Schools to remain closed until October half term?

[stopcollaborateandlisten]

Lots and lots coming out in the news how schools will finally be re-opening - anyone else think it might get pushed back at the last minute to after the October half term?

Just because you've been busy. Doesn't mean best for kids.

No-one has said full time remote learning is best for the kids.

What most teachers are saying is that a planned for blend of in-school and remote is better than fulltime for a few weeks and then back to post-march provision.

Or that if we're in full time, masks and extra money for cleaning will at least delay the spread.

That parents need to stick to isolation procedures for us to have any chance of staying open.

Barring a huge nationwide increase, don’t think so. Locally, quite possible.

"Working with covid patients"

"So a standard part of your job, right? Just because you've been busy. Doesn't mean best for patients....."

Have you ANY idea just what planning, resourcing, delivering and marking work remotely for 32 children looks like??

And yes, a standard part of my job - but it is rare that I have to re-plan and re-resource every single lesson for every single day because it is being delivered remotely, rather than in person, or that I have to write feedback for every piece of work (an average of 3-4 per child per day) because verbal feedback or 'hands up to tel me...' isn't possible.

I spent around 25-30 minutes per student giving live feedback on the work they produced for me.

Those who engaged with the work have made huge progress in my subject.

I'm hearing teachers don't want to share what they've been doing. Ok

@askmehowiknow

I'm hearing teachers don't want to share what they've been doing. Ok

I've read what teacher have been doing many, many times on Mumsnet. Including on this thread.

Maybe read back.

The trouble is kids haven't been receiving a satisfactory education.

@TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince

‘State schools did very little’

I never stopped bloody working

Both can be true atm.

Unfortunately for some students.

@askmehowiknow

The trouble is kids haven't been receiving a satisfactory education.

The difficulty is, I agree, that for most children, full time in person education, rather than education delivery altered by Covid, would give them the best education.

In the same way that the NHS working completely normally for all patients suffering for all complaints, rather than healthcare delivery altered by Covid, gives the best health outcomes.

However, we do have Covid - and like the NHS having to work out what to do about its dramatically increased waiting lists and cancelled appointments while remaining ready to counter a second wave, the education system has to work out how best to deliver education without contributing to a second wave.

@askmehowiknow

The trouble is kids haven't been receiving a satisfactory education.

Some kids haven't.

Most of the kids I teach have done just as well as normal. Some better as there's less distractions and they don't like asking for help in front of others but are happy emailing for help. The ones who haven't done any work, on the whole, are the ones who wouldn't do any in school.

The govt suspended the curriculum. If they set the bar higher for blended learning, schools would have to comply.

Current plans won't lead to a satisfactory education. The in-out damage will be massive.

I'm just interested in what a better model would be. Teachers are very guarded about what they've been doing strangely.

Most parents know their kids have pretty much been left to it.

And in the same way it would be unreasonable for someone in need of an urgent paediatric orthopedic appointment - like my DD - to say 'the problem is, the covid-affected NHS isn't delivering a satisfactory service', it is obviously unreasonable to say to the school system 'the problem is, the Covid-affected school system hasn't been delivering a satisfactory service'.

For both organisations, the question is how to balance the need for Covid security and the risk of a second wave with the need to get back to delivering normal service.

@Beawillalwaysbetopdog I guess most kids doing as well isn't good enough though is it?

What have you been doing with them?

Teachers are very guarded about what they've been doing strangely.

No, Ihave been entirely open in summarising what I have been doing, And you have deliberately and ignorantly belittled it. That is not the same thing as 'being guarded'.

Most of the kids I teach have done just as well as normal. Some better as there's less distractions and they don't like asking for help in front of others but are happy emailing for help. The ones who haven't done any work, on the whole, are the ones who wouldn't do any in school.

Are you primary or secondary?

The school here doesn’t know what the excluded students have been doing. They have weekly emails out but no avenue for return. It’s been fairly common.

Tg for OA online lessons here, otherwise really poor situation.

I guess most kids doing as well isn't good enough though is it?

But then, most people requiring NHS treatment for ailments other than Covid - and tbh those suffering from Covid, if we compare our health outcomes with other countries - haven't done well, either.

How are you going to improve the NHS and start it up exactly as normal for all on 3rd September?

Secondary much better with engagement both ways.

Hospital admissions are unchanged. Outpatient appointments are continuing as normal (throughout) in my department. Phone calls or virtual or face to face.

So let's focus on schools as per the thread!

Well my husband's annual oncology check up has been put back by 8 months.

To whom do I complain?

Let us set out what we all agree on:

• Remote education has not, for many children, been as effective as in person on-site education.
• Not all schools have delivered perfectly during lockdown.
• It would be better if all schools could return full time for all students, with no interruption, for the whole of the next academic year.

I don't think anyone would disagree with these.

The reason for remote learning was obvious - the Covid pandemic.

The reason for the variability in delivery between schools is a government policy error, not a school one - in fact, schools delivering a curriculum were going against the letter of the government guidance, which simply stated that the curriculum was suspended. The Government COULD have mandated a minimum level of educational delivery. It did not. It could have released funding to fill the gaps in technology provision that dogged many schools' delivery to their students - it did not, until too late to make a difference.

The reason that schools may not be able to deliver in person full time leaning for all for the whole of next year without interruption is due to the government's handling of the pandemic. Cases in the community are still too high, and as a result, there will be outbreaks in schools. the government guidelines for schools are far too lax to prevent these from spreading, and schools have no funding to fill the gaps through their own actions. Unless parents and teachers are willing to take the 'collateral damage' in illness and deaths of unrestricted outbreaks running through schools, closures are inevitable.

Can you explain just why this is the fault of teachers?

Ask - it's better than what will happen in Sep.

Probably not good enough by MN standards as it's not live but..

Video of me talking through all the content. 1/2 or sometimes 3 small tasks for each lesson that they submit for marking. Multiple choice quiz at the end of every lesson - whole class feedback from this given at the start of the next. An exam question every 2 weeks that is marked properly. Students encouraged to email me for help. If it's not easy to explain by email, video explanation made and emailed to the whole class if generally useful.

@Danglingmod

Well my husband's annual oncology check up has been put back by 8 months.

To whom do I complain?

I'm assuming his oncologist!

Oncology have been working throughout and not with covid as far as I'm aware though.

Hospital admissions are unchanged. Outpatient appointments are continuing as normal (throughout) in my department. Phone calls or virtual or face to face.

And that is universal? So every patient, in every department, in every hospital, who would have had a consultation between 20th March and now has had an unchanged experience in terms of waiting time and availability of treatment?

Are you sure?

www.tes.com/news/coronavirus-gibb-science-says-no-masks-needed-teens-schools

Apparently the official line is that masks are not necessary because teachers are in regular contact with the same people every day. Whereas in shops you encounter people you don’t normally see, so therefore you need a mask. Not sure why people in other workplaces have to wear masks then, seeing as they are also in contact with the same people every day!