To think this class should be closed?

[Jenster03]

I'm a part time primary teacher and in the space of two weeks, 14 children have tested positive out of 30 in my class.
We've had 2 or 3 return in that time, but more and more are testing positive. Now my teaching assistant has it.
AIBU to think we should be sending the class home and remote learning? How would you feel if you were a parent of a child in my class?
Oh, and I'm pretty anxious about my level of exposure too!

@luckylavender

You've just said exactly what I have said about using reasonable measures rather than doing nothing and then closing things down every few months.

@luckylavender

I've got a new name, sorry!

@SheikhMaraca - I’m hopefully the mandatory mask wearing is introduced with on the spot fines. Works well in other countries and they have saved more lives.

It’s no restriction on your life and 100% worth it if it saves even one life. People (including you) need to think of others before yourself. The CEV can’t just hide away and more importantly why should they. It’s everyone’s responsibility to try and keep everyone as safe as possible

@PastMyBestBeforeDate

I'm enjoying the rank hypocrisy of bleating about masks and seatbelts being an infringement on human rights whilst simultaneously telling the 600,000 immunosuppressed people to separate themselves from society.

Indeed.

Silly immunosuppressed people - they should manage better.

We had the same situation in my youngest's class, 20+ children were off in 1 class. The teacher & TA both tested positive, unfortunately the wonderful ta is still unwell and off work due to it 4 weeks later. I caught it from my youngest and ended up in hospital with covid pneumonia.
The school didn't attempt any homework learning, but did ensure classes didn't mix, which worked reasonably well.
I hope you stay well, I really feel for teachers

Nope .. we have to live with Covid. If anyone including yourself is vulnerable then precautions need to be taken. Fingers crossed you have had your vaccines so will be fine.

@lughnasadh

There's no point in sending them home. When you consider siblings, childminders, after school clubs etc. they'll all be mixing with the rest of tbe school /community outside of teaching hours anyway.

They're better off getting it over with.

Pretty much everyone who can be/wants to be vaccinated has been.

You do realise that more and more people in ICU are double jabbed?

I’m double jabbed and I work in a school with the same level of exposure. I also happen to have two medically vulnerable family members at home. There are absolutely no mitigation’s in schools at the moment. It’s just been left to spread like wildfire. 10,000 students a day for the last 21 days have caught covid.

Absolutely ✋

Schools have no control. All they can do is follow government guidelines. They have no choice of bubbles until cases reach 10%.

I don’t agree with it but can’t do anything about it

@Djifunrsn

My good god. I hope you have had jabs op, that level of exposure (for you) is unacceptable. 2 schools here have gone on early half term. Not sure if that is zooming or just closed entirely.

I hope the 2 jabs work for OP also, Didn't work for me, now I have long covid 😒

@lughnasadh

There's no point in sending them home. When you consider siblings, childminders, after school clubs etc. they'll all be mixing with the rest of tbe school /community outside of teaching hours anyway.

They're better off getting it over with.

Pretty much everyone who can be/wants to be vaccinated has been.

This 👆

Really hate how many comments on here are basically saying suck it up and get in with it… as if 80+ children haven’t died. As if vaccinated teachers haven’t died. As if my double vaccinated, young, teacher colleague isn’t in hospital right now fighting for her life.
I thought women on mumsnet were generally better educated and less fucking heartless.

Pretty tough for the many CEV for whom the vaccine doesn't work. I guess at least they know how little others in society care about them now.

Plus, the higher levels of virus we have the higher the chance of a vaccine evading variant taking us back to square one.

You cannot be fined. All fines have been suspended.

And what @MooPointCowsOpinion said too.

Other countries (US, Canada to name two) are having discussions about how to make the classroom safer and protect kids. Here people seem fine with no mitigations at all and sod the kids that get needlessly hurt as a result.

Today I had 10 out of 32 pupils in class. Their actual teacher and LSA both have Covid too and are at home both rather poorly.
I am now in there covering, it’s very quiet!
We’ve been told just to keep washing hands, keep all windows open, children are sat in their coats as it’s freezing, I’m just desperate to avoid it at all costs as I care for an elderly relative and won’t be able to if I catch it.

@Djifunrsn

My good god. I hope you have had jabs op, that level of exposure (for you) is unacceptable. 2 schools here have gone on early half term. Not sure if that is zooming or just closed entirely.

This is the point isn't it. Ever since that poor optometrist died in China, it has been known that viral load matters and multiple exposure makes the illness worse. If you can stay home on sick leave under your terms of employment OP, do so: you shouldn't be treated like this.

(and teachers and teachers families and kids parents)....

We have closed our school today, too many children and staff ill. We are not providing remote learning either as staff have covid and are ill.

Sadly the school doesn’t have any day anymore. Schools used to do the track and trace thing and notify parents. We often don’t find out immediately that they have tested positive as they’re just marked as being ill and track and trace don’t inform the school at all.
We are not allowed to send kids home for high cases unless track and trace and PHE tell us to (and so far in my experience when we have raised concerns over the high numbers and clear child to child transmission they tell us that rates are high and that’s that).

One thing to consider is the children who are immunosuppressed and medically vulnerable. They have not had a fair chance at getting vaccine because PHE sent the forms to school and in some cases gave ONE day to get them to the pupils and then return them and would not accept late consent forms. So if a child was absent, or if the parent has been unable to sign it, they didn’t get the vaccine.
Agree we can’t close schools or have bubbles generally speaking but the vaccine for children who want it has not been handled correctly.

@Jenster03 I think my child is in your class (hence the change of name myself!) - was there a trip to a festival 10 days ago which may be linked? Church school, in the Cotswolds?

Just thought you might want to ask Mumsnet to edit this, if so, and if your username is not a disposable one created for this thread (I've not searched it for obvious respect-based reasons so don't know, but felt it was right to flag up that I think you may be identifiable.)

My dd's year was closed at 13 cases out of 38.

@Awalkintime

We have closed our school today, too many children and staff ill. We are not providing remote learning either as staff have covid and are ill.

Yep so much for kids missing education. It's like teachers aren't human and can't get ill.

If teachers are too ill to teach, there won't be any education.

Viral load matters, double vaccinated can and do get really sick and get long covid.

Teachers, in my opinion, are working in an unsafe environment particularly those with underlying conditions or older than 40. I think their employers are breaking the law.

Oh, and I completely agree, btw.

I think all education staff should quit and get nice lower risk jobs because we just need to live with it.
Is that seriously what a lot of you are suggesting?
Just take a breath and have a think about that. We have a chronic recruitment and retainment issue in education. I’ve never known moral so low. Excellent teachers are leaving the profession because it just isn’t work the hassle anymore. It’s such a thankless job.
It’ll be great when it gets to the point where we have 60+ to a classroom or kids options at GCSE are reduced because there just aren’t teachers anymore.
All schools want are the same mitigation’s office and shop staff get. Ventilation, masks and better hygiene. But there is none of that. After healthcare and social care workers, teachers are the most likely to get long Covid. We’ve lost staff to it.
So to all those educators being told to get a less risky job, let’s do it. Let’s down tools and see what happens. These parents will have to figured it out, maybe they’ll teach their kids instead as it’s clearly a doddle.