School re-opening may not go well.

[jomartin281271]

Here's an article from the New York Times documenting what happened when the Israeli government decided to re-open their schools. They thought they had beaten the virus (which this country certainly hasn't) and within days it was spreading again like wildfire. One section of the article is particularly interesting. It reads:

'Public health experts worldwide have coalesced around a set of guidelines for reopening schools.

A major recommendation is to create groups of 10 to 15 students who stay together in classrooms, at recess and lunchtime, with teachers assigned to only one group. Each group has minimal contact with other groups, limiting any spread of infection. And if a case of Covid-19 emerges, one group can be quarantined at home while others can continue at school.

Other key recommendations include staggering schedules or teaching older students online, keeping desks several feet apart, sanitizing classrooms more frequently, providing ventilation and opening windows if possible, and requiring masks for staff and students old enough to wear them properly.'

Our government are going to be cramming the kids into the same old classrooms, students won't be wearing masks, and the older students won't be able to study remotely. And this in a country with one of the highest mortality rates from Covid in the world.

You can read the full article here.

www.nytimes.com/2020/08/04/world/middleeast/coronavirus-israel-schools-reopen.html

I didn’t want a job at that time or at least not full time so I always said no till my current school who agreed to part time.

Obviously there are inadequate teachers out there. That’s the trouble with working conditions that make teaching unappealing for graduates and sees quality teachers burning out and leaving for other careers or retiring as early as they can afford.

You obviously wouldn’t know any of this if you’ve only been a teacher for a couple of years and have spent them in the bubble of a private school.

Maybe trust the people who know what they’re talking about-I know that’s not a popular thing in our time of hating experts and believing conspiracy theories over scientific facts but try it.

@lifeafter50

being regularly left unsupervised whilst teachers leg it to and from other areas of the school In my school safeguarding prohibits pupils being n a classroom unsupervised. When we have eg tutorial day where they are in the classroom for all periods they go out into the corridor and line up where they are visible to other staff- asking for trouble to leave them unsupervised in a room.

Our corridors are big enough for all the classes to line up outside! Guess that’s one of the differences teaching in a state comprehensive rather than private school. Space. I’d definitely feel safer if we had smaller classes and more space in general for a start!

I'm wondering how this is in the benefit of the pupils education.

Years 11 and 12 who do need those sets are going to get fucked over yet again.

We all know pupils in those lower sets who need all the help and support they can get.

It's embarrassing how little the government know about education and schools.

lifeafter50
In my school safeguarding prohibits pupils being n a classroom unsupervised.

I've not worked in a school that doesn't

When we have eg tutorial day where they are in the classroom for all periods they go out into the corridor and line up where they are visible to other staff- asking for trouble to leave them unsupervised in a room.

But interesting to see what happens in September when most schools are implementing an open door policy.
Of course state schools don't have the ability to just get rid of pupils that misbehave like private schools do.

My school also doesn’t let us leave students unattended usually but with us having to race all over the school whilst year groups stay in zones there is no choice.

If the students all came out and lined up in the corridor we could have 480 kids rammed in a corridor in the humanities area and the teachers would have to wade through them to reopen the classroom.

Of course it’s a concern. We’ve never been allowed to leave classes unsupervised in rooms and with the same 30 kids stuck in that room with regular 10 minute interludes of no supervision all day it doesn’t take an experienced teacher to imagine the behaviour management issues does it?

No. I don’t think any sane state secondary school teacher is looking forward to September or imagining it to look anything like normal even before safety and health concerns.

It’s a shitshow on so many levels but it’s what some people are stamping their feet and demanding and the tories genuinely could not give a shit.

I’m trying to shore up my mental health and dark sense of humour as much as I can in August. I’m going to need it

Maybe we will have more "welly" this coming term as there will have to be a zero tolerance policy on behaviour that actually can be carried out. We simply cannot tolerate badly-behaved teens (and primary kids can be pretty challenging too) jeopardising everyone's safety. If they take the piss, then their parents must come and collect them, frankly.

I'm primary and have two 'runners' in my class. I'm very concerend about how I will deal with them in Spetember. They are very likely to be non compliant with the new rules and will find the return to school very unsettling. Both have SEMH needs so excluding or sending home will not be an option. I can possibly cope with one at a time but if both decide to 'go' at the same time it will be a struggle.

I hope you’re right angelina. As ever the keyword is consistency and all staff applying and following the rules. It’s a nightmare even in normal times when it’s inconsistent or kids are just bounced back to the classroom without any consequences or worse patrol turns up after the end of the lesson or not at all.

Can’t have kids storming off and wandering around site. Obviously that should never happen anyway but it really mustn’t happen now.

Going to be interesting to see what kind of back up classroom teachers have in September.

We usually deal with poor behaviour in our secondary school by having a rota of teachers within the department who will accept disruptive students. Obviously, we won't have this in September. We also won't be able to "patrol" the classroom. I feel that a lot of tools will be missing from my toolbox.

Myothercar, I have a runner who also spits, bites and needs handling (in year 6 - he is bigger than me!) I think he'll either be out of the outside door within 5 minutes or i'll be asked to forgo opening my door and windows (he's squeezed through them before... even the little ones!) I am also not happy about having to handle him without PPE. It usually is required 2 to 3 times a week.

I'm also concerned about how I will EVER get my menopausal bladder to have a wee given that I have no TA and am now expected to supervise breaktimes and most of lunchtime. I can't last 8.30 till 12.40 if I have a period. Even if I don't!

@nellodee

We usually deal with poor behaviour in our secondary school by having a rota of teachers within the department who will accept disruptive students. Obviously, we won't have this in September. We also won't be able to "patrol" the classroom. I feel that a lot of tools will be missing from my toolbox.

I hadn’t even thought of this! We have this too, plus an on-call system for really bad offenders or those that refuse to go into the requested classroom. Also when I’m on-call I’ll often need to go into a room to get a student to leave and usually do so by quietly and calmly talking close to them. Won’t be able to do any of that.

I have a child that even on a good day won't do as they are told. Getting out of seat, moving around, talking to others when I am trying to explain the lesson plus being late, interrupting with toilet requests, walking out of the lesson etc. etc.

He normally has a TA but she will be with the year 7s.

It will be interesting as to whether he will remain in school.

Why werent schools shut when swine flu happened etc?

I feel that a lot of tools will be missing from my toolbox

Teaching with a hand casually leaning on disruptive student’s desk.

Teaching sitting next to anxious/struggling student.

Teaching from the back of the room to check everyone is on task.

Stopping next to a student and checking their work - live marking.

Putting a sticker on some beautiful presentation.

Checking in quietly with a student who you know is about to “blow”.

Sweeping a book away to put under the visualiser first immediate celebration/marking/to demonstrate self assessment.

That’s just off the top of my head. So much of my behaviour management AND progress checking relies on my positioning in the classroom.

Why werent schools shut when swine flu happened etc?

Do you seriously need an answer to that?

I suspect that a lot of the government ministers remember sitting in rows with the teacher at the front doing "chalk and talk" and wonder what the hell we're fussing about that's changed.

There will be set movement, most schools are zoning areas for different year groups. My biggest concern is leaving children alone in science labs and DT labs while teachers move rooms. I do wonder if as a technician I may end up being a student sister for classes change over come September.

As someone pointed out doing practicals does require a lot more preparation for us techs. We will be limited in what we can deliver.

We also realised we have to train all our teachers in health and safety for working in a lab. It's not a big thing but it's not the same as being in a normal classes room, there are more hazards the kids can fiddle with some things.

Why werent schools shut when swine flu happened etc?

Do you seriously need an answer to that?

Well, yes. Roughly 350 children died from swine flu in the USA, maybe 20 died so far of COVID in the USA (using American stats because they are much easier to find)

The only difference is that COVID is more dangerous for older adults, so we are making children miserable so we can feel safer.

Does it really need pointing out again that children and older people don’t live in separate vacuums?

Community spread equals increased deaths and serious complications. Schools are the ultimate community hub.

@VagTarant

Why werent schools shut when swine flu happened etc?

Some individual schools did close, and I believe school closure was included as an option in the Government's planning. We had contingency plans ready in case of closure.

The summer holidays had a massive impact on the transmission of swine flu.

As a society, we also had Tamiflu available to lessen the severity of cases.

The Government plans for swine flu made quite grim reading.

Why werent schools shut when swine flu happened etc?

Because as cases were starting peak (29 dead), the summer holidays happened so schools closed anyway and rates plummeted.

Rates started to increase again once schools reopened in September, but by November a vaccine was on the scenes (easier than Covid because it was a flu).

Does it really need pointing out again that children and older people don’t live in separate vacuums?

Most children don’t live with their grandparents, who are the most vulnerable, and it doesn’t seem that school spread is all that common among primary-age children.

So essentially we are ruining their lives so we can feel better. They don’t get sick from it and there is little evidence they spread it.

Because as cases were starting peak (29 dead), the summer holidays happened so schools closed anyway and rates plummeted

I used American stats as a comparison. The pandemic started in April there, so school still well in session.

Nice bubble (excuse term) you live in there. In some communities multi generation living is commonplace. I lived with my gran for my entire teenage years. Quite a few students I teach have recently had elderly relatives moved in with them to care for them better.

@MangoFeverDream

Does it really need pointing out again that children and older people don’t live in separate vacuums?

Most children don’t live with their grandparents, who are the most vulnerable, and it doesn’t seem that school spread is all that common among primary-age children.

So essentially we are ruining their lives so we can feel better. They don’t get sick from it and there is little evidence they spread it.

Yes that is EXACTLY why schools around the world are closing. To 'make us feel better' was it also caused by 5G... 🤣🤦‍♀️🙄