One rule for Bojo...another for teachers

[DRGT]

Bojo spend 35mins with an infected MP, while maintaining a 2m distance but no mask, and is told to self-isolate.

I spend two hours teaching an infected student, while maintaining a 2m distance but no mask, I am not required to isolate.

[Ginogineli]

Unless your room is small no teacher should be sat next to children

It’s not allowed for the child’s safety too

If teaching suffers then so be it

I teach ICT in 6th form and often teach 1-1 which I’m now not doing

My classes are basically 50% as good as they were which is just the way it is

You shouldn’t be breaking the health and safety rules unnecessarily to keep a high standard


Bad enough if room is small but teachers also need to adapt their teaching styles

I have had to completely change my delivery

I imagine it’s harder with younger kids but if you are teaching in same way as you always have then surely that’s an error on your part

[Ginogineli]

When I say 1-1 I mean I’m a large class I would normally move around and sit 1-1

[manicinsomniac]

I know the head does it too so she couldn't tell me off too much!

I should be be better at it. Most of the children I teach are Primary age so would be in bubbles in many school with staff who don't need to distance from them. I just find it's not possible to teach 7-11 year olds without sitting with them. But then others are managing so idk.

[MiniTheMinx]

Bojo and his sick Tory pals were probably having bum sex and snogging

[NullcovoidNovember]

the 2 meters rule.

isnt it one thing to be in a fairly open space for 2 meters - to being 2 meters away perhaps 2.10 meters away from 30 dc all breathing at you????

[noblegiraffe]

Well yes, Nullcovid, the kids I teach can figure that out, but the DfE cannot.

[StealthPolarBear]

@manicinsomniac

Are you joking? For once Boris Johnson is actually doing something vaguely sensible and cautious. No need to have a go at this too! Sometimes, I almost (not quite!) feel sorry for this govt!

He can do his job just as fully (was going to say effectively, but ...) from home. So he should. Teachers can't. So we shouldn't. It's bad enough knowing that we could get sent home any day for being within 2m without having to worry about getting sent home for actually following the rules too!

Surely the risk to an individual (and then the people they come into contact with) is the same.

[manicinsomniac]

True, Stealth But I think the risk (if they actually were 2m apart is low). So it's a risk worth taking if you need to be physically at work but a precaution worth taking if you can work from home?

[manicinsomniac]

@Ginogineli

Unless your room is small no teacher should be sat next to children

It’s not allowed for the child’s safety too

If teaching suffers then so be it

I teach ICT in 6th form and often teach 1-1 which I’m now not doing

My classes are basically 50% as good as they were which is just the way it is

You shouldn’t be breaking the health and safety rules unnecessarily to keep a high standard

Bad enough if room is small but teachers also need to adapt their teaching styles

I have had to completely change my delivery

I imagine it’s harder with younger kids but if you are teaching in same way as you always have then surely that’s an error on your part

I honestly don't know if I agree with that or not.

I think you're definitely right for the age group you are teaching. Educational quality is the only reason they would need you physically close and they are more likely to give you Covid and/or get ill themselves.

The children I teach need closeness for educational quality but also to feel safe and secure. They still get upset about small things and need adults to physically look after them. They also don't understand bubbles and why some teachers can be close to them but others can't. They forget, don't get it or don't care and come right up to you regardless. Short of pushing them away it's going to happen. And once it's done, it sort of feels like there's no point not helping them educationally while I'm at it.

Also, I tend to think that the risk of me or a child having Covid at any given time is low. But the loss of educational quality is a given certainty. So we have to decide whether it's worth definitely reducing the quality of teaching for the fairly unlikely reason that I or the child is infectious.

But you are probably right. I should adapt more. I've already removed anything fun from my classroom, stopped nearly all group work (they can still do seated paired work), most singing, a lot of dancing and all physical theatre though. I'm not sure how much more I can take away while still even pretending that I'm educating.

[caringcarer]

BJ can easily do his job from home. Makes sense for him to self isolate.

[StealthPolarBear]

@manicinsomniac

True, Stealth But I think the risk (if they actually were 2m apart is low). So it's a risk worth taking if you need to be physically at work but a precaution worth taking if you can work from home?

Oh completely agree ad if I or loved ones were ill I'd be very grateful there were still people physically present in hospitals!
But apparently he needed to be physically present as he was physically present and the rule is wfh if you can. Why does he now have to isolate when teachers in the same situation with no additional protection don't?

[StealthPolarBear]

@caringcarer

BJ can easily do his job from home. Makes sense for him to self isolate.

Why wasn't he at home then? The rule is if you can wfh you should. Why wasn't he following his own rule?

[manicinsomniac]

Oh yes, that's true. Good point. I'd forgotten about the WFH if you can rule.

[SaltyAF]

@manicinsomniac

True, Stealth But I think the risk (if they actually were 2m apart is low). So it's a risk worth taking if you need to be physically at work but a precaution worth taking if you can work from home?

I would argue that Boris Johnson is the very last person who should be sitting on his arse working from home this week, of all weeks.

[Bluewavescrashing]

I teach 5 year olds who sometimes need help zipping up their coats, they approach me really closely wanting to tell me something exciting and sometimes need comforting if they're upset. I try to keep my distance as much as possible but little ones need more physical presence.

[IHeartKingThistle]

It doesn't help anyway. I teach secondary. I've been careful. Taught from the front. Windows open. Put sheets to be handed out on the front desk then stepped back. Shooed Yr7s away from my desk. Cleaned the desks between every class. Hand sanitized all the time including before and after using the photocopier. Avoided my colleagues. Wore a mask in the corridors.

I'm in bed with Covid. What more could I have done? It was never safe but I wanted to be there.

I don't know about Boris but he's sure as hell not flinging himself into that situation every day.

[theviewfromhalfwaydown]

My oldest was sent home to isolate. They were one of 8 children told to do so as they were sitting next to the child in class. Bit confusing though as the child on the other side didn’t have to stay home.

[Baaaahhhhh]

Maybe the mask would count as a protective measure but I doubt it

I think it does. Watching "Hospital" on the tv yesterday, a doctor in a meeting was part of a random test regime, asymptomatic, and got his positive call halfway through the meeting. There were many members of staff in the same room, but all with masks, which mitigated the contact, and therefore they didn't have to isolate.

[Tyzz]

DD teaches mainly 15 to 18 year olds. Large classes, no masks in class.
A 17 year old boy tested positive last weekend, he had been on the front row for 5 hours of lessons last week. The whole year group have been sent home to isolate so including those who were sitting more than 2 meters away from infected child. DD is not allowed to isolate and has to go into work.
In the school Y7, Y11, Y12 and Y13 are all out of school this week.
It seems to me that a rota would be better than what's happening now.