Huffpost - leak on School Guidance

[PatriciaHolm]

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/school-reopening-whole-year-bubbles-full-guidance-covid_uk_5ef9dd4ac5b6ca97091288e4?oo9&guccounter=1

Full document due this week, but some "highlights"...(I use the word advisedly)

• secondary bubbles of up to 240 children (essentially a year group) -No in-class social distancing requirement for primary pupils, with secondary pupils advised to stay 1m apart but not at all times -Teachers advised to keep 2m away from pupils, at the front of the class, and away from colleagues as much as possible as if in a supermarket

• Compulsory engagement with the NHS Test and Trace system, with whole classes or year groups liable to be sent home if a pupil tests positive, but whole school closure not seen as generally necessary

-No face coverings for pupils or teachers, on Public Health England advice, as they “interfere” with teaching and learning -Children seated facing forwards in same direction and not at circular tables, with pupils wearing normal uniform and washing hands throughout the day -Teachers advised to spend no more than 15 minutes at any one time closer than 1m to anyone - Fines of up to £120 for parents whose children fail to attend school. In contrast with the “softly softly” approach taken during full lockdown the message will be “education is not optional”

• Heads told not to put in any staff rota or physical distancing that would require extra space or make it impossible for all pupils to return full-time.

- Contingency plans for some or all of the school being put in local lockdown and any temporary return to “remote” teaching needing to be of a high quality -Some subjects for some or all pupils may have to be suspended for two terms to allow catch-up on core subjects such as English and maths, with a full spread of subjects returning in the summer term of of 2021 -Some pupils may have to drop some GSCEs altogether in Year 11 to allow them to catch up and achieve better grades in English and maths. GCSEs and A-levels to take place as planned next summer but with some “adaptations” - First year pupils at secondary school may have to be re-taught English and maths from their final year syllabus at primary level

No doubt when any official guidance is released people will be kicking off left right and centre.

But imo children need to get back to school ASAP no nonsense.

So no face visors for teachers then. What a joke.

All sounds sensible to me. Except maybe the missing some subjects for two terms to catch up with English and maths. Secondary bubbles of up to 240 - good.

Let's just hope theyre going to reinstate the legal rights of disabled children with an EHCP then

Heads aren’t to introduce any distancing guidelines that require extra space, but the guidelines themselves will require extra space as teachers don’t often have 2m clear at the front of the classroom.

So self-contradictory. Well done DfE

Also, what will the teachers of the subjects not being taught be doing? Teaching maths and English?

Nothing surprising there. Cant see how anyone can kick off bar the fines really. Good luck taking that to court when we have been forced to keep kids off for 6 months!

@Redolent

So no face visors for teachers then. What a joke.

Why would teachers need face visors? They aren't working with patients with Covid-19? The current infection rate is about 1 in 2,000. By September it should be a lot lower.

To be honest that sounds about right to me.

I 100% want all children back to school now. I’m a TA so have been in throughout anyway. I also have a Year 10 child though and I’m concerned that it seems to suggest they may need to drop some of their subjects? How is that going to be fair on them and give them an equal standing when they are applying for jobs etc later? So they only end up doing 5/6 GCSE’s through no fault of their own? Two of the subjects DS wants to do at A level are not core/option subjects so that’s going to have a huge impact.

The English and Maths being priority is concerning. There's not enough maths teachers as it is. The last thing we need is a well meaning teacher to have to teach maths and do it badly/wrong.

I'd just get them back as normal to be honest.

Staggered lunch for each year group at 30 mins per group is 3.5 hours here

It doesn't sound like many 'adaptations' really.
Why doesn't the Govt simply say: 'business as usual for Schools in Sept' and be honest about it?

Not fussed about visors or mask. More concerned about the ridiculous logistics involved in a year group bubble when they will all mix on the bus anyway.

sounds about right

Come to my classroom and arrange the desks to give me a clear 2m at the front. You won’t be able to, so what then?

All sounds fine to me.

@Hercwasonaroll

Not fussed about visors or mask. More concerned about the ridiculous logistics involved in a year group bubble when they will all mix on the bus anyway.

This was my first thought. Having bubbles seems pointless, when many travel on school buses with those in different year groups.

@FiveFootTwoEyesOfBlue

Sir Jeremy Farrar, former Oxford professor and member of SAGE, anticipates that we’ll see a significant increase of cases in line with the lockdown easing on 4th July. And that the UK is on a knife edge in time for autumn/winter. Please tell me why I should listen to you instead of him.

As to the rest of your post I don’t really know where to begin.

The evidence on how covid spreads. It’s easy reading.

english.elpais.com/spanish_news/2020-06-17/an-analysis-of-three-covid-19-outbreaks-how-they-happened-and-how-they-can-be-avoided.html

@nobelgiraffe then you wont get the 2m I guess and have to cope with 1m.

You all think it’s ok for an entire cohort to have some of their subjects just dropped?

Sounds sensible, it is ridiculous that I am in an open plan office daily with numerous people, I shop in a packed supermarket, DH is at work but my children are at home day in day out.

My room doesn't have 2m at the front.

I would rather they just had them back as usual with more handwashing/sanitising. This is a ridiculous logistics exercise which will benefit no one.

We don't even have enough rooms with desks in due to practical subjects. If they are off the timetable then we better purchase desks quickly.

@noblegiraffe

sounds about right

Come to my classroom and arrange the desks to give me a clear 2m at the front. You won’t be able to, so what then?

Well - realistically - you won't have it, then.

As with the previous (multitudinous reams of...) Govt guidance, I would imagine this will all be "guidance" - as in, do if you can, but if you can't, do your best. The word "advised" will be used copiously I imagine, not the word "must".....

Sounds good. As long as triple Science stays with English and Maths for GSCE.

This was my first thought. Having bubbles seems pointless, when many travel on school buses with those in different year groups.

It'll be the same as the overseas travellers quarantine rules - come into the U.K. Make your way to your destination on public transport and THEN quarantine for 14 days.

The dropping of subjects is the most concerning part.

It puts students at a disadvantage going forwards, it implies teaching of English and maths will be done by none specialists with little time to train them, it does a disservice to those subjects and their value.

That is pretty grim in parts, the prospect of ditching subjects and focusing on maths and English for two terms would make for a miserable time.

The idea of a 240 pupil bubble is meaningless.

What a mess. Yes children should be back at school - but this approach is not taking into account the fact that England (as opposed to Scotland for example) still has high numbers of new cases every day.

I suppose they are stuck now, if they don't open up full time for everyone, it highlights that we are still in a difficult place, which highlights the mistakes made to date.