Parents are the blockage at schools re-opening, not teaching unions

[noblegiraffe]

The government has spent months demonising teaching unions and blaming them for blocking schools re-opening, including in June when it was actually the government’s own guidelines that prevented the further re-opening of primary schools.

This has left them in a bit of a pickle because schools are re-opening in September, the unions aren’t blocking it, there are no plans for teacher strikes, but the latest survey data from the ONS says that only 90% of parents are fairly or very likely to send their kids back. If the data is similar to back in June, better off parents are more likely to send their kids back, and more disadvantaged families are less likely.

So the government are now running a campaign aimed at parents, putting out articles across all newspapers. The Chief Medical Officers have dutifully said that schools are safe. And the responses are ‘see, schools need to reopen, our kids are being thrown under the bus’. The message is being read the wrong way. It’s being read as being targeted at teachers and unions who it is supposed are stopping schools opening, and not at parents who don’t want to send their kids back.

And this is the government’s fault. Because they have spent months creating a fake war, they have dropped the ball on a real issue - creating safer schools that parents are happy to send their kids back to.

@notadaffoldilinsight

Uh oh - it's the teachers turn to get their own back on the parents for all the 'teacher bashing' that they were on the receiving end of earlier in the summer when they didn't want couldn't work due to lovely weather for sitting in the garden a lack of PPE.

Boring Sunday afternoon?

Uh oh - it's the teachers turn to get their own back on the parents for all the 'teacher bashing' that they were on the receiving end of earlier in the summer when they didn't want couldn't work due to lovely weather for sitting in the garden a lack of PPE

Welcome to MN.

Cannot talk about public buses elsewhere, but tfl

Double deckers max of 30 passengers to allow for some social distance. Masks to be worn unless exempt.

Sit in a classroom with 30 other people, social distancing haha, that's bollocks just like the bubbles. People really believe this is a possibility? Do people really believe that once in the building things will be staggered, the only staggering will be the existing very, very packed lunches. Might as well be on public transport during rush hour for many school dining halls across the country.

Oh really, your school is doing one way system only. You do realise, because of lack of space, time etc, the chances of them socially distancing will be vastly reduced. The one way system like the above is bollocks.

If I was school staff at either primary or secondary, I might have suggested we have a fun internal bet. Don't even have to name the student just the time and day things like the fire drill will be pulled by one of them. You know the things some will do to cause chaos for the fun of it.

But in all seriousness, haven't got a clue how to keep them open. Or the perspex boxes in Thailand schools I think it is, is looking more appealing. I did laugh when I saw the pictures, but why not? (yea I know because the government are tight arsed who won't invest unless one of their mates has a vested interest)

What about working parents? What should they do if schools don't reopen full time?

What back up plans are parents putting into place for if their child's bubble/class/school has to close? They won't be able to intermingle with other pupils in the school.

What back up plans are parents putting into place instead of a dose of calpol, cross your fingers and hope it's all ok? (personally, would like fines issued)

What back up plans are parents putting into place if their school calls and says you need to come and collect your child because they are ill? You are aware that from September guidelines say that child has to be isolated elsewhere and they don't have to be supervised depending in the age of the child.

As a parent regardless of where I have worked I have never understand the what about working parents in relation to school. Yea I get the making them bit can be amazing, but the planning should involve more than the showers, babies room and nursery don't you think? It's not the schools/government/ed department to come up with solutions for you. They simply supply you with some of the resources to be able to do those things.

@notadaffoldilinsight

Uh oh - it's the teachers turn to get their own back on the parents for all the 'teacher bashing' that they were on the receiving end of earlier in the summer when they didn't want couldn't work due to lovely weather for sitting in the garden a lack of PPE.

wow you have a chip on your shoulder - very spiteful comments crossed out

Schools were in last term or have you forgotten we were open for KW students

As a parent regardless of where I have worked I have never understand the what about working parents in relation to school. Yea I get the making them bit can be amazing, but the planning should involve more than the showers, babies room and nursery don't you think? It's not the schools/government/ed department to come up with solutions for you. They simply supply you with some of the resources to be able to do those things.

Sorry but what half-formed nonsense is this? What do you think pregnant women should be doing to plan for a pandemic at some unspecified point in the future? What a bizarre little rant.

No not pandemic planning.

But planning for what happens to the child's care in terms like education and childcare for every day occurrences.
Thinks like illness, school or whatever not open. Things like this.
You know plan B.

Some of the things I mentioned prior to what you posted that might put some context into that final paragraph. Maybe I should have started with that as the opener instead for clarity.

But we have all been doing this since March

Yes, and I cannot do it any more or it will be the end of my career and the end of my sanity. HTH.

Part time schooling is not a viable solution.

It was you btw that assumed I meant pandemic.

I have forgotten that before this everything in life was consistent and full of sunshine, where shit didn't happen to some people's circumstances.I shall try and remember to always make the distinction between the old and new world.

@canigooutyet I was responding to someone asking me what working parents should do if schools were part time.

I have said before, I would like all school children to be back getting an education. I don't make the plans for how the schools deliver that but the Government telling schools to open to all students full time will mean some parents are in the position of having to sort out childcare when bubbles/schools do close (even if just for 14 days isolation).

I won't answer all your questions with a response apart from no one could have planned for this pandemic but now we're in the mix of it then yes, I as I'm sure lots of other parents will, do have a plan for if things go wrong. That does not mean I don't want to know what educational support will be in place should those plans need to be used - so far nothing as been put forward apart from - Schools will reopen to all pupils full time.

One of multiple things I would like to know is what the plans are, if this is not possible, at any point during the time they should be in school.

Statement from NEU Joint General Secretary Kevin Courtney released today...

23 August 2020

Return to school: PHE England report /Chief Medical Officer comments

Commenting on today's report by PHE England and the Chief Medical Officer's comments on the full return of schools and colleges, Kevin Courtney, Joint General Secretary, of the National Education Union, said:

"The NEU agrees with the Chief Medical officer about the benefits a return to full time education will have for children and young peoples education and well being.

"We believe that it is vital that the Government must take every step it can both to allow this wider re-opening and to keep the R rate below 1.

"Today’s report by PHE England shows that there were only a small number of outbreaks in schools after the partial wider opening in June, but as the report itself acknowledges there are limitations on the generalisability of its findings - both because there was little data from secondary schools and because in primary schools much smaller ‘bubble” sizes were possible in the summer.

"It is very important that such monitoring studies are maintained during the period of wider school opening.

"Schools and colleges are currently doing all they can to ensure their buildings are as COVID secure as possible, as well as dealing with the fallout from the exams fiasco.

"However school staff, parents and pupils are being sorely let down by Government because of a lack of a Plan B and of ensuring robust track trace and test is in place throughout the country.

"We believe the Government is negligent in the extreme.

"Schools and colleges need to know what should happen if an outbreak of the virus occurs in individual schools or more widely with either national, regional or local spikes. Government advice needs to cover the possible self-isolation of bubbles and, in extremis, moving to rotas or to more limited opening. It needs to cover advice to heads about the protections needed for staff in high risk categories if infection rates rise.

"Government should be employing more teachers and seeking extra teaching spaces to allow education to continue in a Covid secure manner if infections rise. This should include employment of student teachers who have finished their courses and not yet found jobs, as well as mobilisation of supply staff."

ENDS

@canigooutyet

It was you btw that assumed I meant pandemic.

I have forgotten that before this everything in life was consistent and full of sunshine, where shit didn't happen to some people's circumstances.I shall try and remember to always make the distinction between the old and new world.

Quite I on the other hand can not recall a time in the 'old world' when schools were shut for 5 months. There's a difference between having plans in place if your DC/household has a sickness bug & all schools (plus childcare) being off limits for months.

@canigooutyet

No not pandemic planning.

But planning for what happens to the child's care in terms like education and childcare for every day occurrences.
Thinks like illness, school or whatever not open. Things like this.
You know plan B.

Some of the things I mentioned prior to what you posted that might put some context into that final paragraph. Maybe I should have started with that as the opener instead for clarity.

Everyone has a plan B for illness, snow days and other short-term things like that. Schools not having been open to most children since March isn't the sort of thing that it's reasonable to expect people to have pre-planned for. And what plan B could parents reasonably put in place for part-time opening now? That's a really easy thing to say if you have family to help, can work from home, or can just afford to give up a job. What do you want people to put in place if they don't have those things?

Oh, and I'm very sorry that I didn't respond to you asking the same question inanely three times at the start of your post. You're right, that really made the unrelated rant about baby showers make sense.

And that is also the point I was making. What are parents doing for when these things will invariably happen.

We know at times kids are off ill etc. It's now August, we've known for months the reality of the schools opening fully and staying opened isn't really that hopeful. We've seen other countries with better systems in place have to close down etc.

When teachers have had strikes in the past - oh but what about working parents.

When schools have had to close due to the weather - oh what about working parents

Parents begged and shouted at schools to provide education. So they did - oh what about the working parents.

It's bad enough that this narrative assumes that everyone who works in education is childless, like they don't also face these same issues.

Ok you might not start thinking about it during pregnancy, but really still no plan B for the majority when the school years start approaching, no plan B for when there's rumours about the after school place closing down?

As a parent it makes no sense to not have a plan B. I know the schools plan B, nothing will happen when the class or whatever is closed. It's on me. Same with it was on me when one was throwing up or whatever..

What back up plans are parents putting into place for if their child's bubble/class/school has to close? They won't be able to intermingle with other pupils in the school.

Tarquin can go and stay with his grandmama isolated in the west wing while his siblings still attend school.

Sod that. Siblings will have to intermingle!!

If you can't grasp the difference between having a plan B for if the school rings to say your DC is throwing up (which for most people is apologise profusely to your boss and dash off, desperately hoping it doesn't happen too often) and having a 'plan B' for school becoming part-time indefinitely then I'm not sure there's a meaningful conversation to be had.

Government should be employing more teachers and seeking extra teaching spaces to allow education to continue in a Covid secure manner if infections rise. This should include employment of student teachers who have finished their courses and not yet found jobs, as well as mobilisation of supply staff."

That is all very sensible-there is nothing obstructive or strange there. It all sounds very similar to what happened in the nhs-which the government found money to pay for.

@Hercwasonaroll
I meant if the bubble gets closed down for isolation, but your child is well. Because they have been in that bubble they will also have to isolate away from the school.

Normally the few children left in the class are put into other classes.

If a class or bubble has to stay off school and working parents need to stay at home to look after their DC’s there will be staff shortages in the places where those parents work, assuming their employers let them keep their jobs.

@Hardbackwriter

If you can't grasp the difference between having a plan B for if the school rings to say your DC is throwing up (which for most people is apologise profusely to your boss and dash off, desperately hoping it doesn't happen too often) and having a 'plan B' for school becoming part-time indefinitely then I'm not sure there's a meaningful conversation to be had.

You would think that is what happens. Many parents have too many excuses about why it will take them hours because they have no back up plan.

And if part-time is what the government decide to try next, I know they said they will keep them open at all costs, did they say and this will be full-time?

Didn't someone up the thread also say this is something that is being suggested in Scotland?

Surely it's these things that parents should start planning for now just on the off chance they do happen.

I am on a Facebook group started during the pandemic to support online education and share experiences across the world.

Many countries seem to now be running entirely remote or hybrid part time timetables for the autumn term at least-we are very unusual in our ‘Everyone return to full time schooling’ plan.

It wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if we are also following a hybrid model before Christmas after an unsuccessful couple of months with the government ignoring the fact Covid spreads in schools and pretending there’s not a problem.

I meant if the bubble gets closed down for isolation, but your child is well. Because they have been in that bubble they will also have to isolate away from the school.

In which case I (a teacher) will be off. Once they have a negative test they should be allowed back.

Normally the few children left in the class are put into other classes.

When has this ever happened?!?

This should include employment of student teachers who have finished their courses and not yet found jobs, as well as mobilisation of supply staff

See the recruitment and retention crisis. Nevermind the lack of spare classrooms.

Surely it's these things that parents should start planning for now just on the off chance they do happen.

But what can your plans be? Childcare isn't available, grandparents aren't safe/available for all. If someone has a plan that involves me being able to work then please let me know,because I don't.

Yes I'd love to know what this 'plan B' should entail. The only plan b I can have in the event of another lengthy lockdown or part time schooling, is to give up my career that I've only just got back on track since my youngest started school.