It's best for children to be in school

[Billie18]

I'm shocked that the consensus here appears to be that schools should close. I believe that it's best for children to be in school. Also that they should not be forced to wear masks or perform any social distancing as this is a damaging for their mental and social development. A thread for parents and teachers who share this view and have concerns about the threat of school closures and forced isolation of children who are not ill.

I just don’t get it.
If you agree that the best place for children is school - and I think most of us do think so - then why would you not want the school to be as safe as possible?
Safer = lower infection rate= more chance of enough staff staying well to keep the place open.

I’ve been teaching in a mask. The kids do not care. Honestly in the scheme of things it’s a minor adjustment. People need to get over this “my child must never experience any adversity at all” attitude.

Cases are not falling uniformly. They have increased in schools whilst going down everywhere else, pretty much.

Instead of trying to rub teachers noses in this fact, maybe you could try being a bit fucking grateful?

Teachers want the schools open. Containment of Covid would've been the easiest way to ensure that. The next best thing would be if the government implemented WHO recommended measures - to help keep schools as Covid safe as possible. Otherwise, schools can't stay open - not with loads of staff off sick.

Nellodee Any need for the swearing? Are you “fucking grateful” for the job I do? Probably not.

I have no clue what you do, and you have no clue what I’m grateful for.

I have just caught up with the thread and @Nicknacky, the way you goaded @christinarossetti19 by calling her stupid twice was out of order. I think it's quite rich that you've now commented about swearing. Not often do posts jump out at me.

Nellodee So what have we to be “fucking grateful” for?

By that reckoning you should be “fucking grateful” to every worker who is out there doing their best for the community and their families.

Someone said upthread that rather it's easier to argue against an imaginary position ie that lots of people esp teachers want schools to close, rather than the repeatedly stated position ie that lots of people especially teachers want schools to be safe enough to remain open consistently and the current levels of the virus in the school are making that extremely problematic as bubbles. year groups and schools are closing left, right and centre.

Which I think is good summary of where things are.

sherrystrull She was being stupid. Why would a six year old know about secondary, but she couldn’t just say she wrongly assumed.

I assume you know “stupid” isn’t a swear word?

But I am. I’ve given my thanks to care assistants, police, prison wardens, delivery drivers, health care workers, teachers, social workers, retail staff. What is your point again exactly?

@Juststopswimming

OP I don't think there is a consensus at all. There is significant echo chamber led by one very vocal MN'er and I think a lot of us who have tried to give an alternative point of view have now given up arguing over it, because, well frankly schools are still open and infections are declining, so that's sort of arguing the case for us!

I'm yet to meet a teacher in real life who wants schools to shut, thank god!

Yes I now agree. Took me a while to figure it out. It's certainly not my experience either.

I have not met a teacher in RL or on MN who wants schools to shut.

Could we stop fighting the straw man and focus on keeping schools open through keeping staff healthy and in schools?

@Nicknacky

sherrystrull She was being stupid. Why would a six year old know about secondary, but she couldn’t just say she wrongly assumed.

I assume you know “stupid” isn’t a swear word?

Of course I know swearing isn't a swear word. Your aggressive tone is not appreciated with me either.

I was stating my opinion that it is rather hypocritical that someone who clearly thinks nothing of calling another poster stupid should be unimpressed by a swear word

I abhor bullying of any kind and you are not painting yourself in a good light.

*stupid

TaxTheRatForms Where did I give her false information? Or that I lied for that matter?

She assumed (wrongly) that I had one child. I have never said I have one child so I’m anything but a liar. I have a 6 year old and as you can see she jumped to the conclusion that was the child I was talking about.

And as for Sherry with her bulying nonsense😂

NickNacky

Because when humans communicate, it goes something like this:

A: Your daughter is 6, isn’t she?
B: Yes, she (the daughter that you mentioned) is 6. Well remembered.

Or do all your conversations just go on random select?

“Nick, what’s the weather like outside?”
“The weather outside? It’s about 40 degrees.”
“What? It’s December!”
“I clearly meant the weather outside in Dubai you absolute idiot!! Ha!”

Settle down, la.

TaxTheRatReturns or the poster could have said “oh do you have a other daughter”? And I would have said “yes, I have a 13 year old”.

She asked if my daughter was 6 and that was correct, she is.

So where is my lie? I have never lied about having an older child. She assumed I had one daughter.

TaxTheRatForms Even🤦🏻‍♀️

I’m offended by being called a liar. Point out my lies?

@CallmeAngelina

Right, I've just been over to the Petitions department for a nose to see what's there. There are 3 or 4 petitions about school closure, but none have been started by any recognisable names, nor have any "known" teachers on here posted on them to say they've signed. The only name I recognised was one that was asking for masks to be made compulsory, which is a different argument - presumably in favour of keeping schools open, but more safely.

So teachers don't appear to have been posting links and petitions about closing schools, nor promoting those which have been started?

Although some posters up thread were adamant that they'd seen multiple petitions and links posted by multiple teachers.

A mystery, that's what it is.

christinarossetti19 You might want to read my post again...I never said the petitions were started by teachers. They were links contained within threads to which I’m unable to link to as I avoided them. I hope that helps.

And you could have said “she’s 6, but the daughter I’m referring to is 13.” Easy!

Be offended all you like, but you can’t blame other people for not being mind readers and not assuming that you weren’t answering the question you were asked.

TaxTheRatFarms I answered the question she asked. Why should I elaborate on it?

I’m a trained interviewer. If you want to know the answer to a question then you have to ask the question in the first place. Don’t expect the person to provide more information than you have asked.

And again. It was obvious to anyone with some sense that I wasn’t asking a 6 year old about secondary school corridors.

"Yet some of the teachers here are happy to post link after link and also post links to petitions calling for schools to be closed"

This is what you said Nicknacky.

All those links and links to petitions that you've seen teachers post yet neither you, nor I nor CallmeAngelina can find them.

How strange.

Although some posters up thread were adamant that they'd seen multiple petitions and links posted by multiple teachers.

Same as posters are adamant that I’m ‘running a campaign to close schools’ and when it’s pointed out that I’m not, that I’m running a stealth campaign to close schools, cunningly disguised as a campaign to keep them open by making them safer.

I can only assume that the rampant petition linking is also supposed to happen on my threads, unbeknownst to those of us who post on them. Yet another stealth campaign to close schools. Only perceptible to those who really don’t want to discuss making schools safer or the current shitshow.

Absolutely barking, the lot of them.