure you’re right. It will happen again, again and again.
DD has just started 6th form. No social distancing at all. Fully surprised we’re not isolating already.

@AlexaShutUp

Yes, it's shit that our kids are missing out on so much, but what's the alternative? We can't just keep schools open and let the virus spread, regardless of what all of the covid deniers might think.

Positing alternative strategies does not make anyone a "denier". In fact it more likely suggests a level of intelligence to consider a range of options and possibilities that name- callers don't have. Country after country has tried suppression. It was sensible to do so. But every shred of evidence says that suppression has not worked. The definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over, in the expectation that one will get a different result. There very definitely are alternatives, and it's now time to examine them. Waiting for the Holy Grail of a vaccine won't cut it.

But what if the person who tests positive is not actually contagious ?

Huh? How could we possibly know that? I mean, why isolate anyone in that case, because they might not be contagious?

@Oaktree55 this has been a shitty time for most parents of school age children, surely you can see that? Either working full time from home while schooling or desperately looking for work while worrying about finances while home schooling or going out to work as a teacher in a school that's open for key workers, or being a KW in a different environment be it hospital, supermarket etc. I have indeed read all
the encouraging emails from our school with a feeling of pride in my heart for how well the teachers are all doing, my confidence in them and how happy the children are so far. Our head did say to me at the gate 'this is far from normal for us', I appreciate her honesty but it's not been normal for anyone since March, has it?

@absolutelyknackeredcow i hear you.
My DD is only year 2 but was doing so well. Today was her 4th day back at school and over dinner tonight i pushed a bit to find out wtf what they are doing at school as so far she hasn't been able to give me any clear idea (not unusual i know). So today she was in a talkative mood re:school and so i went for it. She was answering clearly:
No maths
No english
No one has sat down to read with her since last Thursday.

For info: the whole school is back in full time, a villiage school with only 30 or so pupils per year. The 'bubbles' are whole year groups. Each class has a teacher plus at least one TA - so - why no maths ect yet??

YANBU - I think Year 7s / last year's 6's have really got a particularly raw deal - ripped away from their old pals, not getting to say goodbye and now trying to cope with one of the biggest changes in a child's life in the midst of all this chaos. I know it can't be helped but I do think schools were neglected with central support and continue to be.

Vulnerable children and those at risk have been even more totally shafted - safeguarding of children has been sacrificed for others - largely older - who are more at risk. They said on the news the disparity/damage will last for decades. No perfect choices - no one wins but we've decided that children aren't going to win. They don't come first. We "accept" as a society they will bear the brunt.

Mine are now Year 6 and Year 9 and they're fortunately not at the exam point or transition point (yet) and the constant changes are deeply unsettling for them - with several schools in our area in the Midlands shutting or closing bubbles. Like you I can work from home so we'll be better placed to roll with it but I agree absolutely no coherent planning or money thrown at this issue - if we could do it for the Nightingales we could have had children being schooled - not sitting in front of Oak Academy. Watching videos on their own is NOT teaching for many children, no where close, not unless you supervise, question, challenge and encourage them to interact with the exercises - or as I call it "teach them yourself" which is totally impossible when you have a job. Parents taken absolutely totally for granted and the damage done most to lower paid and women who are doing their best to patch the gaps with fresh air as per usual.

[quote ErinBrockovich]@absolutelyknackeredcow there’s no home learning for my child who is at home isolating while we wait for a test.[/quote]
This won’t be unusual I’m afraid. Yesterday a Yr 11 pupil emailed me to tell me she was isolating and could I provide work. I was teaching 5/5 lessons, due to extra duties I have one 20 minute break from 8 to 3.45. I then had a staff meeting until 5. I need to leave at 5 to collect my children from wraparound club. When do I send meaningful work home???

Its working parents who may lose their jobs after a few times of 14 day absences for childcare that concerns me the most

@smogsville yes it has but global crises are its nature if the beast. I’m frustrated at the majority who stamped their feet and threw toys out the pram demanding normality when it’s not obtainable. The only way forward is compromise and sacrifice unfortunately but most can’t see this. If you truly believe in education as opposed to childcare there was a better way forward than this. Most the word education rather liberally unfortunately.

Agree with the pp who said schools need to look at smaller bubbles in secondary schools Otherwise the winter will be a constant back in two days , off two weeks .

That's madness and that's not what's happening in Scotland and we have been back for weeks now

If a child tests positive they have closed the school for 24 hours to deep clean and all kids apart from positive kid are straight back to school

Wonder why this isn't being done everywhere.?

I’ve no idea how families with younger children in school are managing with work and childcare with these closures. I’m grateful I’m not in this situation and feel for you all 💐

@Indoctro

That's madness and that's not what's happening in Scotland and we have been back for weeks now

If a child tests positive they have closed the school for 24 hours to deep clean and all kids apart from positive kid are straight back to school

Wonder why this isn't being done everywhere.?

Because there are almost certainly kids in the group incubating the virus over the next 2-14 days and then it could keep spreading through the school?