Do teenagers care? Open the fucking schools.

[FreierFall]

All my son's friends are now meeting up in groups. Probably in each other houses. Of course I am the worlds worst mother for saying he can only meet one friend outside at a time. Pretty much everyone he knows is assuming they can do what they want now. Why bother keeping secondary schools shut now? It's pointless. Instead we are going to have groups of bored teenagers roaming around all summer. I am in despair.

Because some parents do actually care about the health of their teens and the rest of the family and have actually stuck to lock down rules regarding socialising.

Those parent who allow their teenagers out to socialise are irresponsible!

So basically the OP is a crap parent who can't control their kid so wants the teachers to again...yawn, we all know plenty of those in schools. That's why we'll never be like Denmark.

All that’s been requested is 2 groups of students to go back who will be required to do the exams in the year they return. With these age groups, it’s really not a baby sitting service (15/16 and 17/18 year olds). It’s an education service.

It matters as they are missing out on crucial education.

More generally, yes lots of people who don’t have the certainty of a job to go back to at the end of lockdown (like teachers do), would like the chance to either get back to work or be able to actually have more time to work from home without caring for small children.

And this will disproportionately impact women. It just will.

Still surprises me that people are so up
In arms that schools are also childcare provision. Yep, we are reliant on most families being dual income to live in our economy. That’s why for at least ten years, schools with wraparound provision get a big tick from Ofsted. They don’t stand in separation to society and never have. In fact the traditional school day probably needs an update - predicated on mother’s being at home to collect the kids after their afternoon’s housework.

The only teens around here I've seen out are with their families. occasionally one will be one on one with a kids who looks to be their own age. No groups roaming around. So everyone needs to parent their children.
Mine are younger so more biddable but I do have to spend every second of every day with them. At least with teens they'll go off to their rooms or whatever. Is it really that difficult to help them follow the rules?

@LockdownLonely

You really are daft aren't you? Teacher salaries are paid by the government. Furlough is paid by the government. The government have stated that any public sector worker should not be furloughed!
If all teachers were furloughed there would be no childcare for key worker children, no communication from schools, no anything.

@nevertwerkednaked
Can I ask what job you do and how old your children are? My DD has a toddler and both her and her DH are WFH as key workers. Trying to take zoom calls is a nightmare for them during the day time as DS can't just be locked in another room to not interfere. Many teachers are in the same position. What actual teaching do you think a teacher can do effectively via a laptop screen with 30 children? I can tell you, it'd be nothing worthwhile.

My teen doesn't go out. I have not seen any groups of teens here. I think the problem is a bit closer to home OP. Let me guess, is your teenager argumentative and confrontational, with poor reasoning skills?

My teens aren’t doing this either ds18 , dd15 and dd12.
Two of them have met one friend for a socially distanced walk this week.

Another crap parent who cannot be arsed to get her son to abide by the lockdown rules has a pop at teachers. And is in 'despair'...

It's like fucking groundhog day on here.

OP - you sure your kid isn't spinning you a line to try to get more freedom? My kid tells me EVERYONE has a phone except him, and EVERYONE gets to play online all day and do no homeschooling but as I know the families well I am aware that that's not even close to being true.
And are these teens meeting in each others houses as you suspect?? What about the parents, they're happy to have grps of teenagers in their house? I wouldn't be, just for the mess and noise alone never mind the chance of them bringing in germs.

My teen hasn't seen friends for 8 (or is it 7, losing count) weeks and hasn't heard of any of his friends meeting up. They are all desperate to get out but at 15/16 they all understand why they can't.

Well that went well for the OP, and by the way why do you swear in the opening post? The advice, which I concur with, seems to be to look after your children and stop bashing teachers.

I’m not a teacher. I have 3 kids. I’m happy for them to return if the teachers are happy to have them. We need to trust teachers when they say they are not.

Honestly, in a way, I agree. I said at the start of lockdown that schools and social distancing need to go hand in hand. Either we are in lockdown, staying at home and staying apart, or we are not. Telling kids they have to go to school (where social distancing will not take place properly because younger children don't understand it and teens think they are invincible) but that they can't see friends outside of school (or only 1 at a time from a safe distance) is ridiculous. So, yes. If it's safe enough to send them back then open everything else and let people socialise again in each other's households. I'm sick of reading that it's safe for schools and teachers when there are tons of other industries/businesses closed or making massive adjustments for the pandemic. Let everyone go back properly and let's see what happens. According to mn we will hardly be affected (even though in places where it's running rampant they are completely overwhelmed with corpses which I don't fully understand if the vast majority of people survive it as is repeated ad nauseam on here), so everyone should be absolutely fine to crack on.

I still don’t understand why a proportion of them have not been furloughed at 80% pay. Surely they can’t all still be working full time

The teacher baiters are so so fick. :o

This is what so many teachers have to put up with, young people breaking the rules and it is the teachers’ fault not the parents.

My teen came to me and said 'mum, my friends wanted to meet up! I said to them "are you mad?, no!". Does your teen and friends not have the brains they were born with? Shame you are letting them put everyone else at risk.

At least you only need to care for your own grumpy teenagers. If the school opens, teachers need to spend hours in the confined spaces fearing the safety of their own while caring for multiple "uncaring" teenagers as you say.

@throwitinthebin

Prisoners are locked up! That's the point!!! They are not mixing with their families and sharing a whole load of germs are they?

Kids are not going to be locked up. They will go home, mix with their parents (work, shop germs), their siblings (potentially sharing the germs from their group at school) and they will bring a whole load of germs back with them. Everyday. And that's even when their parents stick to the rules about social distancing in the rest of their lives which I'm doubtful they will do.

CHILDREN don't often show signs of covid infection. They do cough, sneeze, pick noses, suck fingers and TOUCH EVERYTHING so a teacher and TA will be in a room with 15-30 potentially virus shedding children, with no sense of personal space, not a lot of personal hygiene, all of whom mix with other family members every day. No PPE. And we can open a window

Teachers and school staff are going to die. Fact.

It's not like prisons where the prisoners are not mixing outside. Prison staff can responsibly limit their own socialising to protect themselves. School staff cannot.

Why does your title contain two sentences completely unrelated to each other? Are you wanting two separate debates or is it just a game?

Use an umbrella when it rains. I like bacon.
^^ @TooLittleTooLate80

@greenlynx the OP is in despair because she’s sick of parenting her own child and wants to pass the responsibility to the teachers where she thinks it belongs. She believes that the teachers are the ones who instil a sense of responsibility into children and teach them to be decent citizens who respect others and the need to do the right thing.

She’s too lazy to do it herself, so her teen is wandering the streets putting others at risk. It’s the teachers’ fault.

The teachers don’t want to be around your teen who hasn’t been social distancing, he’s a risk and part of the reason that they don’t want to go back to the school building to teach. Ironic?

On the last point, the survival rates greatly outweigh the death rates when people get the virus. Just look at the stats.

Heaven forbid teenagers should be bored.

Teachers are entitled to a safe working environment. Children are entitled to a safe school. Plenty of teens are following the rules. Let's not be dictated to by parents who want to absolve themselves of parenting.

I have lots of sympathy for teens who are actually struggling, rather than just bored, but that's about it.

@Soontobe60 by that logic teachers shouldn’t pay tax either!