Pupils sent home in half of England's secondary schools

[herecomesthsun]

...which are of course supposed to be covid secure. Nice that the BBC is covering it,though.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-54614111

No actual teaching.

You would need to clone the teachers.

@OverTheRainbowLiesOz in fact all schools are virtual open days around here and same with colleges , no one is really being allowed into schools as i have several friends who volunteer in schools in normal times several times a week and they are not using them at present
I can't see how a school can have an open day with lots of people coming in ? Is it private or state ?

@herecomesthsun
@herecomesthsun

"Unless the plan is actively to get rid of some vulnerable people?"
I suspect herd immunity idea never really went away. The bottom line is our government is more worried about the economy than peoples health. We need Jacinda Arden

It's a large state comprehensive.

There are also other factors that mean this ‘education at all costs’ is not as good an education as we’d like. My child is getting taught by an inexperienced supply teacher this year. Because his regular teacher has decided to take a year off to avoid Covid. I don’t blame her, she probably has underlying health issues. However it does mean that my DS is not receiving such a good education this year. The teacher is great and really trying, but no experience of SN means a whole year of DS not being taught that well and many of his needs are just being dropped this year. This is probably happening elsewhere too.

As others have said. This isn’t a thread to scream ‘close all schools forever and to hell with kids needing education especially those who are vulnerable’

For me and others it is - we need to look squarely at what is happening in schools. We need to acknowledge transmission does happen and that our children’s education is not great on many levels. Only when we do this can we make it better.

It's just recorded stuff and I'm having to go through it with dd! No actual teaching.

You don’t think the recorded stuff counts as teaching? It needs to be the same stuff said by the same teacher but live?

I thought it would be worse, in our area around 1/3 of kids have had to isolate so far and its going through my daughters school like wildfire. Cases in every year group, they're only sending forms home but still two whole year groups have had to go. Almost half the staff off, obviously many self isolating but quite a lot of them are actually ill. 4 of DDs close friends have tested positive, kids all fine but one dad in hospital. And its not winter yet. The country as a whole may be okay but I dont think our school or many in our area will make it through the rest of the term. Dreading it as the home learning has been dire when shes had to isolate.

@NannyOgg66 why do people always say this , you realise we need an economy to pay for nhs etc one can't exsist with out the other
Its a tricky balance and nz is such a different size country to
Manage 6 million compared to 66 million at least compare to a like for like country

@timeforanewstart

Also op you state your children did well in lockdown , but what about those that didn't some of us have to work full time so don't have tome to one to one teach our children as you do If your in such a position and are so well educated then you can home school but the vast majority of parents can't and also there are a lot of children without access to devices so its not so clear cut

Wouldn’t you want your kids to be able to be schooled with less children and better protective measures?

For me and others it is - we need to look squarely at what is happening in schools. We need to acknowledge transmission does happen and that our children’s education is not great on many levels. Only when we do this can we make it better.

Yes!

PPE, masks, proper social distancing, prompt tests, cleaning, windows that open, toilets that flush, virtual open days and any number of other things.

Still don't care, as long as the schools are kept open!

Yes, I'd like live teaching? Is that too much to ask?

Or even a live explanation of what to do so my dc could attempt it?

The teacher explaining adjectives? Why can't she do that and get the class to have a go.. Before shoving us onto oak academy?

Then I could actually concentrate on my own job? That I could not do in lock down because we were not given any work at all until the last two weeks but still nothing live.

@NannyOgg66 I don't even think they care about the economy, all they're interested in is filling the pockets of their corrupt mates and themselves of course. They've made a horrific mess of the economy, particularly in the North, and if they genuinely needed to rustle up some cash they could deal with tax avoiders but they wouldn't dream of it

@TheHouseonHauntedHill

Op mine did well in lock down as well. It was an amazing time, but the pressure of working and having to educate her was dreadful. I'm not sure what some schools are playing at, our current self isolation are dreadful! It's just recorded stuff and I'm having to go through it with dd! No actual teaching. And yet I know the school are worried about covid. But if they could just get some tea ching done... Wouldn't that take the pressure off.. Prove they can do it safely on line?

Also lots of dc are still going out..

It's tricky, because obviously unless a full class is off, a teacher has to teach a class AND set work online for SI pupils at the same time.

In many cases, it is going to be better to provide recorded work online - because if i am teaching the class in front of me as well, any 'live' lesson isn't going to work very well, unless i really do deliver a lesson 'to camera', which is so far from a normal style as to be of no use to either group.

Yes, I'd like live teaching? Is that too much to ask?

That teacher will be teaching a class in school.

Unfortunately my dd needs more interaction because the school can not seem to deliver any standard of teaching on line, at All, I would argue primary definitely needs to remain open.
For the older dc, I can't see why a rota, in a few days, out a few.. Can't be implemented.

@OverTheRainbowLiesOz well we have open windows , extra cleaning and virtual open days , parents evening done on phone
Hand sanitser at every classroom which they have to use on way in and out t my ds school
Sd not really totally possible but year groups are kept apart , ppe well not sure if wearing same mask all day would help especially with touching cases in other eu schools don't seem a lot better but again ds school allows them to wear a mask if they want
So schools can adopt a fair amount i mean a virtual open day is possible for all

No, the teacher is at home, self isolating with the year group? But good magic ball guess.

[Not to mention the fact that my class computer has no camera, and even if it did have one, the way it points would be completely useless for showing the 'online' pupil ANY of the classroom, being wedged as it is into a tiny corner to allow greatest space for distancing within the classroom...]

Yes, I'd like live teaching? Is that too much to ask?

Tbh yes, in a lot of cases. Lots of problems with live teaching that you wanting it won’t overcome.

My school doesn’t have the tech to do it for a start. We could do it in lockdown because teachers were using their own equipment at home.

But lots of kids being unable to access it is another issue.

Can't, in that situation, one would have to be very unreasonable to complain but whole bubble is isolating.
The teacher is at home.

timeforanewstart - It's so different from area to area. I think we need a national framework of rules so that individual headteachers or trusts don't take stupid risks.

Ah, OK. So the teacher is at home, and every member of the class is also at home, and all have dedicated devices that you know they can use for the entirety of the lesson? Are any sharing devices with parents or siblings, therefore needing recorded material so that it can be played at different times?

If my primary kid was off I wouldn’t want live teaching. I would want pre-recorded stuff we could access at our convenience.

I'm confused, the whole class is on line, watching her for her quick morning chat?
They all have tech?.
The teacher herself is on zoom.

What other excuses can you come up, as to why a teacher on zoom, at home, isolating with her bubble, with every child on tech watching her... Cannot expand her lesson even just a little to explain the pre recorded stuff....