School from September

[16943389ao]

What are your thoughts on the newly released information on schools returning in September? I agree that children need an education but can’t understand why other than putting the children into class sized bubbles that no other major precautions are being taken. There are no other circumstances where groups of 35 can mix without social distancing or PPE. So why is this ok for schools? I know we keep getting told that children aren’t too badly effected but they can obviously spread COVID-19 and the school in Leicester have all been closed down for this reason. I can’t help but feel cases will rise hugely putting everyone at risk.

Issue with giving people a choice about returning to school is that it's not viable for teachers to provide both classroom and online learning at the same time. I get why some dont want to return to the classroom I really do but if they dont school cant give them the education they are supposed to do.

I'm not convinced it's not viable, but I don't work in a school so what do I know. I know my DDs school is managing it very well at the moment with half her class back in school and the rest at home but appreciate that's maybe not the case for everyone.

My youngest are also back in school but they are only doing the work that's been provided for those still at home. It's not the same as a usual classroom taught lesson. Teachers spend ages lesson planning they'd have to do that twice over for both settings and then the actual day spent in school . My eldest high school are doing some online lessons how can they do that at the same time as teaching to the classroom ? They can't be available to pupils in person and online at the same time.

The teacher plans the lesson as normal, sends lesson plan to parents at home (or pupils of they're old enough). Then during the lesson the teacher has a camera them during the class that children at home can watch with parent alongside to help if necessary. No extra work for the teacher.

Except sending the email and setting up the camera. Sorry for all the typos.

There is no way that teachers will agree to have their lessons live-streamed to parents at home to critique.

If only it was that simple there would always be a choice whether to go to school or learn from home

Noblegiraffe, that would concern me if that was the concern of any teacher, I'd wonder what they have to hide. It's obviously better in normal circumstances for everyone to be at school but while the virus is still a threat what's the harm in offering the choice of an alternative?

I don't like the decision. But I do want my DD to go back to school. The government don't seem to be acknowledging that kids don't seem to get horirble cases bud the people kids live with do.

My partner's work mate is 31. His girlfriend's dad died from coronavirus.

The guy around the corner from me spent ten weeks in intensive care with it. He survived but he's very weak.

You've got Kate garraways husband in a coma.

Local business man died in his early 70s. Still very wealthy and healthy. But it killed him.

Also look at Boris.

Random examples. But it kills adults or makes them extremely sick. Not all. But it does happen. We've mostly been keeping home and away from others. A huge chunk of the UK has done the same.

We are controlled by the government unfortunately. I have no idea what they expect the outcome to be. But it's either going to kill more people or result in mental health issues rising.

I've been trying to work out what annoys me most on this thread and it is... I don't know how many shop workers have contracted COVID with the restrictions that are in place but I am assuming it is reasonably low otherwise stricter measures would have been put in place. The reaction to that hasn't been, 'Oh good, let's drop protective measures then' it has been, 'Oh good, that's working, let's keep doing it.'

There are lots of sneery comments about people overreacting to the schools going back. All people are saying is that yes, absolutely, schools must go back but there haven't been big outbreaks here or in other countries because there has been social distancing and protective measures. To just assume that isn't necessary for schools and children isn't fair.

Transmission rate WILL be higher in September, that is a given which is backed up by Chris Whitty.

I'm not a teacher, I would like my children back at school but this 'plan' of the government's seems disingenuous and designed to be unworkable and therefore shift blame onto schools.

that would concern me if that was the concern of any teacher

But that’s because you’re not a teacher. Teachers have already had to put up with parents giving their uninformed opinions of work set during lockdown so they know that some parents would leap on this as an opportunity to stick their oar in.

As for ‘something to hide’, I think there would be a few parents who would complain once the poor behaviour of their DC was revealed to all.

A few parents who mistakenly believe they know better than professionally trained, highly skilled and experienced teachers shouldn't spoil it for everyone else. The teacher can train the camera on themselves and their white board or whatever and mute the microphone once they've explained the task and the children are working on the task. Explaining to pupils that they're being watched by others at home while the teacher is taking to the class might help improve behaviour a bit.

@Disfordarkchocolate

I have my concerns but people working in my local Tesco come into contact with 300 per hour at least. That's allowed.

No they don’t! I have no idea what information people are feeding themselves. Tesco as strict numbers of people allowed in. Not 300. They are generally around for less than an hour. Socially distancing is enforced. Yes know several working in Tesco.

Please people can we have an informed debate. Dangerous silly misinformation is not helpful.

Explaining to pupils that they're being watched by others at home while the teacher is taking to the class might help improve behaviour a bit.

🤣

I've videoed my lessons before for self development. The kids just want to get in front of the camera and be silly. Especially if they knew classmates were watching at home.

Explaining to pupils that they're being watched by others at home while the teacher is taking to the class might help improve behaviour a bit.

Or it might make them piss around more. I can picture one of the kids deliberately loudly waltzing into the classroom with a “SORRY I’M LATE MISS I WAS HAVING A POO” not being well received by viewers at home.

Ok, I'm not a teacher and maybe my ideas are ridiculous but I'm just trying to think of a solution in the eventuality that it's not safe enough to go about our lives as normal in September but regardless of this, all parents will be forced to send their DC back to school. l will have no choice but send my DC back unless I want to face fines or opt them out of the mainstream school system altogether.

If the shoe was on the other foot and the government were prioritising health over the economy and saying there's no way it's going to be safe enough for all children to go back to school as normal in September so we're launching a comprehensive homeschooling solution there would probably be parents on here desperately thinking of solutions and ways that their children could get back to school. Both sides of the argument are valid, I just think there should be a way to acknowledge and help parents on both sides of the fence.

Oak Academy is the solution for parents whose children will be staying at home. Millions is being thrown at it at the moment to get it fully resourced for the year, for September.

www.thenational.academy/

Excellent noblegiraffe, thank you I'll look into that.

'I have just started reading these threads again and I think I shall go back to not reading them because some people are just horrible.
The one thing we all agree is that ALL children have the right to an education. More importantly everyone has the right to keep themselves and their families alive. Shielding families shouldn't have to choose between the two. Shielding families can homeschool? So can you! What's stopping you? Do shielding families give up their rights because they have huge other challenges to deal with?
Most people here won't know what they are talking about when they give their opinion, and are not educated enough or don't care enough about the government's approach that it's ok for some to die if it gets most back at work.'

This.

Before this pandemic, you would never have had people openly telling people with cancer/transplanted organs/ suppressed immune systems to suck it up and deal with their increased death-risk, if there was anything they could do to mitigate that risk. Take a fucking look at yourselves, you dreadful, dreadful arseholes.

Oh, did we close schools before if any teacher or parent was undergoing chemotherapy or having an organ transplant? No. Many other illnesses are also dangerous for someone who's neutropenic. Yet you'd even find kids having chemotherapy would go into school to see their friends, taking sensible precautions, because it matters. While the rate of infection is low, the majority need to get on with life with sensible precautions. If rates pick up in any area, schools in that area will close. In some areas of the country already we're down to literally a handful of new cases in a whole UTLA, and cases are continuing to drop. That's before we even start discussing the research showing that children catch covid less than adults and therefore proportionally less will have it to infect others. Asking people to be proportional and calm in their risk assessment is really not being "dreadful, dreadful arseholes", it's being logical.

I'm not convinced it's not viable, but I don't work in a school so what do I know

You could have left it there. It would have made a nice change at least!

I'm glad I continued to suggest solutions and people were kind enough to point out the flaws in them and eventually suggest a solution I wasn't aware of. Seriously, why do some people just have to be so unkind. We're all in a rubbish situation there's no need to bring each other down even more.

It’s mad that the government is throwing money at the project but it isn’t being widely advertised. A lot of people seem to have never heard of it.

if the shoe was on the other foot and the government were prioritising health over the economy

Do people not realise that without the economy that our health would be significantly worse off because the economy funds our health service. How hard is that to understand? You can have every disease going but without a public funded service you'll get no treatment or medicine

I do understand that, you've taken what I said out of context. I was being hypothetical.