Is journalism dead or controlled by the state? Warning Schools

[Morfin]

These photos show what the MSM are using as images, the three are the BBC, Sky and Daily Mail (that's who BJ gave his interview to) images are powerful they influence the reader. This is the image that is being peddled to the public, is there really no journalists working anymore that actually research a story? As an aside I bet these 'news' outlets have pictures condemning our children for not SD when they flood out of school.

@CKBJ

Agree with the above comments. If schools really were going to look like the pictures suggest I for one wouldn’t have an issue with the schools returning-but they are not. Many people in this country will see the pictures, read the article and wonder what is all the fuss again from teaching staff! This is an example of fuel feeding negativity towards teachers. I’m not sure where the media have been no real mention of the hundreds of outbreaks and more importantly the increase in outbreaks when schools opened for certain year groups in June.

Agree and agree with Piggy it's just so concerning, stirring up hate against teachers, and perpetuating a myth. I hope that there are editorials picking the plans apart but I've yet to find one.

Surely anyone who has been through the comprehensive system themselves remembers how crowded their school was.

Yes 100%
They even saud in the lockdown documents they would create a team to stop the spread of 'false' information

When the first batch went back pre school holidays. The bbc did go to an infants school, and walk round with the head. It was the most depressing thing you could see. They had clearly made it look as bad as possible.

Mine went back and the school didn’t represent that coverage at all. It was a happy vibrant welcoming place.

I really don't know why some people chose teaching, they clearly don't like it

I’m not sure where the media have been no real mention of the hundreds of outbreaks and more importantly the increase in outbreaks when schools opened for certain year groups in June.

One person testing positive in a school setting is not an "outbreak" - more "incidents" than "outbreaks"?

That's a remarkably stupid comment germansausage. How does concern about covid translate to not liking teaching?

I do wonder what the answer is to the potential risks involved in reopening schools though. How much longer should they close for? Education IS important so what about the impact of missing more of it? I would be seriously worried about my eldest's mental health and her future opportunities if she didn't get to go back in September. She's going into year 11. She was struggling a lot just before the schools went back for a time in July.

I predict the media on the first days back in September will focus on schools who are only having year 7 start back-or a school doing staggered starts.

It will show tiny numbers of nervous kids walking into a large school for the very first time, with all available staff on hand-the kids will all be pretty alarmed at being filmed and will be behaving impeccably. There will be much hand sanitizer.

I can’t imagine they’ll be going to visit many schools where 2700 are all arriving at the same time due to public transport. I doubt they’ll be filming the queues for the sinks at break time or endless large classes of unsupervised kids twatting about in classrooms waiting for the teacher to run from one end of the school to the other to get to them.

I might be wrong though.

Of course kids need an education and need to go to school.

What we need to be thinking about is the way school is organised in order to prevent the spread of the virus so that schools remain open

I think some of the parents need an education and need to go to school. Some of the comments are inane.

Before lockdown bbc had a Russian guy on - they obviously couldnt control what he was saying as the presenter had to cut him off.
Even JV has said some stuff that i wouldnt expect.

They definitely send out feeler pieces to the papers.

School closures in uk for covid have only really been in local newspapers.
Gov narrative is school is safe but pubs less so.
And gov were never going to lockdown. They were forced by public opinion.
They had clearly written into documents to send positive patients back to care homes.
And to tell schools not to close for a positive case.

Even now it is 2 positives in 14d in school they will consider closing.

Gov did not try to scare people. Italy did that.
Gov was still doing football and cheltenham.

Newspapers should be doing a comparison uk schools vs other countries in a table

Uk
Wash your hands
'Bubbles' of year group but actually it's the whole school even in primary. Many are bubbling year groups and after school care is going ahead
No assembly
Teachers move across any classes
Visitors allowed
Staggered start if they can
Cleaning by teachers?
No money for anything
No masks allowed
Bubbles sharing toilets
Cv and ecv staff and children in as normal

Every other country pretty much
Masks allowed
Smaller classes normally
Even ireland has said masks and given money.

It is indeed likely that the majority of infections that make people actively ill will be among staff. Which rather begs the question as to how schools can operate within the guidelines with reduced staff - off sick/self-isolating. It is already a huge challenge to deal with relevant health safety rules for coronavirus in the context of schools but once staff start having to stay at home it is going to be very difficult to keep things going. Schools are on tight budgets and extra staff cannot be conjured from thin air.

And once there is a case in school, then the contract tracing system will mean many have to be isolated.

It is a massive challenge.

Re: the snide comments about "state sponsored childcare" do you feel that way about teacher's children staying in school throughout lockdown? Or NHS networker children?

Or are those the special jobs and everyone else should suck it up and just not work

I’m not sure where the media have been no real mention of the hundreds of outbreaks and more importantly the increase in outbreaks when schools opened for certain year groups in June.

196 with two or more students out of 30,000 is not much of a story. It could have been one bubble to stop not even a whole school. Not much news. Even on here most people said they had no cases at their school, I didn’t see anyone saying it was closed on a recent thread.

Ugh. I'd rather be 'inane' than unable to debate without resorting to insult.

So, a secondary school with 1500 pupils. No extra space or staff available. How do you socially distance everybody without compromising on education? Or how do you provide a full time education without compromising on social distancing?

It is the daily mail stirring hatred for teachers. I am a teacher. Last week I received an update from my union (NASUWT) They are for clarification on some points from government but were very clear that they are NOT seeking a postponement to school reopening.

Whether an 'outbreak ' is one case or not is irrelevant (it's not). In March that would have been splash reported with lots of anxiety. Now, small outbreaks in pubs are front page news, and similar sized ones in schools are buried.

Anyone who can't see media agendas in naïve. This particular government uses the media more obviously as a tool than any other I remember.

It is 2 +
Schooks would be top setting with 30 in last 3 weeks
Above all the other workplaces (hospital and care home were also separate)
So if you extrapolate 3/7 of primary and almost no secondary into sept when cases are already higher now anyway.

Yes supposedly a mean of 0 kids 2 teachers and yet the nursery reported in mk had kids. But anyway until they do the report where they swab everyone they arent going to have identified the asymptomatic children are they as asymptomatic child goes to school then creates symptomatic teacher.
It is possible that is rare as teachers arent that close but TA are.
Independent SAGE said schools raise r 0.5. I dont think even closing pubs would allow that...

Your comment helps no one. I’m a teacher, I desperately want to be back in the classroom.
I want decent safety measures put in place to prevent a further outbreak and school closures. Schools can’t open if a large proportion of its staff are off sick.

@Mischance

It is indeed likely that the majority of infections that make people actively ill will be among staff. Which rather begs the question as to how schools can operate within the guidelines with reduced staff - off sick/self-isolating. It is already a huge challenge to deal with relevant health safety rules for coronavirus in the context of schools but once staff start having to stay at home it is going to be very difficult to keep things going. Schools are on tight budgets and extra staff cannot be conjured from thin air.

And once there is a case in school, then the contract tracing system will mean many have to be isolated.

It is a massive challenge.

Yes-this will be a huge issue.

Workers (not just school staff) have become forced, by a culture of presenteeism, threats of referrals to occupational health if you have too much time off and a lack of ‘give‘ in the system to provide cover, of struggling in with all manner of ailments (I’ve taught through tonsillitis as the deputy begged me not to be off as there was nobody to cover), but what are heads going to want now? Staff coming in with a temperature or cough so they don’t have to close the class, or follow the guidelines in wanting to ensure nobody with symptoms is in school, in close proximity to everyone else?

I think heads will be very wary about using supply teachers as they could have been in 9 different schools in the last fortnight and you don’t know if they’ve been exposed. Supply teachers will likewise be cautious about travelling throughout the town, covering classes who have been in close proximity to teachers with symptoms.

I think teachers may have to make their own risk assessment and wear a mask or visor and keep well away from students etc. Although it isn't the way I would normally teach, I will be teaching from the front and avoiding sitting close to a child to help them. If I have to approach a child, I will stand behind them and wear my mask. I will have my own stationery that I keep in my bag. I will be wiping down the keyboard of every computer I use because I will be using computers that other staff have used in the many different rooms I will be teaching in. I won't be taking children's books home with me. I don't know what else I can do realistically.

Whether an 'outbreak ' is one case or not is irrelevant (it's not). In March that would have been splash reported with lots of anxiety. Now, small outbreaks in pubs are front page news, and similar sized ones in schools are buried.

Ban teachers from pubs then.

People generally have no idea what it's like in schools. Yes, everyone went to one...but the population is hugely larger now and the schools are the same size they were thirty, fifty, a hundred years ago when they were first built.

There will be no distancing in schools. They're zoned into their bubbles and they'll try to prevent mixing, but no distancing is going to be happening.

How can any member of the general public think there would be? All pupils must be back, and the buildings are the same as pre-covid.

I think teachers may have to make their own risk assessment and wear a mask or visor and keep well away from students etc

Trouble is - masks protect others from you, they don’t really protect you from the 30 kids in your classroom.
Also I’d have to be stood outside the classroom to keep 2 metre way from the kids.

I’ll be in school in Sept, doing the best I can. Teaching year 7, then year 8, 9 & 10. It doesn’t feel safe though.

@Clavinova

Whether an 'outbreak ' is one case or not is irrelevant (it's not). In March that would have been splash reported with lots of anxiety. Now, small outbreaks in pubs are front page news, and similar sized ones in schools are buried.

Ban teachers from pubs then.

Why?