Schools MUST stay open.

[motherrunner]

I hear this a lot on MN.

Schools maybe ‘open’ but they’re not really depending on where you live.

I’m in Tier 2, due to go into Tier 3 next week prior to the lockdown rules.

Since Sept Yr 10 have isolated twice (4 weeks out of a 8 week half term), Yr 12 and 13 three times (6 weeks of a 8 week half term). My own DS is isolating due to being in contact with a positive until next week and I am isolating until next week as one of my pupils tested positive (and before anyone asks why I wasn’t 2m away well let’s just say, that’s school life).

Before lockdown in March my school had to close just to the numbers of staff off, at one point admin staff were supervising classes.

This morning I read a comment from a poster on the ‘lockdown my thread that teachers just have to ‘hope’ they get a mild viral load. Have we become so disillusioned with this virus that because “schools must stay open” then we minimise they health of school staff?

I am happy to be back teaching my pupils, I’m not happy that I feel unsafe. I am not happy that other workplaces have ‘Covid secure’ measures but I have sanitiser and a ‘hope for the best’ attitude.

So, if you really want schools to stay open then please email your MP and voice concerns about safety and hopefully we can stay open in a meaningful way because there’s a difference between ‘schools open’ with us delivering a quality education and ‘schools open’ with a body providing childcare.

PHE data on cases in young people. It's really not driven by the schools:

Even if the virus spreads in schools, that is still a far lesser ‘evil’ than the downside of the suffering many will endure otherwise.

Yes

We're locking down other areas of society SO THAT schools and Universities can stay open.

Meant to add -in my school (London secondary, in a borough where supposedly the ‘R’ rate was ‘dangerously edging up’ we have had no positive cases in children or staff. We have had a few isolating and quarantining but no bubbles sent home, And we are not draconian-sensible measures but hot lunch still for all in canteen, masks allowed but not mandatory etc.

Surely secondary schools there needs to be an element of working from home/working at school?

I actually think this could be an opportunity to overhaul a pretty rotten education system and replace it with something permanent that works far better for our young people but I have no faith in the government/department for education to manage this.

Sunflowers246

Other countries including Germany and France have also stressed the importance of keeping schools open.

They have, but given comments about PPE I'll add that in France it's now a requirement that children ages 6 upwards should wear a mask...

I read on another thread that a school was going to prioritise Y7-9. I mean I know we all think our kids are the priority, but are Y11 and 13s really not considered the priority years with exams/assessments next year?

I hope the government holds its nerve too, other countries are keeping schools open.

I can't decide if you are being ironic ouch (especially given the PHE acknowledge that the latest week on those graphs is likely to be a huge underestimate, as proved to be the case with last week's now upwardly adjusted estimates)

From the ONS yesterday:

There has been growth in all age groups over the past two weeks; older teenagers and young adults continue to have the highest current rates while rates appear to be steeply increasing among secondary school children.

We do all know that other parts of the economy are being sacrificed to keep schools open sunflowers. Question is how long they will swallow that, knowing their businesses are not contributing to spread, and how much people without children will put up with it.

I work in a school and absolutely think they should stay open.
I say that as somebody who hasn't been able to live with my clinically very vulnerable dh since September, thanks to my job!

Thank you.

Keeping our children in education is the most important thing we can do for them.

That's why most countries are willing to lock down other parts of the country, so that schools can stay open.

If schools shut, parents will just organise alternative childcare solutions which might spread the virus further.... Taking turns "swapping" childcare at each other's houses. Or, worse, dumping the kids on vulnerable granny.

Most parents have taken all the annual leave and unpaid leave they can for the year and employers' tolerance is wearing thin. Many parents will have to continue working regardless, even if it means leaving 8/9/10 year olds at home by themselves all day and told to call a neighbour if there's an emergency. Or getting a succession of babysitters traipsing through the house for younger kids.

@Ijustcantcope

I wish teachers would strike and refuse to go in. I would be fully behind them. It’s criminal the way that they are being treated and I sincerely hope one of them sues the government.

It’s absolutely ridiculous not to have had the lockdown over half term and schools closed for 2 weeks. That would not have caused much difficulty for anyone and would have brought cases down quicker. Just when you thought the government couldn’t get any shittier........

Ecosse will be along shortly to tell you that schools should be open no matter what and that they should also stop testing children/teachers so that people don’t know the extent of the problem

Agreed!

Selfish parents wanting their kids in school when lives are at risk is shameful.

Like pp has said, at least make schools a bit safer to at least look like they care about teachers!

@Sunflowers246

How do you expect parents to cope for 1 month when they both work full time, have multiple kids off who need home schooling and there’s no furlough option? It’s not possible

Yes, this is, in addition to exam preparation point, another argument n favour of schools starting open.

Other countries including Germany and France have also stressed the importance of keeping schools open.

They have masks from age 6. I can't see that going down well here.

Germany are also focusing on ventilation. This hasn't gone down well here either with parents complaining about the open windows.

The mantra meeds to stop and we need to focus on some of the mitigations discussed many times on threads.

No its not easy none if this is.



The childcare problems presented should be managed fairly by employers and the government- If a parent cannot work due to a shut down that is not teachers responsibility or fault.

Selfish parents wanting their kids in school when lives are at risk is shameful

They're not selfish in many cases, they're desperate.

*Surely secondary schools there needs to be an element of working from home/working at school?

I actually think this could be an opportunity to overhaul a pretty rotten education system and replace it with something permanent that works far better for our young people but I have no faith in the government/department for education to manage this.*

And certainly not 8 months before GCSE and A level exams! Last year was bad enough!

@CallmeFP.

But in reality the government and employers aren't going to do anything. So the buck stops with the parents. So please don't be surprised if some desperate parents, trying to keep their families afloat, organise childcare solutions which are less than ideal from the perspective of containing the virus..

It was never going to work as schools (in particular secondary school) did not reopen in any covid secure way. An airborne disease, highly infectious and spreads easily in enclosed spaces. Add in crowded classrooms, no masks and lots of asymptomatic people who are then able to leave the school, get on public transport, visit shops etc and then return home to their families. The family members blissfully unaware then go about their business and so on and so on. Millions and millions of people suddenly all indoors and many of whom had returned from overseas holidays. Some may or may not have quarantined depending on where they travelled from.

Why why why did the government not take even basic steps to minimise transmission. One simple measure of masks for all could have made a difference. Reducing class sizes by having a rota system could also have made a difference. The government cannot go on to say 'In hindsight we would have done things different'. The information and facts about this virus are publicly available. They chose to open this way and I can only assume they were fully aware of the outcome but I just can't work out why they wanted it this way as I fail to see any benefit.

My little SEN school will remain open no matter what but I don't know how many parents will continue sending their children in over the coming months. Many are medically vulnerable and we cannot socially distance due to their various needs. We are lucky that we can have small bubbles and access to fresh air all day but the risks of staff unwittingly spreading it are still there.

I'm a primary school teacher, schools need to stay open.

I teach in a deprived area. About half the school are pupil premium.

During lockdown, the number of our children on CIN / CP plans increased 3 fold.

For the majority of the children I teach, school is their safe place. It's where they are fed, nurtured and cared for.

Selfish parents wanting their kids in school

I honestly don't see anything selfish about this

If they are going to lockdown, they need to shut schools unfortunately. It's young people here who are flouting mask rules, not social distancing and hanging in bigger groups. Of the 13 cases in one district here, 10 are at the high school, where I am there's 7 cases, 5 are university staff. There's simply not a case for shutting pubs, leisure centres and shops unless schools and universities teach online in the sw.

@MessAllOver

Selfish parents wanting their kids in school when lives are at risk is shameful

They're not selfish in many cases, they're desperate.

@MessAllOver agreed, people are not selfish, they're desperate.

Shame on whoever called parents selfish for wanting their children to be educated and to be able to work themselves to you know, maybe feed/clothe/house their children? FFS if I could ban one word it'd be 'selfish' (I say it in a snarky little voice in my head every time I read it). I'm sick of it being thrown around on here.

I know all about desperately seeking childcare, I promise!

But it’s really not fair on teachers to be expected to just handle it and bear the brunt of the whole country. Risk their lives and their families lives for their profession.

As pp said I think it’s vital for poorer vulnerable children and key worker children to access school.

@RainbowParadise

No one is calling parents for wanting their kids to be educated for gods sake! That is not the matter being discussed these are not normal times.

I mean, is it selfish to want to keep your job and not lose your home and bring up your children on benefits? Is that what we're saying?

Shutting schools may be the right decision to contain the virus, but parents aren't selfish for desperately not wanting it to happen. Another sustained lockdown will be the end of the road for many parents' jobs.