Can’t see how children will be able to go back to school in 2021

[Ouchy]

Let’s face it. The R0 may not be controlled for months. Vaccine unlikely until 2021. Teaching unions up in arms. People unwilling to accept the risk of the virus (low for many). I’m getting more and more concerned and the government haven’t published any forward plans for how school can be restarted in the various scenarios we may be facing come September (have they?). What on earth are the DfE and the Education Secretary doing during the working week if they’re not planning this stuff? Is there something I’ve missed - am I mistaken? I’m getting more and more concerned. The children are low risk - there needs to be a plan and fast as their educations and social development are being kind of ignored for something they’re super low risk for as individuals themselves. Looking for reassurance really - am I mistaken or being silly?

Re treating the same I meant re getting them back. If you want primaries open fully then you need to be getting secondaries open at the same pace. Differentiate re how but you can not expect staff in primaries to carry on leaving secondary aged kids to fend for themselves indefinitely. My ds is in year 10 and got 2 days in school until the end of the academic year. 2 days!!!!! He sits GCSEs next year. He gets no home schooling.Aside from anything else there are concerns re the mental and physical health, safeguarding of these kids being left all day every day because they can be.

A bit of face to face is not enough. Attempting to get certain secondary year groups in full time like primaries are doing their best to fulfil should be the priority before focusing on primaries in fully from Sep.

blue two ( or more) cases linked to one setting is an outbreak, not one case.

My ds is in year 10 and got 2 days in school until the end of the academic year. 2 days!!!!! He sits GCSEs next year. He gets no home schooling.Aside from anything else there are concerns re the mental and physical health, safeguarding of these kids being left all day every day because they can be.

That's two days more than is possible here, he's now at home alone all day without help on his work but going back into school might not be the answer either yet.

I missed without help from me. He's getting great help from school but they can't, understandably, do it in person. Neither can I as during the school day I'm in school with a tiny group of children who have parents who want them to go to school.

I am in my primary school full time. Parents of secondary aged kids can’t sustain this. Am I supposed to just forget about my children?

Scotland here. Our LA set up a poll for school preferences come August 11th. One week in one week at home or 2/3 days in every week. This was done via Facebook. By far the preference was 2/3 days every week.

There is also talk of no exams next year and kids to be graded on a years continual assessment.

@Nihiloxica

So grieving the death of a parent (a common experience for adults in work) is now an excuse for pupils not having work set?

When people take time off to grieve, normally they are back filled by someone else.

What a fucking disgusting thing to say.

EXCUSE???

I think the 'excuse' is that the pp is a selfish person with all the empathy of a door nail.

I assume most teachers are under 70 though. If grandparents are under 65 I suppose they could do childcare. My parents are both over 70, MIL is a little younger but has diabetes.
Luckily my children are older but my eldest is at a crucial time I'm her education do she needs to go back. My youngest less so.
I really should stop reading these threads. First it was September, then November, now it's next year. I'm assuming all those dates are guess work but the schools need to open as a priority. Especially for those going in to Y10 and above in September.

The schools do not dole out fines. This is a government directive, at national level

Ok- also puts into perspective those stupid fines the government dole out. SAME FCKING POINT.

I have just sent an email to my MP(for all the good it will do,) but would urge all those concerned to consider doing the same. This is what I wrote:

Dear Mr xxx
In these difficult and challenging times I feel I need to contact you to request your help to address a matter of some urgency. I would like to know what the Government is planning to do regarding the current breach of Protocol 1, Article 2 of the Human Rights act which states that “No person shall be denied the right to an education.”

As an example I have 4 school aged children aged 12, 14, 15 and 18. None of them have received an education since March 17th this year. They have had some work set on line to be completed at home but I can assure that this does not in any way constitute an education. I am a doctor working full time in the NHS. My husband is a secondary school teacher.I fully appreciate all the many implications of this pandemic. I understand the reasons for school closures thus far. However this situation is simply unsustainable at this point. I am increasingly concerned that there seems to be no clear plan in place for a return to education for September. Part time schooling mixed with at home learning is being suggested by many schools. This will not provide my children with an education as both my husband and I will be working out of the home and will not be able to support the children with at home learning. I have been told if I instead chose to utilize the key worker children’s provision my children would need to remain in this “bubble” and would not be able to join their year groups on any day they were in school. The key worker bubble will not be being taught proper lessons unlike the year groups and so my children would be massively disadvantaged as well as missing out on being able to mix with their friends. Given that I have been working flat out in the NHS all through this, I find it incredibly unfair that my children may end up being penalised because of this.

Children all across the country are suffering massively. The many, many vulnerable children and those living in poverty are being placed at great risk of permanent harm. The impacts of this on young people’s mental health will be felt for many years to come.

A child’s right to an education is a basic human right. I understand why this has been temporarily suspended in these unprecedented circumstances but this can not be allowed to continue. I would remind you of the concept of Proportionality which applies when a basic convention is interfered with : this states that “Interference with a Convention Right must not be excessive, arbitrary or unfair, or have too severe an impact on a particular group or individual.” I would argue that interference with this particular human right is having a most severe impact on the group of the nation’s children and I would also argue that currently the interference seems to be both unfair and arbitrary.

I am not unaware of the many challenges of returning children to school safely in September, but I am greatly dismayed by the apparent lack of planning and problem solving that seems to be happening by the government. It was all perfectly possible to build extra hospitals (still unused) and to bring back retired NHS staff, but no such measures, or any other creative problem solving strategies, are being talked about to secure our children's futures it seems. Schools are confused, angered and frustrated at lack of discussion and planning from the Government. It would certainly seem as if the nation’s children and young people are a very low priority for the Government.

So please can you tell me, without further delay, how the Government plans to respond to this ongoing breach of a child’s basic human right to an education.

Yours Sincerely

Great letter.

My husband and I are also nhs, we will both be off sick for the foreseeable if schools cannot support our children.

@Weepinggreenwillow

That’s a cracking letter! I’m going to use this myself for my MP

I am a doctor working full time in the NHS. My husband is a secondary school teacher.

Why weren't your children in school as part of the key worker provision? If your husband was in school every day covering other people's children, then they were eligible for that.
If he wasn't in school every day, why couldn't he provide learning for your children? At least directing them to stuff?
Is he producing online lessons for his own classes? Live lessons from your house?

You've had a lot more options than most people.

I’m in Australia and I’m appalled at the mess the UK is in at the moment. For years I’ve lamented missing my chance to move there but right now I’m happy to be ‘stuck’ in Australia.

School has gone back here. I’m not a parent so I’m not sure of all the arrangements but I believe that apart from some changes to drop off and pick up it’s more or less normal. None of this part time school nonsense. You just know it’s mostly women that are going to impacted by this.

My husband and I are also nhs

You dont need to be off sick, you can use the key worker provision.

And you have how many deaths there, blue tongue?

I'm not a parent so I’m not sure of all the arrangements but I believe that apart from some changes to drop off and pick up it’s more or less normal. None of this part time school nonsense

I'm not a parent, nor am in even in your country, but here - have my shitty irrelevant opinion anyway.

If you're not sure, best not comment. You're not right. Schools in Sydney have gone back part time, and with social distancing in place.

It's also not comparable in terms of virus impact.

I tell you what, lots of the comments on here are from people well up their own arses with self importance.

You might as well be shouting DON'T YOU KNOW WHO I AM?

Read your letter on another post.

I do believe education will be up and running to full capacity in primary schools by the new term (England) minus the children who are shielding. The government are already pushing for the reduction in 2m distancing rule, not due to science but economical reasons. They will reduce it, very possibly end of June. They have also said masks/face coverings on public transport are mandatory. Pupils who travel to school will be expected to follow suit (over 5s I believe). Assemblies won’t run, children will be expected to stay in their bubbles of 30, including staggered lunch and break, encourage outdoor learning where possible, extra hand washing and staggered start and finish times ensuring the “normal” amount of hours are met.

Secondary schools is where the biggest headache lies. A blended learning approach is the way forward, week in week out from Yr 8 with Yr7 in full time. Teachers would still be available online at the “week out” timetabled slots. Many secondary schools have a 2week timetable already and this would need adapting to accommodate home learning. Very possibly be shot down here but going to say it... a lot of our our curriculum is spoon fed to the pupils. A proportion of the pupils sit there, nod their heads in the right places, make notes but are not passionate about learning. In body they are in the classroom but their mind is somewhere else. They see school as primarily a place to socialise, “have a good laugh”. We as a nation fail our students because independent learning skills are not taught and passion and desire to learn is stripped from them at an early age (very likely by yr1/2) when they are made to sit and be static for hours on end, read and write etc. This needs to change.

Secondary age pupils can achieve with a blended learning approach but the current cohorts are not prepared for it. It will be a steep, steep learning curve for them but put them in good stead for adult life. The next 2months should be spent getting pupils and parents onboard, sorting out equipment needs, addressing concerns and pupils who haven’t chosen their “options” need to do so.

There are likely to be many pitfalls with the above but more than what the government is coming up with at the moment!

I find it really offensive that posters assume caring about mental health and education and socialisation of children is some kind of cover up because we want lockdown ended and if fits in.

No.

My worries are genuine. I am someone who has struggled with anxiety before. I can see that same anxiety in people who previously did not present it. This worries me. It is a dark place to be. Teenagers especially should not be feeling like this and a lot of the help they could previously get has now gone away.

I'm also incredibly worried for my own child. Previous to the weekend he hadnt seen another child for months. It's unhealthy. It's wrong.

Luckily he can go back to nursery soon.

You know what I'd quite happily never go into a pub or a hairdressers ever again if it meant my child got a proper full time face to face education.

Don't you fucking dare say I don't really care.

Posters wonder why teachers are getting a hard time on here. I've done nothing but support teachers. We need teachers. That's the sodding point. But when there's posts like that I understand why others have had enough.

@pfrench my children are also entitled to go to school, when able we have kept them home to try and reduce transmission (I'm high risk) from them to others. However, on the 6 days they have attended, they have not completed their home learning. 8 key worker attending looked after by a teacher and a TA. no response to 2 emails. It's baffling and actually really sad.

I’m not in Sydney pfrench so can only comment on where I live. I do have plenty of friends with school age children so I’m not completely clueless.