Why won't the government insist that children wear masks at school?

[cansu]

I am a teacher and I want to be at work. I hate remote learning. However I am more worried now than I have ever been about covid. I really wish that we could see the govmt really try much harder to make school safer and really listen to staff.
I do not understand why we are so reluctant to ensure the use of masks in school environments and I include primary in this.
All children, except for those whose special needs prevent it, wear a mask in school lessons and in all communal areas inside. No mask = no school. If parents send their child in without a mask, they are sent home. If pupils refuse to wear them, they are sent home.

Because lots of people in a very odd group called Us4Them don’t want their children to be ‘muzzled’ and cause a huge fuss any time masks for children are mentioned. They would like schools to go back exactly as normal for their children.

For some reason, they seem to have had an inordinate hold over Boris Johnson. I’m not sure Gavin Williamson is really too fussed about what they think though, as he has not ever been in a state school.

I wonder what will happen if it comes down to a choice between schools being closed or everyone wearing masks?!

Can you imagine the hooha? Grown up adults can’t even be bothered to wear a mask/covering nose and mouth, so they won’t be expecting their kids to do so either - because they read on a Facebook page that it’s all a hoax by ‘The Man’ anyway..

Incompetence.
Selfishness.
Arrogance.

Our government doesn't care about teachers.

Not sure. I'm a teacher in Spain and all kids over 6 wear them. They've been brilliant about it, it's the adult teachers wearing them under the nose, round the chin etc, not the kids. They also disinfect their hands and desks before and after each class. They sit apart. Obviously they socialise together and when there's been a case all the friendship group isolates and dials in via teams. But so far we haven't had to close an entire classroom and no teacher has isolated. We've had a few cases but nothing like what I was expecting in September.

I'm not sure of the overall efficacy of masks but it serves as a very visible reminder to be cautious overall, I think. And the kids really don't want to have to self isolate as they've been bored out of their brains while their mates are still at school so they comply very well.

I see your reasoning op but it would be a nightmare to enforce in lower primary school. Its hard enough doing everything that needs to be done without the added hand washing, sanitising and then add in constantly stopping teaching to tell timmy to put his mask on for the 99th time that morning.
Plus take into consideration children like my son who needs daily speech therapy and needs to see whole faces to understand anything

I wouldn’t want my child to wear a mask in primary school.

I agree with you. Make it normal for kids and they'll just get on with it. Tell them it's everyones responsibility to do their bit to keep everyone else safe and they will.

The problem comes when SOME (not all) parents have this sense of entitlement 'you can't tell my kid what to do'

Calling it being muzzled and 'barbaric' (I'm quoting a different thread there) creating this sense that it's asking kids to do something unreasonable. It's really not. It's just a face covering. And it might save people dying or getting really sick.

If you tell a small child that they have to wear the facemask and wash their hands because of the nasty germs, most kids will choose their superman/barbie mask and get in with it. Tell them just an evil muzzle and they won’t.

It's a psychological thing. The Government's key messaging on schools is that schools are safe. Boris even repeated it twice this week. It becomes a lot more difficult for parents to believe that when they have to pack masks into their child's bag every day.

Why do parents have to believe that? Well, if they stop then it's more likely that parents will refuse to send their children in and so the workforce is diminished. It's also likely they will rally for better conditions in schools and the Government will have to fund them rather than saying that the issues are entirely made up by "teachers" and "the unions".

No insistence in shops.
No insistence in the House of Commons.
So why start in schools given that the impact of Covid 19 on a child is likely to be less?

I know you are scared but the people who oppose your ideas are scared too.
I don’t want my child to wear a mask. I have completely different views to you. The society you want to create scares me, just as much as you are scared now.
We are all just trying to do the best for our families. This isn’t a battle of who is right and who is wrong.

I wouldn't like my 6 year old to wear a mask all day at school.

Here is a simple choice. Wear masks and have your children in school or keep them at home until the danger has passed.

YANBU. Where I teach we enforced the mask rule off our own backs from day 1 of the Michaelmas term. And it's detention for anyone who isn't wearing one or wearing one properly - strict yes but we have had 1 case of COVID in the whole term whereas the school down the road had 60 pupils test positive.

And as far as I know we've had no complaints - but the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Our school has been shit hot on PPE, enforcing social distancing. We've tripled our duty provision so that we don't miss any pupils who refuse to socially distance. We closed the staff room for a while then allowed reduced numbers . I missed the downtime in the staff room but it's really paid off IMO

@nosswith

No insistence in shops. No insistence in the House of Commons. So why start in schools given that the impact of Covid 19 on a child is likely to be less?

Face coverings are to be worn in shops and supermarkets unless you are exempt. That's been the rule for a while now.

The HoC has social distancing. Schools do not.

The fatality may be less but we cannot claim the impact is less. Educational settings have the highest transmission levels of any setting. This means that more children are going to be positive and have to isolate, missing school and possibly infecting others which puts their families/neighbours/school staff at risk.

Why cant we enforce it for adults to? No mask no entry.

Never had masks in my sons primary and we have had no cases 🤷‍♀️. Regular busy state school in Scotland. I believe the teacher is allowed to wear a mask though. So who knows what’s right it wrong. I should add in the secondary school where older kids wore masks there have been several cases.

@Ugzbugz

Why cant we enforce it for adults to? No mask no entry.

Because plenty of people are exempt for good reasons and they don't have to share why that is

I totally agree with you OP and think they should be worn in all schools including primaries. For those who don't want their DC to wear a mask - why not? Why is it such a big deal? Is it any different to your kid wearing a coat or a pair of gloves or a scarf?

If you are that scared perhaps it’s time for you to go off sick? You control your own life, not the government.
Personally, I am not afraid of Covid but if I did think there was something that could hurt me and my family I would do whatever I had to do to prevent that. You are the master of your own destiny.

I totally agree OP.
Push the responsibility back to parents, if they don't want to help their children comply then it's their fault that their children will miss education.
Strictly stick to the rules and the children that attend along with the teachers will be as safe as they can be in the current situation.

Secondary pupils and teachers in Scotland have to wear masks in school at all times.

I agree that it goes against their 'school is safe' lies.

It should have been implemented in September and it would have become completely normalised by now.