Schools Reopening?

[ClimbDad]

A major, peer reviewed study into transmission in South Korea has established that tweens and teenagers spread the SARSCOV2 virus more than any other age group.

The study involved more than 65,000 people and used South Korea’s exceptionally effective contact tracing system to look at who brought the virus into households. Tweens and teenagers were the highest index case age group. Younger children transmitted at the same rate as 20-somethings.

This is a large scale, rigorous piece of research that proves children are effective at transmitting the virus. It was conducted in a country that implements strict social distancing and mask wearing among children. The authors say the rate of transmission would have been higher if children weren’t subjected to those measures.

Plans to reopen schools more or less as normal in September will place many lives at risk, and increase the likelihood schools will have to close again. The government needs to acknowledge schools will be highly efficient vectors of viral transmission and change its reopening plans.

Published Paper:
wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/26/10/20-1315_article

Article on the paper:

www.bloombergquint.com/business/covid-19-spread-fastest-by-teens-and-tweens-korea-study-finds

Also why do teachers always resort to referring to adults on mumsnet as their pupils. It's so weird

Whenever you feel threatened you don't answer a question. Just saying.

Have you READ the guidelines ?

( I feel like Keir Starmer)

Have you worked on vaccine trials, pomegranate?

The thing is, there are some things which can be opinions - it is possible to have an opinion that starting off with all children in school next term with weak virus control and allowing for chaotic closures is a better option than planned part-time attendance with stronger virus control measures.

However, there are also facts, and factual errors. It is not possible to be of the opinion that primary schools did not open more widely before the end of term due to unions, because the facts state that the Government guidelines in place at the time did not allow for fuller opening (the guidelines required keyworker provision to take priority, and mandated bubbles of no more than 15, which obviously required twice as much space and twice as many staff).

I understand that people can make factual mistakes, because the government is good at hiding its unfortunate errors (failing to version / revision mark its guidance is a classic case of obfuscation). However, they should expect to be pulled up on those mistakes.

I actually know someone who is working on the Oxford vaccine. Really early doors, over the Easter break, she spoke to another friend telling her that 'we might be alright for you to have a birthday party' - the friend's birthday is in September. Obviously we all scoffed. Ha.

No I haven’t. This information I posted earlier about low positive tests was distributed today.

Just to reiterate - really just my own opinion re the vaccine. I am a participant in a covid trial though.

@cantkeepawayforever I'm sorry but it's naive to think that anything to do with schools reopening is fact. It's all political. There is no such thing as fact in medicine. Or government.

I'm sure maths teachers feel happy with binary true or false. But that's not what covid is.

On vaccination, the only way I can see for us to get a vaccine earlier than next year would be for direct challenge tests to be allowed (ie rather than exposing trial participants to 'community' infection, they are directly and deliberately exposed to the virus), as these would give faster results.

Ethically, it is very tricky to state that vaccine testers should be deliberately exposed to a virus with no fully effective treatment, and I doubt whether those vaccines developed in the UK would be allowed to be tested in this way.

I'm sorry but it's naive to think that anything to do with schools reopening is fact.
But it IS fact that the Government's own rules at the beginning of June precluded schools from opening more widely than they did. Your "opinion" is that this was due to the Union's stance. That opinion is wrong.

@CallmeAngelina

I'm sorry but it's naive to think that anything to do with schools reopening is fact. But it IS fact that the Government's own rules at the beginning of June precluded schools from opening more widely than they did. Your "opinion" is that this was due to the Union's stance. That opinion is wrong.

To call that 'fact' is just wrong!

*an antibody study.

Open plan.

Of course there are facts.

Schools have to operate with year group bubbles.

Schools have to offer a full timetable

Those are 2 facts based on the government guidance.

Obviously the reasons those decisions were made are probably political.

It is also a fact that teachers are not being given the same level of protection as other workers.

Openpkan,

The contents of the guidance is fact, surely? Published, on the website, public domain?

That when you divide a class of 30 into two groups of 15, and only allow one group per classroom, you need two classrooms, that is also fact?

That if the guidance states you cannot have rotas, that is fact?

So if the Government's published guidance has said that you MUST have groups of 15, and you MUST NOT have rotas, then not having enough classrooms or staff for full re-opening is also a fact, surely?

Which part of that allows for the opinion that the lack of wider re-opening is due to unions, not the published guidance??

@Pomegranatepompom I would like to hear more about your hospital's research if you had any links?

Guidance is never fact. It's guidance!

Yes, but have you read it?

Until it's written into your LAs risk assessment, then it's pretty much the law, unless that's just guidance too?

It doesn’t bother itself with facts.

So you are saying that the Government published guidance, which they expected schools to follow, but that the schools didn't act completely in opposition to the guidance because of unions?????

Or that the Government never meant the schools to follow Government guidance, but in fact wanted them to completely ignore it,and are cross because the unions prevented schools from ignoring the Government's guidance???

Umm.......

@Barbie222 risk assessments aren't law

@Barbie222 I’m not able to share at the moment, we’ve changed our admission, isolation and screening policy today.

As soon as I can share, I will. Of course, it may change again, but today there optimism for services to be running almost as normal, with covid testing being carried 72 hours pre admission and no need for 14 days isolation.

Er, you can be sued if you don't follow them?

What the guidance says is fact. Eg "the guidance says year groups in secondary can be bubbled". That is a fact. Whether or not you agree with it, that is what it says.

So let me get this straight:

You are blaming the unions because schools didn't ignore Government guidance??

I am pretty sure I have my answer to be honest.

Nest you will say you are 'aware there are guidelines'.