How/when did the tide turn on schools?

[LaceCurtains]

In the beginning the mood here was almost desperate calling for schools to be closed.

In the last week or so there's been a marked shift to getting them open (from peope here).

Is it the same people who wanted the closed, now calling for them to get back to normal or have the original campaigners gone quiet/new people got louder?

FWIW I always thought schools closed as early as they did because of public pressure and it seems to me that "other" things are getting back to normal more quickly than originally planned/expected (because of DC and the need to distract?) but schools don't seem to be included in that.

I'm at a loss as to why schools are being treated so differently. I'm SLT in school, if that makes a difference and the government guidance is a shambles. Changes daily but doesn't seem to have any clear aim.

@OneJump

And while you're there, ask them to extend the transition period and not leave the EU without a deal because that is going to screw your kids' futures even more in conjunction with this. No one really seems to have any urgency about this either. We have 20 days.

They may well be negotiating right now for a deal...

But the BBC chooses not to report it to the masses. They choose to report on and call out medical professionals who are experts in their fields and try to smear them for being incompetent when the state run bbc journalist knows not even 1/10th about dealing with a pandemic compared to them.

I suspect teaching unions are going to realise eventually that this political power play and negative unhelpful attitude has gone down very badly with many many parents. I was always sympathetic to teacher strikes and felt we should be supportive. Absolutely no chance now they have been so obstructive and used children’s education in their battles with government.

Helped in part by many teachers on this site who keep arguing that a few bbc videos and some worksheets is a sufficient education whilst I see private schools around us rising to the challenge and giving their students decent support.

Children do not need more screen time. They need real life classes with their peers.

@Bartlet

I suspect teaching unions are going to realise eventually that this political power play and negative unhelpful attitude has gone down very badly with many many parents. I was always sympathetic to teacher strikes and felt we should be supportive. Absolutely no chance now they have been so obstructive and used children’s education in their battles with government.

Helped in part by many teachers on this site who keep arguing that a few bbc videos and some worksheets is a sufficient education whilst I see private schools around us rising to the challenge and giving their students decent support.

I know.

It's both a disgrace and a complete own goal in the long term.

I haven’t read the full thread but in answer to the OP I wanted schools to close in early MaRch. I wanted swift & decisive action to prevent the looming disaster. As we have seen, the threat of COVID19 was real, the U.K. acted too late & as a result has one of worst death tolls, a wrecked economy & as yet unknown long term health impacts for the infected (that includes the asymptomatic, who, according to latest research, may still have ground glass scarring of lungs & Pots)
My opinion has not changed. The clinical reports all suggest we should act with caution in the face of unknown pathogen. And no, it isn’t the flu & it hasn’t gone away. Do some research from reputable sources, not Toby Young & assorted Russian bots. Look at case numbers in the US. In Brazil. In India. Read up on transmission & how this virus spreads. Knowing this, then Think about how long it takes to seed through a community & then how quickly it gets away from you, esp in countries like the U.K. without functioning track & trace.
Mumsnet appears to be awash with misinformation & anti-teacher rhetoric at the moment. There are mad campaigns started by pseudo-scientists & right wing contrarians calling for all schools to open with no social distancing because there are “no risks” to children - neatly forgetting that children are part of a wider community (check some of the bogus research they quote, make up your own minds)
I’m sick of the teacher bashing. Every teacher I know is sick inside with worry for the children they teach & working their socks off. I am barely scraping by with my kids at home & working from home.
But This is a fucking pandemic. A one in a 100 year event. It’s shit. For everyone, especially our kids. We’re the adults, we have a duty to protect & nurture them come what may. And that may well mean life not being back to normal for a while.
We all need to work together to find a solution that doesn’t sacrifice public health because if the right wing nuts haven’t realised yet, there’s no economy without a healthy populace. We are the engine of your economic growth - a population suffering long term chronic sickness & fear of disease equals shitty GDP.

Every teacher you know is sick inside with worry?

I count three amongst my best friends and another two I know well socially. Not one if them has expressed worry to me, apart from worry for themselves.

One of them was in a WhatsApp conversation the other night, in which she said ‘how do you think I feel having to go back and work with the bloody kids?!’

She is an excellent teacher of many years experience.

You must have a very unusual group of tester friends.

*teacher

Well said @mac12.

It’s staggering quite how many posters seem to be unaware of how serious this is, not just as an immediate illness, but for the potential future health of the population. Rushing everyone back to “normality” isn’t going to make this go away. It could lead to an even more drawn-out and tragic situation.

Agree @duffeldaisy

Personally I have no interest at all in schools - we have 6 children who have been home educated from the start. We have been lucky that dh has worked full time and I have worked part time from home as well as teaching the children, with two parents working full time outside the home home ed is not possible.

If the government don’t open schools fully in the next year they will

1. need to provide more support for families to live on 1 wage or 1.5 wages. This seems unlikely !

1. They would have to address the facts that so many teenagers leave schools without basic skills - all adults should have the academic ability to teach a primary aged child - this isn’t the case. There is a massive failing of the current system.

1. There would have to be a total overhaul of the exam system.

1. There would need to be huge investment in social services to help children who have parents who either can’t or refuse to care for their own children.

These things will NEVER happen. Schools are reopening/ will fully reopen regardless of what goes on with the pandemic - the tide turned when people realised that the current system has left us in such a terrible place.

@BatSegundo

I wanted them closed as I felt that the government were locking down too late and it would result in a long lockdown with lots of deaths. I would absolutely love them to be open now but, in England at least, the too late and half arsed approach means that we haven't got case numbers low enough and track and trace isn't established. I know people are desperate for lockdown to be over but if we rush out of it we'll end up rushing back into it again.

It does seem unfair that facilities for adults are opening before those for children but I understand that children cannot socially distance in the same way as adults so opening things for them needs to take that into account.

I agree with this. I think the government has squandered the lockdown period. If it had been using the time to both develop an effective test and trace scheme and an effective national online learning scheme that allowed for weekly contact with teachers, we would be in a strong position to manage an at least partial return to school for all kids at this point and also to weather any second peaks. I’m not angry at teachers or unions - cases are still too high, nothing has really changed since schools closed down in the first place.

I’m sick of the teacher bashing. Every teacher I know is sick inside with worry for the children they teach & working their socks off. I am barely scraping by with my kids at home & working from home I’m sick of the excuses - teachers are not teaching - they are setting work and the kids are teaching themselves - 12 bloody weeks of self teaching A levels - it’s not good enough - the teachers need to be told to go back to work - either online or physically. The private schools have stolen the march and our state school kids will suffer, the gap that schools have fought so hard to close will widen - that’s what I’m sick of - too many bloody excuses!

Schools should re-open now. They should do shifts to enable social distancing ( say a third or half the children in on each shift).
They should stay open through the summer holiday period to give kids chance to catch up.

We receive a daily work sheet cribbed from another school. No work submitted no marking no teaching of method for new content no pre recorded video explanations no link to websites explaining new content no teacher contact certainly no zoom. What on earth are the teachers doing? 🙄

@BlokeTarget

“Well they could actually do their job and lead the country through the pandemic“

I guess a daily briefing for 84 days with clear guidance ( that is easy to follow if you apply at least an ounce of comMoms sense) isn’t leadership ? Of course not.

Would the 5 stages needing met including and R below 1 consistently not a clearly defined goal? Of course not. Not leadership.

Is a mandatory 2m social distancing rule not leadership? Of course not.

Of following WHO guidelines to close schools/ shops/ non essential services until we are past the leak not leadership? Of course not.

Is your idea of leadership aligned with president trump instead: keep the country open! 100,000+ dead and rising , leave the WHO?

I think the govt leadership has been spot on. I’ve followed the leadership and guidance because it was clear, consistent and communicated on a daily basis via briefings and govt commercials/ material. That is leadership.

I think you have a very skewed sense of these leadership actually is. I suspect you want them to lead with a years’ hindsight up front and get everything 100% right. Like you would....

They did give a date rather than saying ‘this date IF the tests are met’ Also our area isn’t below 1 so some places haven’t reopened.

Locally closure came too late as many children and staff were off with suspected Covid-19. Including teachers dying.

There needs to be a plan which is practical for schools but flexible enough that Heads can meet local need.
Constantly changing guidance doesn’t help anyone.

Any of you wfh since this crisis stated? How would you feel if your boss sent you a list of weekly tasks but never bothered to pick up the phone to check in with you? Good practice suggests you do this everyday - just a few minutes it helps with mental health and motivation, keeps people feeling involved, noticed, part of the team.
Now I know that might sound like overkill but we have had 12 weeks - not one phone call - generic emails to complete work, no requirement from the school for the teachers to give regular feedback - some have interpreted that as none. You can’t engage kids to learn like this - the Gov must insist that schools do more!

@Nihiloxica

I am so angry about the way our children have been treated. I don't think I've ever felt so politically angry about anything.

Me too and me neither.

Same here. It was sold to us as a very short term emergency measure to stop the NHS being overwhelmed. They should have been back to school at half term at the latest. The goalposts constantly move. I am so angry about how my children have been treated, and how as a working parent I'm still being asked to do the impossible

Sadly what will turn the tide for MPs is private schools going under unless the kids can go back with a proper education being provided in September, as most MP's kids are privately educated.

And even then, the top private schools will be ok.

@Mascotte

Children do not need more screen time. They need real life classes with their peers.

Absolutely this.

Also I'm baffled as to why my children's school thinks a couple of worksheets a week counts as an education. My friend's private school is more under the impression that 9-3 online and zoom content is appropriate.

I was ok with it for a couple of weeks. I'm not ok with this being my children's life for 6 months+.

Schools couldn't deliver proper online learning because a lot of households only have one computer between all the family, especially when the kids are little. They might have devices but often only one laptop or desktop.

Several people didn't have a printer, or had an inadequate printer for the number of worksheets that were required to be printed, in DD2's class.

@Graciebobcat

Sadly what will turn the tide for MPs is private schools going under unless the kids can go back with a proper education being provided in September, as most MP's kids are privately educated.

And even then, the top private schools will be ok.

The private schools won’t go under while they are offering proper online support and the state schools are offering worksheets. Private school parents must be very bloody relieved their kids are getting an education!

Private teachers won't be on full pay whether they work or not.

Some will be furloughed and will have been keen to get back to working to get full pay. Others won't have qualified for furlough so likewise keen to get back to earning.

No incentive for public sector workers to get back to normal working as most have been on full pay throughout.

@Graciebobcat

Sadly what will turn the tide for MPs is private schools going under unless the kids can go back with a proper education being provided in September, as most MP's kids are privately educated.

And even then, the top private schools will be ok.

They won't go under. Friends with kids at private school are very happy with the provision. Anyone who can afford it will jump onboard to private come September if this shambles continues

It seems teachers are falling to two camps. Those who are working hard and still doing what they are paid for (and worrying and being invested in the children and their futures) and those who are enjoying this long holiday. I know teachers falling into both camps. I don't think the profession itself is doing itself a lot of favours...and the good teachers are now being tarred with the behaviour of the others.

If these underperforming teachers worked in industry for a while they would realise how most people have to adapt quickly and still deliver results even under the most extraordinary circumstances. Rise to the challenge with pride and determination. Not make excuses and do the bare minimum.

Above someone says they have never felt so politically angry. I am exactly the same. I have never felt the need to email MPs, make comment in newspapers etc. I have done all of these things now and will continue to do so. Interestingly some of the articles I read a couple of days ago (think in the Guardian as well as the Mail) did mention the uproar on here so the anger that is being expressed is being noticed and is making a difference...

Have you got a link to that?