We need to rise up about the lack of education for our children

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Please do this. Please join the Twitter movement #usforthem
Please write to your MPs
Please talk about this.

Our children are missing out on their fundamental human right of an education.

The children of regular families are suffering (all 5 of mine are suffering desperately), but those in vulnerable families are suffering even further. The gap between these children will be HUGE

I am a teacher and a mother. I am ready to go back to work full time and with the 'old normal'. I am also type 1 diabetic.

Please help us rise up to get our children educated. Our children have been totally forgotten about. Throughout my career I've had it rammed down my throat about how school is a safe place for so many children. They don't care about these children now.

I am amazed so many people have just accepted this. It has gone on for too long now.

"why can’t schools return with 30 children in a class?"

Well they will won't they. That is the eventual aim. Just gradually, to make sure that the mums on mn are right and it doesn't actually cause a rise in infections and deaths.

30 kids in a classroom? What about social distancing? My classroom is tiny. How can we stop the spread? Why should teachers lives be at risk? YesI have been teaching from home and at School before anyone thinks I've been doing nothing!

[quote MeanMrMustardSeed]@Char2015 why can’t schools return with 30 children in a class?

We need to stop repeating these statements as if they are absolute truth and question why we can’t do these things. The cost of school closure is outstandingly high, and getting higher by the week.[/quote]
How would social distancing work by having 30 children in a class?

My DS1 is going back on Wednesday (year 5 - private school). He was so happy when I told him. He is looking forward to seeing his friends and lots of PE outside. I appreciate that there are lots of reasons that other schools can’t do this ... both state and private (many small prep schools have tiny classrooms and limited facilities) but we need to come up with a solution as the current situation is so bad for children’s mental and physical wellbeing, never mind their education.

How would social distancing work by having 30 children in a class?

They're not expected to distance from one another anyway. You could have bubbled of 30. So still no assemblies and staggered lunches and what not but it would mean all children could attend school ft.

"Maybe read some threads about how average children from loving families are struggling."

So you are saying that we should open schools fully and immediately regardless of impact on the rate of infection and number of deaths?

It is not worth doing it gradually and slowly to try to make sure that the R remains below 1 and unnecessary deaths are avoided?

That seems a little self-serving.

@garfieldisacat

30 kids in a classroom? What about social distancing? My classroom is tiny. How can we stop the spread? Why should teachers lives be at risk? YesI have been teaching from home and at School before anyone thinks I've been doing nothing!

What age do you teach? The YR, 1 and 6 groups aren't social distancing. Would be different if you teach secondary.

Are you in an at risk group out of interest?

I think that's all it is for the majority yes, and systems in place to support vulnerable families

Because the government and education authorities have been so good at doing that up to now.

I guess the parents who have been fighting for an education for their kids just weren’t brave enough to start campaigns and fight for their kids. Oh, hang on, they have been doing that but you lot have sat back and left them to it because it doesn’t affect your kids so their voices are ignored and education for the many is the focus. Our kids can just be left behind.

I agree, I'm working as a nurse and my children are falling behind with the work set for them. They go to school, and although I am greatly for this it's more of a holiday club so they aren't getting any education there. I thought my youngest would at least be able to go back to her reception class but she has to stay in the key worker class so not to mix bubbles, so again she is missing out. It's such a worry and I have no idea how they will cope with full time schooling now that it has been so long.

It’s hard to compare with the Netherlands, which has one of the most excellent education systems in the world, more room and funding, and a far lower death toll both overall and daily. It’s incomparable.

Yes I am an at risk group and I teach Secondary. Contrarily to popular belief it is impossible for them to socially distance too

So you are saying that we should open schools fully and immediately regardless of impact on the rate of infection and number of deaths? Not immediately no by by September absolutely.

It is not worth doing it gradually and slowly to try to make sure that the R remains below 1 and unnecessary deaths are avoided? If by that you mean pre September then yes. After that? No.

Totally agree. If we can go to bluewater in two weeks our teenagers should be returning to school. Same with pubs!

You abandon social distancing in classes. In primary your "bubble" in the normal class. They all wash hands on arrival and departure, and through the day. Temp checks ditto.

Secondary is harder but there needs to be a solution. Education is a fundamental human right.

How few cases / deaths per day do we need to declare it "safe" enough?

@pfrench

caused by lack of exercise. Habits formed as children tend to stay with you into adult hood-lack of sports

That's your issue to fix for your child. They've been able to go out to exercise all along.

Mine have had the benefit of being dragged out on 8 mile country walks to kill a Sunday. They jog along and dash about but in the absence of junior parkrun, aren't really up for "going for a run". We've played ball games, but dyspraxia is a big barrier to DS1. We get him on his scooter, but can't get him on his bike.

He can no longer work on his co-ordination at swimming or karate and he needs a group dynamic to motivate him. He can't work on balance and proprioception in a playground down the park.

I do take responsibility for his fitness, he can out walk most adults, but there are some gaps I can not fill at home or in the park or even with the benefit of a sibling.

Plus goodness knows about how long it will be before he gets to physio... and the advice from that would be useful for his EHCP application which we would have hoped would be in place during y5 but hasn't started yet as no one has seen him since March and the cross-professional groups aren't able to meet up and services like physio are supporting Covid recovery.
I am genuinely concerned that this shutdown in happening during y4 shortly after diagnosis of ASD, dyspraxia and dyslexia will affect secondary school application and transition because we are now barely a school year away from y6.

DS is bloody lucky to have a SAHM with a PGCE and a decade of teaching experience. But still he is being massively disadvantaged long term compared to some classmates. But yeah, silly me, must, try, harder

We have been playing one waiting game after another through the system since his SEN were becoming apparent back in y1.
Gosh the old normal certainly had its pitfalls but this is far more damaging, and will get worse and worse as time drags on. But hey, we can go to the park, so all is hunky dory.

"How would social distancing work by having 30 children in a class?"

I think lots of pp on here don't think social distancing is necessary in schools.

Their children won't be seriously ill and they're not overly worried about the staff.

They've read something on fb that supports their world view, chimes nicely with their desire to get the kids back to school and they're running with it.

100% agree with the original post. Children and their welfare and mental health has been completely ignored during this crisis.

100 percent support this.

They've read something on fb that supports their world view, chimes nicely with their desire to get the kids back to school and they're running with it

Or we've looked at the statistics, followed the numbers, seen the damage to our own children and realised that it's doing more harm than good?

Don't be so patronising.

Yomo, what should have been done differently for children do you think?

They could have had small lessons on the school field during the hot weather, PE lessons outside, small group lessons in the hall, if you are vulnerable obviously don’t attend, staggered pick up times. There is lots they could have done but they don’t seem to want to. I do not want to email the school with ideas as I will be recorded as one of the those troublesome mums and my child will suffer.

@TrustTheGeneGenie

How would social distancing work by having 30 children in a class?

They're not expected to distance from one another anyway. You could have bubbled of 30. So still no assemblies and staggered lunches and what not but it would mean all children could attend school ft.

So one child gets the virus. Then has the potential to spread to 29 other children plus 1/2 adults in their bubble. Then the risk of infecting 31 other families. Then the same number infecting others in the community. Can you imagine the R number then. Then we will all be back to lock down.

IMO for me that would be even more reason not to to send my child in with the risk that high.

@Astabarista that's why I said we've let children down before this crisis started.

The cuts to education have been criminal. The levels of child poverty in this country are criminal.

Without these issues it would have been a lot easier to continue education.

Schools shouldn’t just return to the “old” normal just because that’s how it’s always been. Primary and secondary and sixth forms need to make different changes to bring school up to 21st century.

Primary need a more child-led curriculum to develop a love for learning. An attitude of “I want to do this” rather than “I’m doing it because I have to”. Address the social and health side of a child’s well-being through appropriate funded social and health care. Obviously this is needed at all levels of education.No long waiting lists for mental health/ECHP assessments. A child needs to be ready to learn without social and health barriers amongst others. Class sizes should be permanently smaller, enabling slightly more individualised learning and attention. In short term this could be achieved by teacher and TA alternating between a new split class, outside agencies brought in to teach sports, music, forest schools etc.

Secondary schools from Yr8 should adopt a more blended approach, change start and finish times to allow them to be more suited to teenagers sleep needs, week in school then week at home following the timetable with teacher available for the lesson. Yes not all pupils will do the learning at home but do all pupils learn 100% of time while in school or complete homework? No. Pupils need to be responsible for their own learning. By Year 8 a pupil (without additional needs) should be able to be at home alone to complete online school work and prepare themselves a lunch.

Has anyone actually asked what the pupils (especially secondary pupils) would like to happen? My DCs school has via the student leadership team. An online assembly by the head boy and head girl, followed by a questionnaire and option to post questions. The headline results included 84% were concerned about going back to school due to travel and amount of pupils at school, 68% thought blended learning was a good option, 2% thought all should be online, 16% wanted to return to school as normal and 14% were unsure.

It is good to write letters to MPs when you have a concern, after all they are suppose to be our voice and I’ve done it on occasions before, however I won’t be this time because there must be evidence, even a small amount that suggests infections rates could/would increase if secondary schools reopened as normal. If there wasn’t evidence they would be opened/opening. Time look to a “new” normal

So one child gets the virus. Then has the potential to spread to 29 other children plus 1/2 adults in their bubble

Yes. But if that child only attends 2 days a week, they can spread it to 14 other children and two adults at school. Then they will spread it to... Well whoever is looking after them so childminder? How every many other children? Grandparents? Another family they're sharing childcare with?

You know that a lot of kids won't be at home when they're not at school come September right?

That cosy little bubble of 15 gets very big very quickly. Bigger than a bubble of 30 that's for sure.

If you don't want to send your child back, don't. That is your choice. I want to and I should have that option.