Coronovirus IS transmitted in schools

[mosquitofeast]

And lots of teachers have died

I am just clarifying this, as I don't know how many times I have read on Mumsnet that this has never happened. I don't know where this misinformation is coming from, but its rubbish

It was transmitted several hundred times in my school (secondary)before lock down. Hundreds of children and dozens of staff were affected. Some have been seriously ill and have been left with long term health problems, such as low lung capacity and loss of hearing.

I am a teacher and I was infected at school. I did not use public transport, or go into any shops or other businesses for the whole of March, and I was living alone. The only time I was in any contact with anyone else was in school

A school near us (also secondary) had to close a week before school closures were announced, as so many teachers were infected.

Thankfully, no staff or student in our school died, although several students have lost parents, and many have lost grandparents. One of my sixthformers has withdrawn her university application as her mum has lost a lung and a leg and now can't run her home and care for her younger children on her own.

However, according to the union, around 200 school staff have dies to date, so we have just been lucky so far.

So please don't repost this fake news that "no one has ever caught covid in a school" - because |I have watched it happen in front of my eyes, and experienced it myself.

And before anyone even goes there, I'm not advocating a return to using the cane 😂

I'm just amazed that anyone thought that you couldn't catch it in school. Like the good fairy waved her wand and made it so.

Originally It was suggested that the virus didn't thrive in most children. That would make them safer than an equal number of adults, but is hardly the same as a magic spell. (and against that you have the problem of kids not social distancing well)

If anyone seriously thought schools were safe then we need not have closed them.

Wow you started a thread beginning of the day and its already reached 20 pgs.

You could use it as a social distancing stick @Flimflamfloogety

I can't speak for other parents, but personally I wouldn't mind if the top/middle/bottom set approached was abandoned for the time being, and some of the options were dropped (return to more of the classic subjects) to allow the kids to stay put for most of the day.

Guidance says that children aren't allowed to drop subjects apart from in exceptional circumstances. We are going mixed ability ks3 however it is literally impossible at ks4 to not have different groups due to options.

Just get the kids to park their bums on the grass and do some reading as a group.

I'm hoping you're not being rude here. English isn't just reading. Students have to actually do work to learn.

But they don’t need to do poetry anymore @Hercwasonaroll if the BBC headlines were to be believed
Just another way education is shown incorrectly in the media

@Hercwasonaroll

Not at all. But we all know that SOME DAYS the lesson is just to read from the prescribed text, each student having a turn and then discussing the connotations of the text. Those kids of classes don't need to be in a classroom if the weather is nice

Nope even in a lesson like that they still write something.

Not at all. But we all know that SOME DAYS the lesson is just to read from the prescribed text, each student having a turn and then discussing the connotations of the text. Those kids of classes don't need to be in a classroom if the weather is nice.

Yeah I mean everyone does stuff differently but I'd get hammered if a lesson was just reading. I've. It heard of anything like that since my own school days a million years ago. Plus it's hardly a plan is it. It would work for English what once every ten days? What about the rest of it?

The news reports claiming that Covid is not transmitted in schools show photos of massive rooms with about 5 pupils spread miles apart.

Anyone who claims Covid-19 is not spread in schools is either lying or a total idiot or in the case of the current govt both.

Consider:
Lunch time
Toilets
Corridors
Bus to school
At the gates to go home
Changing rooms
Sick room
On books, pencils, desks
Class sizes
No PPE

etc etc etc etc etc etc etc

I really have tried to understand what the objections are, how they can be overcome with some flexibility. All I'm hearing though is "we don't wanna", it seems that you're not willing to adapt at all to make it workable.

I dunno, maybe I've just been conditioned from working in the private sector - when a thing needs to be done you just do it. Wish I had the luxury of refusing to do my job without being fired.

I'm just so glad my kids school have come up with a workable plan. The teachers have been amazing all thorough lockdown and have gone above and beyond to get the school open for September.

@FrippEnos

ResIpsaLoquiturInterAlia

In England we are thankful that we have nearby Scottish (guinea pig) schools to closely monitor and observe before other UK schools reopen (hopefully).

But isn't it a sad state of affairs when something has to go very wrong for the government to do something right?

Simple precautions could be taken, that whilst being uncomfortable for some would aid in the prevention of this virus spreading.

Why can some people not see that it would beneficial for all to do these things?

@FrippEnos

These are very sad and desperate times. Nothing ideal as the UK and home nation governments have been very seemingly incompetent (compared to best in class overseas developed nation governments like Taiwan and New Zealand).

We in the UK have sort of shielded the NHS though obviously normal service and operations etc have been on hold and sacrificed the old in care homes.

Our governments are seemingly making it up as they go along and only now seemingly switching their attention to the education sector. I doubt unlike Nightingale hospitals whether new much needed extra school infrastructure capacity will be sourced not even if critical key teaching staff workers will be provided much necessities such as basic PPE etc.

Naturally what we actually all need for safer practices for schools and all other in person settings is some certainty of what is actually going on and where in terms of infections and community transmission. We basically need that world class compulsory mass repeat rapid test track trace and isolate backed up by an army of vigorous enforcement personnel and not just the voluntary anti mask social media police doing spot checks to ensure community adherence to criminal health and safety laws.

We have evidently have an elevated R in many UK areas and if children and adults can cram on the beach without PPE nor social distancing perhaps they can be the first to test the waters in school. They seem massively brave and invincible if not foolish. Police need to round up those youths in countless inner cities holding illegal mass social gatherings and raves and send them to school but give the brave teachers (and social workers) added protection and a flexible working rota for less exposure.

Of course it is.

Y13 are mainly 17-18 year olds which is very similar in age to the youngest teachers. Will being 22/23 magically increase susceptibility?

Say children didn't transmit to teachers. Children are catching it so they must be getting it from other children or their teachers/parents. If this is the case, it's perfectly understandable that a teacher would want to wear ppe so that they wouldn't transmit to the kids.

US has higher number of community transmissions than England but there are high schools that have moved to online learning a mere week after reopening. 🤔

I really have tried to understand what the objections are, how they can be overcome with some flexibility. All I'm hearing though is "we don't wanna", it seems that you're not willing to adapt at all to make it workable.

Actually you just don't understand how to teach, timetable or indeed organise outdoor classrooms on the scale you suggest. Your suggestions were ridiculous but I wasn't going to be outwardly rude until you were.

I dunno, maybe I've just been conditioned from working in the private sector - when a thing needs to be done you just do it. Wish I had the luxury of refusing to do my job without being fired.

Nobody is refusing. We are going in to do it the way they want us to. We're just very unhappy about it because it's clearly not safe.

I'm just so glad my kids school have come up with a workable plan. The teachers have been amazing all thorough lockdown and have gone above and beyond to get the school open for September.

Brilliant! Well if that's the case can't you just tell us what they've done then?

I just can't see any logical reason to assume kids can't catch it and pass it on. They often don't show symptoms which is why kids don't seem to get it. But they do, it harder to contain in schools because of this.

It's a stance some take because they're desperate for their kids to go back to school, some from genuine concern for their kids, some because it's inconvenient for their kids to be off. I get it btw, I'm not criticising anyone, I'm just pointing out why this is important to people.

The surface infection thing, they went on about spread this way, but I read lately that it's not that common and most transmission occurs via droplets in the air.

@Flimflamfloogety

I really have tried to understand what the objections are, how they can be overcome with some flexibility. All I'm hearing though is "we don't wanna", it seems that you're not willing to adapt at all to make it workable.

I dunno, maybe I've just been conditioned from working in the private sector - when a thing needs to be done you just do it. Wish I had the luxury of refusing to do my job without being fired.

I'm just so glad my kids school have come up with a workable plan. The teachers have been amazing all thorough lockdown and have gone above and beyond to get the school open for September.

Private schools have better facilities and smaller class sizes, generally speaking.

From what I have been told by teachers, teaching at a private school does mean longer holidays, small classes, it's easy to discipline, etc but the schools can and often do expect an awful lot from the staff. For example, when they are off sick, they have to submit full lesson plans for the day by 9am.

I doubt parents realise the full story because private school teachers can't say... they'd be out of a job.

Wish I had the luxury of refusing to do my job without being fired.

Which teachers have this luxury?

Police need to round up those youths in countless inner cities holding illegal mass social gatherings and raves and send them to school but give the brave teachers (and social workers) added protection and a flexible working rota for less exposure.

Brave teachers my arse. I can think of at least four in my family/friends group who haven’t been bothering with social distancing at all for months. They’re as likely to be responsible for the virus spreading in schools as anyone else.

Wish I had the luxury of refusing to do my job without being fired.

Get over yourself, teachers don’t have this luxury and you know it. Teachers are just saying that we don’t tend to do lessons where kids just sit and read and discuss... especially not in primary schools. Some lessons definitely could be done outside occasionally, which might help things.

Honestly if at this point you’re still screaming that teachers refuse to work then it’s worth everyone on the thread ignoring what you have to say. We cannot refuse to work or we will be fired - like everyone else.

Also, if your kids are in private schools, it’s not even slightly comparable to state schools in terms of money, provision, and government input.

I expect many resignations from my school, which will of course cause major issues, however having lots of teachers refusing to work but getting paid causes major issues too

@Chaotic45

Personally, I don't know any teachers who are refusing to work! All the teachers I know what to be back in the classroom, but are also prepared to continue teaching online as they have since March.

Making them out to be work shy sloths does YOU no favours!

All they're asking for is the same Covid Safe adjustments OTHER people have in their workplaces.

& less bullshit about it being 'safe'. Children & teenagers in particular do pass the virus on. There's plenty of information out there if people are open minded enough to actually read it & take into account the variables. Places with fully open schools (very rare) & low infection, Do not have 30+ kids inside a classroom for hours on end.

If I was a teacher I'd resign right now. I'd have resigned whenever I needed to, to not go back in the September shit show. I'd tutor online

But this is NOT what we want all of our concerned teachers doing. We have a shortage of teachers already.

It makes FAR more sense (hence the Govt not doing it) to LISTEN to the teachers to see what would actually work in their schools and to fund some changes & modify the curriculum/requirements. Whatever is necessary.

Plus, allow the parents who want to keep their kids at home this coming term to do so but keep their place parents & schools to agree on the level of support either way.

All options come with 'issues' but it would all work better if they stopped lying & started listening!

It gets frustrating hearing people who have never worked in schools giving all these suggestions which are sort of helpful but come up against a lot of blocks (like getting kids to sit and read outside in place of English lessons) and then if we’re not like “ooh yes, you’ve solved it, amazing!” then we get accused of refusing to be flexible.

I’m not in the habit of assuming I have any authority to tell anyone else how to do their job. Amazing how many people think they have this authority over school staff.

@year5teacher

It gets frustrating hearing people who have never worked in schools giving all these suggestions which are sort of helpful but come up against a lot of blocks (like getting kids to sit and read outside in place of English lessons) and then if we’re not like “ooh yes, you’ve solved it, amazing!” then we get accused of refusing to be flexible.

I’m not in the habit of assuming I have any authority to tell anyone else how to do their job. Amazing how many people think they have this authority over school staff.

Yes it's frustrating. Posters keep saying that teachers don't have a "can-do" attitude and aren't offering any suggestions.

Yet we are offering a suggestion - WE'D LIKE THE SAME CONSIDERATIONS TOWARDS DISTANCING AND MASKS THAT OTHER WORKERS HAVE.

But apparently this means we want schools closed.

I've never met so many posters who can't read and understand what we are saying.

It's ridiculous.

Anecdotal evidence only.. niece was notified by nursery that child in her dds bubble had tested positive so rest of bubble isolated at home till 14 days were up. No other child or staff member caught it, nor did the sick child’s parents or siblings catch it despite them being toddlers who practically lick each other and have no idea of sd.

I'm fed up with the "teachers don't have a can do attitude" brigade. Did anyone else have their entire job change literally overnight?

Our SLT in fairness has a decent plan to reduce contact. However this comes at a price of mixed ability learning, same room and seating plan all day and 2 hour lessons. While I may feel safe in my school, I know this isn't replicated.

Our staff are moving to 2 hour lessons of mixed ability. Totally out of our comfort zone. We don't know if we'll be allowed textbooks, whiteboards etc yet so cannot actually plan any lessons. We're waiting with baited breath for tomorrow's announcement.