Schools should close for 2 weeks after the Christmas mixing

[OverTheRainbow88]

I think that schools should remain closed for face to face teaching 2-3 weeks after the end of the period in which Boris will allow families to all mix.

I don’t want to be in a classroom with 30 different kids 5 times a day who’ve mixed inside with all different family members and friends.

I say online learning until mid Jan, if Boris will allow us all to mix at Christmas

Schools have been closed enough, take my child

By that reasoning, do you mean that all doctors (or nurses, healthcare assistants, care workers etc etc) who ever come into contact with COVID patients shouldn't work or shouldn't have contact with anyone if they've been at work? If HCPs weren't working, what would happen to the patients?!

Can you imagine? There would be no-one left. We are never allowed to go home. Even if someone within our team has tested positive, because apparently we’re all supposed to be social distancing, in a busy hospital environment.

@KarmaNoMore

YABU of course, if the schools are closed for 2 weeks after Christmas, people will continue mixing big scale with the extended family as if it was a bloody holiday.

To be honest, I wish people could see that their insistence of meeting granny and all the family over Christmas is the best way to get her killed.

And no, it is not as if I don’t understand granny, I have lost mine to Covid already and almost my parents.

I am so sorry for your loss

@Bagamoyo1

Teachers should wear masks all day, as I’m certain they are permitted to. Then their risk is the same as many other workers and they can stop fretting about it. And as for online teaching - I’m sorry but I think we all know it doesn’t really happen, not in any consistent and meaningful way . They either just send a worksheet over, or they do a “live lesson” which consists of 15 minutes of talking, followed by, you guessed it, another worksheet. That’s the case for my kids school and for the schools of all my friends kids. I dare say there are exceptions but I haven’t come across any.

We are permitted to technically although lots of teachers say we aren't allowed to - the guidance DOES clearly strongly advise against it and individual head teachers I have heard are saying no, which is bad. I'm allowed to in my school but I don't because it would make teaching harder, and my EAL pupils would struggle. Also, I don't have much faith in how much I would be protected if I'm the only one wearing one and none of my kids are. Not worth the negative effects really.

The kids mix and spread more when they re out of school than in.

Half term here (Kent) saw play dates, sleep overs, "small" parties for kids....this myth that kids in the same bubble should be able to spend time together outside of school and indoors (rule of 6) has definitely contributed to spread round here.

We had an explosion of school cases after half term.

I see kids (now) that must be off due to self isolation (albeit in pairs) walking to the local coffee shop for a takeaway!

So, no schools off, whilst the weather likely to be bad - will make things worse not better imo.

If I hear "but you have PPE" ill fucking scream. A surgical mask, plastic pinny and gloves does not properly protect me from covid.

I’m convinced the general public think we wear the full kit the whole time with covid patients. We don’t. We only wear it when we’re carrying out an aerosol generated procedure (I can’t speak for areas like ITU). Otherwise I am in the same surgical mask you all wear to the shops. My plastic apron must be lined with magic.

@nailsneeddoing
Seems strange how that two weeks matters to parents when on here pre pandemic there was often a lot of support for parents taking their children out of school for term time holidays

Seems strange that a teacher would have such a poor grasp of logic that she can't see the difference between:

a) some parents in non-pandemic year (ie without previous time out of school, financial strain and risk of redundancy) are happy for their children who are doing well academically to miss a week of school at a time of year when the class aren't doing new work

and

b) all parents, regardless of their personal/work/financial situation, and regardless of whether their DC are coping, are happy for their kids to miss yet more school time, despite the impact of 6 months out of school earlier in the year, messed up exams, and ongoing class closures .

Hth

schools should not close for a variety of reasons.

DV increases over Christmas period. Vunerable children need to be back in school.

We had an awful Christmas last year due to a breavement. We will be having a very quiet one this year , my DS with ASD needs school. I would happily forfit one day that I can make different just like lockdown birthdays rather than be locked away, business's folding, the nations debt increasing.

Sadly the plans to allow Christmas mixing will inevitably increase the disruption to education one way or the other.

This is what many people don't seem to understand. I don't know any Teachers who want schools to close but the plans leaked to the Telegraph to basically allow a week long free for all when it comes to households mixing put schools in an impossible position.

I really want schools to remain open for all students but the secondary school where I work is already on the verge of closing. We currently have three year groups at home due to positive cases. Many children are now on their third episode of self-isolating due to being a close contact of someone who has tested positive and although our online provision is excellent, it's not substitute for face to face teaching. We have so many staff off with confirmed covid or waiting for results or as close contacts that we're struggling to function. It doesn't feel safe, not just because of covid but because there are not enough adults to cover duties and covid has wiped out most of our pastoral and SEND staff. If the Govt goes ahead with this ridiculous plan to let multiple households mingle in homes for a week over Christmas then the shit will well and truly hit the fan in January and whether people like it or not, many schools will simply not be able to remain open fully.

If Boris throws the nation's health and children's education under the bus so he can be the PM who 'saved Christmas' then I will be utterly furious but sadly I think this is exactly what he will do.

Whoever said that there's enough of a gap after Christmas until term starts to cover an incubation period - not really... If restrictions are relaxed until New Year's Day and we're back on the 4th, that's 2-3 days in between!

I would rather people just didn't mix over Christmas. I would rather be in school. But I teach 6 classes, 4 have had positive cases and have been sent home to isolate, the most recent last week. This is my reality and I feel like I'm I'm dodging bullets. The thought of a free for all mixing worries me.

Schools shouldn’t stay closed, but whose who insist on mixing should be forced to self isolate afterwards and take annual leave for it if they have children at primary agr and below.

Oh come on! My kids face to face education is not a luxury, it is a necessity. Doing this is promoting the idea that mixing And "having a proper Christmas" is worth more than our kids education. What about those of us that dont even celebrate Christmas?? Unbelievable.

Fine, some will mix. Fine, there may be spread after Christmas. Our local park had about 150 kids in it yesterday. People are already mixing.

My best friend confessed to me this week she has been feeling suicidal over the way covid is affecting our lives and the career she has spent the past 20 years. An isolating first year student my DH teaches took his own life on November 1st.

What is the current infection fatality rate again?

It is not the families mixing and kids going back to school that concerns me in Jan but:

• Christmas shopping
• Sale shopping
• going to shops for a browse as nothing else to do
• mixing indoors in pubs, restaurants

With people that do not self isolate with symptoms or a positive test or who have been asked to self-isolate.

@ZombieAttack

If I hear "but you have PPE" ill fucking scream. A surgical mask, plastic pinny and gloves does not properly protect me from covid.

I’m convinced the general public think we wear the full kit the whole time with covid patients. We don’t. We only wear it when we’re carrying out an aerosol generated procedure (I can’t speak for areas like ITU). Otherwise I am in the same surgical mask you all wear to the shops. My plastic apron must be lined with magic.

I came across these pictures on an American covid site yesterday, maybe this is what the general public think we all look like?? Can you imagine wearing this all day though

@ohnothisagain

Schools shouldn’t stay closed, but whose who insist on mixing should be forced to self isolate afterwards and take annual leave for it if they have children at primary agr and below.

I agree.

ohnothisagain its unenforceable. We already have parents sending kids in with sunrooms, sending them in while waiting for test results, parents claiming their child has had a negative result when they haven't even taken a test, parents who send their kids to school after holidays abroad when they should have been quarantined. People want to have their cake and eat it. They want their kids in school but they aren't willing to compromise in other areas for that to be safe and sustainable. It's depressing.

Symptoms not sunrooms

Couldn't agree more. At school, we had a positive case in my bubble which meant we were supposed to isolate over half term, which I did. However, when we came back, the children were full of the Halloween parties and birthday parties they had been to and the places they had gone on holiday.
YANBU.

I can see why school staff would feel anxious but why do we always talk about "schools". There's a big difference between young primary kids and teenagers both in risk of spread and options for online learning.

Please can we break these discussions down.

I think people are getting this the wrong way around. I think much more likely the kids are catching it in school and the worry I have is taking it to grandparents. Rather than the kids catching it from grandparents and taking it in to school.

I won't be mixing and I don't want my kids to miss anymore school they have missed enough.

I’m a teacher and a parent.
Keep schools open before and after Christmas holidays.
Don’t allow mixing of households over Christmas
People’s priorities are so messed up!

Yes, Washimal.

Alk of that. Children are definitely not being kept at home whilst parents/siblings await results. Or with symptoms. Or even whilst awaiting a test result themselves. In fact, I think 100% of ours have been in school up until the minute the parent tests positive.

I think this is one of the causes of the difficulty in resolving this argument between (some) parents on here and (some) teachers: if you are a really responsible citizen/parent, you have no idea just how dangerous our jobs are, thanks to all the irresponsible people out there. (Whereas you know and understand that police/prison staff/healthcarw staff are frequently put at risk by users.)

This is a v difficult situation and can see all side of argument. Currently there are many students who have spent 4 weeks in isolation since going back in September. Some have been v unlucky and spent more time. The other potential issue is that students get asked to isolate in the last week of term and will mean that they have to isolate over all of Christmas. I don’t think there’s an easy option here, so difficult isn’t it