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

Alex it requires 2 in the bubble to test positive within 14 days and presumably they don’t have to/possibly aren’t allowed to inform parents or teachers until there’s a second positive test so it will be given plenty of time to freely spread in a bubble before any closure.

This 😡

There have been some quite heartening posts from parents recently, it really is nice to read.

Honeybadger No doubt.

Do you you think that closing schools impacts working women in particular? Research shows all this. It has huge implications for women, children and inequality. There was a good programme on R4 the other day on this.

why has he just come and announced it.its like there i have warned you now so you cant blame me.i to,d you it was coming why didnt YOU do anything.
why isnt he acting now to stop it.

@MarshaBradyo

So how am I supposed to earn a living? Teachers won't lose their jobs if schools close, I will.

Not the teachers job to ensure you can work, your child is your responsibility.

Oh dear. From a teacher I bet.

Then you’d be wrong.

@MarshaBradyo

So how am I supposed to earn a living? Teachers won't lose their jobs if schools close, I will.

Not the teachers job to ensure you can work, your child is your responsibility.

Oh dear. From a teacher I bet.

People recommending illegally firing all school teachers, tas, Senco, cleaners, admin support etc and selling off school land and withdrawing all of the support for at risk children etc = no problem.

Someone who might be a teacher says a controversial opinion = faux shock and horror

GAH! I have spent all of DD’s nursery days this week (I’m loathe to send her in the summer, but trying to teach a bubble full time while simultaneously provide videoed online learning for my class has put me miles behind) redoing long and medium term planning to react to the changes situation. If we end up not going back properly in September, I shall be tempted to drive to Gav ‘my door is always open’ Williamson’s house and telling him he can bloody re-replan everything for the billionth time.

I do like you @TheHoneyBadger

No it should not be the concern of individual schools but the government should certainly be concerned about how people are going to work
I think this is certainly what is driving the current push for schools to reopen full time. The government knows that parents who can’t send their kids to school, can’t go to work, and that will negatively affect the economy. So they’ll do anything to get kids back into school including sacrificing the lives of school staff. Ditto the parents who don’t give a shit about the lives of the staff as long as they get their free childcare.

Its slightly tongue in cheek but yes it’s just the natural conclusion to the theme I see reoccurring on these threads. Your children your responsibility. Ok fine.

Either way I’d be happy, with full time schooling or funding to do what I’ve done for months. I can actually deal with pt personally but it fucks up a big chunk of women’s ability to work, especially since wfh and furlough is ending.

I’d prefer if mn recognised the impact. We’ve made strides over last couple of decades (R4 has stats) but yes I think it’s worth remembering what would happen.

@MarshaBradyo

Honeybadger No doubt.

Do you you think that closing schools impacts working women in particular? Research shows all this. It has huge implications for women, children and inequality. There was a good programme on R4 the other day on this.

A) I’m advocating taking measures to minimise school closures.

B) yes of course I’m aware. I’m a working single mum myself and only entitled to 1 day of paid parental leave. Perhaps it should be the governments job to ensure women can’t be made redundant over this and to ensure there are financial protections in place.

It seems that should be something the guys with the big money and decision making power should be mitigating rather than other working women such as teachers, school cleaners, tas, part time admin etc having to risk their health and that of their community don’t you think?

The media 're making a mountain out of a molehill.
Yep. I heard the Today Programme this morning (which I don't usually listen to), and it made it sound as if the mythical second spike was already happening in England, with the words "slight uptick" used a lot, and whenever "increase in cases" was mentioned, it often didn't have "in Spain" after it.

And people will believe it, because it's sensible Radio 4.

And yep, here come the government threats to control the public.

And don’t particularly trust this thread either for the op or the mysterious MP quoted in ES.

Hoping it’s just usual school bumpf to get some clicks going.

Why thank you oldbag

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.

It may be time to take a break from mn I miss penis beakers

@PineappleSquosh

No it should not be the concern of individual schools but the government should certainly be concerned about how people are going to work I think this is certainly what is driving the current push for schools to reopen full time. The government knows that parents who can’t send their kids to school, can’t go to work, and that will negatively affect the economy. So they’ll do anything to get kids back into school including sacrificing the lives of school staff. Ditto the parents who don’t give a shit about the lives of the staff as long as they get their free childcare.

This ^^

Not all of us feel that way, I’d rather keep mine at home than risk the lives of staff and other families. School staff should be safe, if not then don’t reopen schools. Give them the same treatment as other workplaces and make sure they are Covid secure.

If masks, social distancing are required everywhere else then that should be at least the bare minimum for schools too.

www.expressandstar.com/

These are the headlines for my regional news: McDonald’s closes due to staff testing positive, a pub closure, a factory closure and two areas at risk of lockdown.

This is happening with measures being relaxed in Covid secure places, I am concerned for September.

No plan is going to suit everyone and people just need to adapt to it and learn that this isn't normal circumstances so expecting normal is just too much right now
I do think the government need to sort it out as well though.
Where i am the plan is for school children to be in 2 days a week and then home learning 3 days while the other half of the kids are in and a day in between for cleaning and the outrage from the majority of parents blaming the school, teachers and everything else of course is ridiculous !
Why not let parents make the call as well and they could absolutely have the numbers in schools cut lower which therefore reduces the risk of spread. Making it compulsory to send children with underlying health conditions for starters is a joke
I will be refusing to send my DC and sibling due to the health conditions i feel this is just throwing the child under the bus ....every other child in the class may well have just mild symptoms but its fine for some kids to risk ICU and long term health problems in the name of getting everyone back to school whenever at this stage we don't even know what will happen in terms of spread etc when schools reopen also given the fact those coming off shielding are still being advised to follow social distancing strictly and limit contact with people outside their household....sure lets throw them into classes of 30 or year group bubbles with 100+ in them with no social distancing at all and hope for the best !

It's going to be a disaster and i've been saying it all along and of course there will have been no plans for distance learning put in place instead of the teachers having had time to prepare for that scenario

@TheHoneyBadger

@Orangeblossom78

I think there is meant to be an announcement on Scottish schools tomorrow?

As they are due to return 11th Aug. So maybe that will give some idea.

I'd rather the secondary was part time and smaller classes, that not as all. DCs already been doing part time before the summer.

Yes, I am a teacher and the announcement is tomorrow. I am quite nervous about what will be planned. Up until the end of school we were all planning for blending learning. Then, the day before we finished for summer it was announced that children were expected to go back without any precaustions. We are lucky here as the cases of covid have really gone down. I am not full of confidence that what is put in place will protect teachers and staff/children [especially since the highschool prior to closing was just an utter disgrace with regards to getting children washing their hands. That really concerns me. We have a strong union here though. They have been largely excellent during this and are pretty influential.

@IceCreamAndCandyfloss Agreed! 1 of my DC has ASD and we've tried masks but he really can not tolerate them - as he's under 11 that isn't so much an issue but if they need them in school it would be. BUT I don't know how the guidelines were written to basically say teachers/schools do not need to be covid safe when everything else in the country does.

If schools returning aren't/can't be as safe as possible for everyone then something else needs to be put in place to educate our children and plans need to be made to do so sooner rather than later

@commentatorz

I already posted in a different thread,the answer to this is that if schools want to close that's fine, but their funding should be diverted to parents for:

• technology / broadband spending for online schooling so that every child has a computer

• homeschooling subsidy

• private tuition or schooling

• quality content provision from third party subject matter experts.

The amount the schools get per child wouldn't cover very much of that at all, most certainly not anything to do with private education.

It must be awful for the schools. Our HT has, following guidelines, encouraged parents to drop off children if they can. The school sits on a village road and there are 1300 children at the school. He has asked us not to hang around, but at the same time said that children will be released from school in year groups. 300 children to a year... How many cars? All trying to squeeze down one road.

DD1 goes to special school and we've been asked to take her for the Autumn term, rather than sending school transport for her.

Obviously children could be given mask exemptions where necessary. We’re honestly not the monsters some posters would have you believe.

If we really were the greedy evil sadists we’re made out to be by some we’d have picked a different career. Politics maybe?

@Lougle

Honestly, if I didn't think it would be highly disrespectful, I'd post the video of the demonstration. It's just mind boggling.

A bit concerning as well, what sort of chemical would cleanse the air? Not one you’d want to breathe in even if it was possible. Weird.

This is al thanks to bloody Us for Them. Who were so focus on pressuring the government to go for all in full time they forgot all about the reality of the virus.

Their campaigning steered the conversation away from how we could create continuity of learning in these difficult time. All because they didn’t want any other option than all in full time.

We should have been having a conversation about how to offer continuous, supported learning to all students. It was totally obvious that full time face to face was a no go. We could have been spending this time developing strategies.

I am so hacked off that government policy and the education of millions of children was steered by a special interest group who happened to shout the loudest. Dreadful.