NEU calls for two week closure for secondaries and colleges following leap in infections

[noblegiraffe]

The NEU has called for a two week closure of secondary schools and colleges following a more than 9-fold increase in the infection rate in secondary school children in a month.

www.tes.com/news/coronavirus-teachers-demand-2-week-school-closures-after-cases-jump

The infection rate in Y7-11 was 0.5% last week, according to the ONS survey of random households, but this nearly doubled to 0.93% in the latest set of figures. This rise cannot be ignored or passed off as relating to university students as has happened so far.

In other, entirely unrelated news, 61% of teachers report that if a student doesn't wear a mask in a school where they are mandated in communal areas 'nothing happens'.

www.tes.com/news/coronavirus-61-staff-say-nothing-done-if-pupils-wont-wear-masks

And Teacher Tapp data from yesterday had 26% of teachers reporting that their schools were partially closed to students.

In the meantime, the testing positivity rate in 10-19 year olds is 17%, which means that this group is severely under-tested and lots of cases will be missed. The rate should be below 5%.

Yet the insistence continues that in any lockdown scenario, schools will remain open. Idiocy.

Good to see yet another thread descend into teacher having to defend themselves and their jobs.

How about this 2 week circuit-breaker proposed by the NEU to shut secondaries and colleges everybody?

What do people who don't want one think will happen in schools if we carry on as we are now?

"There is a small group of very angry teachers here"

I'm not sure who you're referring to specifically here, but I will point out that a), I'm not in the least bit angry and, b) it wasn't a teacher who started using the "shit/shite" word.

I think there is growing support for this, so I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see it announced very soon.

I do think primary should be included as well though-they are huge points of transmission between parents as well as staff/children.

Actually, I should clarify: using shit/shite as part of an angry put-down towards another poster.

I said 'your posts' not 'you'. It's a bit akin to when we have to say 'your behaviour' to a child instead of saying 'you are...'. Oh well, I've got other stuff to do today.

@noblegiraffe

Good to see yet another thread descend into teacher having to defend themselves and their jobs.

How about this 2 week circuit-breaker proposed by the NEU to shut secondaries and colleges everybody?

What do people who don't want one think will happen in schools if we carry on as we are now?

I'm not sure everyone fully understands what it entails, is it effectively another half term or home learning during that time ( assuming it happens at a different to time to the already scheduled half term)

I've come to the conclusion that some people just aren't very nice.

I wonder why they need to prove it here quite so often.

I so admire Noble for her contributions over the months and her determination that the truth is told, not made up silliness that comes from other quarters.

Meh. They won’t shut schools.

Kids spread it but that’s going to happen regardless. At least in schools they’re made to hand wash or sanitise ( yes probably not that effectively but better than after school when they don’t bother).
Viral load so a thing so parents catch a milder dose.
Teachers might catch it but as a sector they have good sick pay and generous back to work policies.So probably easier on them being ill than someone in the private sector.

If they shut schools they will never get teachers back in

@Leflic

Meh. They won’t shut schools.

Kids spread it but that’s going to happen regardless. At least in schools they’re made to hand wash or sanitise ( yes probably not that effectively but better than after school when they don’t bother).
Viral load so a thing so parents catch a milder dose.
Teachers might catch it but as a sector they have good sick pay and generous back to work policies.So probably easier on them being ill than someone in the private sector.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/coronavirus/3845364-is-it-really-likely-the-schools-will-close

Plenty of people said it wouldn’t happen back in March but it still did.

I think that a two week circuit break is looking increasingly likely.

We have two primary schools closed this week due to staff with C19 and the almost all the rest isolating. Some children are isolating but only one case so far at our school although they don’t cross paths with any of the positive staff.

At least in schools they’re made to hand wash or sanitise

This thread is about secondaries. Believe me, we are not supervising 1500 teenagers washing/sanitising their hands.

(I watched a year group returning from break yesterday. 3 cleaned their hands.)

@echt

What that I don't give a shit what job you do if you leave teaching? No. It's not name calling or bullying just a lack of interest in your future career

And yet you said it.

And yet I said what? The word shit?

If you close all the secondary schools and colleges, all that happens is that they just meet up elsewhere. Anyone with kids and Instgram can see all the postings of house parties, obviously with the consent of the parents living there....... AND they will mix with multiple other schools. At least when they are IN school they are actually being prevented from mixing as much as they would if they were OUT of school.

Teachers might catch it but as a sector they have good sick pay and generous back to work policies

Teachers are people, not sectors.

So probably easier on them being ill than someone in the private sector

And you base this on what evidence?

@LastGoldenDaysOfSummer

I've come to the conclusion that some people just aren't very nice.

I wonder why they need to prove it here quite so often.

I so admire Noble for her contributions over the months and her determination that the truth is told, not made up silliness that comes from other quarters.

Yes I've come to conclusion that a lot of people aren't very nice too. I've also come to the conclusion that @mnhq are allowing bullying as long as you've got the correct job title

Jesus @Leflic your brave!
How can you possibly say its ok for teachers to get ill but not private sector workers? Fuck me ive read it all now, that's ridiculous! No one whatever their profession is expendable 🤯

@Emmie12345

If they shut schools they will never get teachers back in

Really, I think teachers have been very patient and dedicated putting up with really unsafe and unpleasant conditions at work and a lot of ill informed attacks on social media (not a teacher)

If they shut schools they will never get teachers back in

What is this nonsense? What do you think teachers would do? How many didn’t come back in September?

They did shut schools and they did get teachers back in

They got them back in in hubs teaching keyworker and vulnerable children as soon as they closed.

They got them back in to socially distanced select year groups in June.

They got them back in in September to all kids crammed into poorly ventilated non-socially distanced classrooms.

Why do you think getting teachers back in will be an issue?

Baaaahhhhh , they do NOT meet up near me. Nor did my dd14

@TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince

Baaaahhhhh , they do NOT meet up near me. Nor did my dd14

Kids don't meet up near you? At all? I'd consider that pretty strange. They do here.

At least when they are IN school they are actually being prevented from mixing as much as they would if they were OUT of school.

Have you been in a school? They’re mixing massively with hundreds of other kids.

If schools were closed, my kids’ close contacts would drop dramatically even if they continued to see their mates.

I meant to say ‘did not’ not ‘do not’ . But in lockdown there were no groups of kids hanging round on parks. The streets were empty

@Baaaahhhhh

If you close all the secondary schools and colleges, all that happens is that they just meet up elsewhere. Anyone with kids and Instgram can see all the postings of house parties, obviously with the consent of the parents living there....... AND they will mix with multiple other schools. At least when they are IN school they are actually being prevented from mixing as much as they would if they were OUT of school.

Agree with this also, we can't keep children indoors indefinitely. They only time my DC go out now is to school and sports clubs. I could fully support 2 weeks of it but any longer than that is wrong, its not fair on them to be shut away. We don't want it for the medically vulnerable so we shouldn't want it for our children.