School re-opening under threat

[jomartin281271]

Headline in the London Evening Standard today that this new surge could threaten re-opening of schools. I'm not surprised. The government know that it's not safe to open schools under their current guidance. Cramming children, teachers and admin staff into those tiny spaces could cause a catastrophe. I feel sorry for teachers. Most of them are really committed to the job and their lives are being put at risk. Scary times.
www.standard.co.uk/news/health/coronavirus-second-wave-schools-september-a4511516.html

[quote commentatorz]@TheHoneyBadger I'm not talking about schools giving money to parents, I'm talking about shutting the schools down and diverting their funding to give directly to parents.[/quote]
If that happens then there would be no school to return to.

@dotdashdashdash

IloveJKRowling but would you be happy to pay someone to care for your children in that way? It's one thing having to make that decision as a parent, but a paid professional has standards and guidance to adhere to.

Exactly. Trying to care for preschoolers and educate school children cannot be done at the same time without neglecting someone's needs. Either the preschooler getting plonked in front of the telly or the older child ignores their work while you play with the little one.

Managing because you have too is one thing doing it because your greedy isn't good.

If people want schools back to normal, then they shouldn't be part of the "Let's get everything back to normal NOW" crew, they should be part of the "No holidays, no pub lunches, essential trips only" crew.

^ yes this

Sorry, but I’d be embarrassed as a teacher - schooled in modern learning theory of how to deliver learning in a flexible and diversified manner - to be complaining that they can’t adapt their teaching for blended delivery.

Thank fuck you're not a teacher then.

The solution was obvious from the beginning but the government doesn’t want to pay for it.

It goes thus:

1. An injection of funds to get all schools to develop an online learning arm- supported by the white elephant that is Oak Academy. This would means that children who cannot return or will not return would have dedicated teaching staff and resources.

2. invest in renting out halls and all the now won’t office space to use as classrooms. Make class sizes 15 or so. Run these on a PT time table OR/ AND hire staff to run supervision session for these bubbles to provide childcare. Like supervised study or enrichment classes.

3. Mandates for employers to provide flexible working and WFH where necessary.

4. develop Covid secure wrap Around care services. (I don’t know about anyone else but wrap around care is no existent for next year where I live. We have had to hire a PT nanny for pick up and drop off).

I’m getting to the stage where I adore every human being with an ounce of common sense and a wafer thin slice of compassion.

well said theHoneyBadger me too.

(I don’t know about anyone else but wrap around care is no existent for next year where I live.

We're offering wrap around care. However we've had to massively cut the number of places, and alter the time it runs from / to. Meaning we can't offer to all the parents/ carers who would have used it, so despite offering the provision many are still having to find alternative care.

Yep and temporarily at least provide the necessary paid parental leave and decent statutory sick pay.

But they will never except that parenting, childcare or state education are an integral part of an economy. It doesn’t impact gdp and shareholders profits like running a nationwide bogof meal scheme (after trying not to pay fsm to the poorest of the poor over summer) for those who can afford to eat out.

Gwynfluff
Sorry, but I’d be embarrassed as a teacher - schooled in modern learning theory of how to deliver learning in a flexible and diversified manner - to be complaining that they can’t adapt their teaching for blended delivery. There was a 4 month period to try different techniques.

And it has been explained time and time again what the problems are and how they need to be overcome.

Frankly I would be embarrassed to have posted what you have just done.

Managing because you have to is one thing doing it because your greedy isn't good

I don't understand where greedy comes in - what does this mean?

We're all managing because we have to - the hospitals, care homes, restaurants, airports. No-one is doing anything the way they want to because - global pandemic and highest death rate in the G7.

I rarely plonked my dd2 in front of the tv, or ignored dd1. I set dd2 up with things to play with so I could respond to dd1. I often got dd2 involved in what dd1 was doing. Sure, she didn't understand a lot of it, but she'd sit and colour / sticker / paint / playdoh and 'be in school' too. I can see how more than 2 would be tricky though. No housework got done either.

But I'd love to avoid more lockdown and have the schools open so masks, money for cleaning, money for heating (ventilation), money for extra spaces to allow social distancing is my strong preference - and I've written to my MP to say so.

I still think there should be a back up plan for home learning.

Why isn't their a massive incentive scheme to get teachers who have left the profession back in to teaching to plug the gaps?

"Hi, remember that job you spent years training for and even more years getting really good at, that ended up being so awful that you left, demoralised and possible depressed.. worried that you'd wasted a lot of your life learning to do something so disrespected, well? Want to come back to it?"

Erm, no thanks.

Whoever wrote this, it's perfect:

If people want schools back to normal, then they shouldn't be part of the "Let's get everything back to normal NOW" crew, they should be part of the "No holidays, no pub lunches, essential trips only" crew.

How come all the schools didn’t close through the lockdown when they were open to front line staff children? Surely those children would more likely carry the virus than others?

gallbladderpain

My DS is in the "moderate risk" category, which seems to have disappeared as a category from the government website since I got the letter from the hospital back in April, so it seems social distancing is no longer considered necessary for workers and students with underlying health conditions to be safe at work or school for prolonged periods of proximity to other people in an enclosed environment.

Healthy shoppers, however, need to be protected from fleeting, socially distanced contacts with the extra precaution of masks. Go figure.

I think the part time plan sounds sensible. I wish that was possible here, but all we get are giant, useless "bubbles" and arriving in PE kit. I'm just grateful that although both my DC have chronic health conditions, neither has something that appears especially vulnerable to this virus. I feel very sorry for any parents of children with type 1 diabetes, which appears to put people at much higher risk of serious illness, having to make decisions about whether to send them back. It's clear this government can't be trusted to take the measures necessary to protect them properly, but if they don't go back they'll miss out and it could negatively affect their entire futures.

If people want schools back to normal, then they shouldn't be part of the "Let's get everything back to normal NOW" crew, they should be part of the "No holidays, no pub lunches, essential trips only" crew

Yes this exactly

Yep agree with that sentiment @ohthegoats

Peeps need to get a grip with the new normal if we are to move forward and if that means wearing a mask in school so be it.

IloveJKRowling

The requests for plans have been asked for by schools, teachers, HTs, unions etc. for months.

The government is only ever going to react to the problems that it has created whilst doing its damnedest to place the blame on school, teachers etc.

@ohthegoats

Whoever wrote this, it's perfect:

If people want schools back to normal, then they shouldn't be part of the "Let's get everything back to normal NOW" crew, they should be part of the "No holidays, no pub lunches, essential trips only" crew.

So you're saying we can have schools but absolutely nothing else? For how long?

Those saying part time do you want pt for all?

@StaffAssociationRepresentative

Yep agree with that sentiment *@ohthegoats*

Peeps need to get a grip with the new normal if we are to move forward and if that means wearing a mask in school so be it.

Ugh some of us don't want this "new normal" shit half life though. You might be happy with that but I'm not.

@Mummypig2020 we had to provide childcare for key workers but this was small numbers and so easier to control bubbles

@TrustTheGeneGenie - sorry I thought we were still fighting a pandemic. Maybe I got that wrong.

@TheHoneyBadger Sorry, I think you may have taken my comment about DC being unable to tolerate a mask, wrong. I was not saying no masks because of this. I'm saying it may be an issue for some families (but you can be damn sure we'd try!) and if masks is not the way forward in school then something other than 'normal' needs to be, because 'normal' school is not possible right now, especially if we want them back to any sort of routine.

@dotdashdashdash

Why isn't their a massive incentive scheme to get teachers who have left the profession back in to teaching to plug the gaps?

You mean like th esummer school plan that didn't happen or the tuition/extra tutors one that should start in September but is looking like it might start sometime in the second half of the first term (maybe).

The truth is that very very few ex teachers want to come back into a profession where they have been treated so badly for so many years.

Mummypig2020 because they were actually in bubbles of less than 15 and only a handful of staff in the building at any one time.