Why is covid ripping through secondary schools?

[noblegiraffe]

As the press seem unable to find some photos of what schools actually look like at the moment, I thought I'd try to find some myself. They aren't current school photos but pretty much reflect the day-to-day.

1st is a typical classroom in terms of space. Fewer kids than normal though.

2nd is a typical corridor (except much cleaner). Yes they are wearing masks but they are also so close as to be touching. Note the kid with the mask half off, nose out, he has probably just been told to put it on by a teacher. What's unusual is that the kids all have a mask and none are being worn on chins. Also, they're on their phones. Tut.

3rd is what a typical break time looks like. Note the clumps of kids and the boys grappling. No masks, obvs.

Any ideas as to why secondary pupils are the most infected subset of the population?

@mammothmashup

There's no evidence that having antibodies for previous strains will or won't provide protection for this strain. However, it is likely that it will provide protection. There are many strains but so far it seems very, very rare for anyone to test positive twice.

Obviously can't be sure until official research is completed, but no need to panic.

So we have two secondary schools pretty close to each other. One of those schools has had bubble after bubble being sent home and closed. The other 6 cases but only two of those resulting in close contacts needing to be sent home, they email every positive so we don’t play Chinese whispers even if nobody needs to isolate.

Again two primary’s closer together than the above secondary’s. One has had every year off and at times only one year group in.
Second primary had one bubble off once and that was one class and that was because it was the class teacher.

Primary one tends to send more children to secondary one and primary two to secondary two.

There are very clear differences in behaviour between schools one and schools two children ditto parental behaviour.

Yeah that might be people blaming but if schools so so close together can have such huge differences in cases it’s the people in the schools. Three out of the four school are new builds, all four are academy’s.

The idea that London and South East are seriously struggling with rising cases, of a new variant and need to be locked down in tier three for a week before being allowed to ravel anywhere in the country is... + +

Ravel = travel, obv

When dd got covid at uni her 5 flatmates apparently tried quite hard to catch it from her in order to “get it over with” (what was that you were saying about teenagers and risk?). I decided I didn’t need to know ANY details about that ... but none of them caught it. It’s a strange disease.

My sons’ school, otoh. Year 8 classes have been in and out all term like revolving doors, while the other years have had at most one lot of isolation each. Goodness knows what’s gong on in year 8. They’ve all got siblings and share buses with the other years - why just year 8?

It’ll be like Germ Theory. They’ll look back on this in 200 years and say “ah, if only they knew, it was so simple”.

We started saying no ball games, maintain a distance at break. We're back to rugby tackling each other whilst playing basketball or sharing lip gloss. They wear masks but it's not enforced (maybe 25% are wearing them properly between lessons and hardly any at break).

I caught one today chewing on the wire to the computer headphones. It was a cover lesson - teacher is self isolating. I've no idea if the computers/headphones were cleaned down before we started. I couldn't see any materials to clean them with so I guess they weren't - I certainly didn't clean them afterwards (again no materials). There was plenty of sanitiser at the start of term but now barely any left. It costs money, money we don't have because we are paying for so much cover.

We've been fairly fortunate so far with limited cases but how long it stays like this I don't know. Some kids are now on their 3rd or 4th period of isolation. They'll be sitting same GCSEs as class mates who haven't isolated at all. It's ridiculously unfair.

I feel incredibly stressed by it all and colleagues are frequently in tears. We worry about catching it and long Covid, we worry about infecting our elderly relatives, we worry about the kids locked in their rooms by anxious parents who don't want Christmas ruined, we worry about those whose support networks have collapsed, the colleagues who are drinking too much, the kids who are panicking about vulnerable family members. It's horrific and add to that the increased workload - having to drop off materials at kid's houses after school as they don't have decent access to the internet, preparing online and in class lessons, worrying we should perhaps be live streaming lessons but not having a clue how to do it. We're tired ... really tired and we know that makes us even more vulnerable.

Yep, it’s a really shit time, Frazzled

People MUST know this is happening in schools. We all went to school. The fact that they are choosing to turn a blind eye because the alternative makes their own lives complicated, and just cross their fingers that it doesn't come home to their house is a distressing reflection of how little people in this country care about one another (and least of all about teachers).

@Returnofthemaccys

People MUST know this is happening in schools. We all went to school. The fact that they are choosing to turn a blind eye because the alternative makes their own lives complicated, and just cross their fingers that it doesn't come home to their house is a distressing reflection of how little people in this country care about one another (and least of all about teachers).

Some parents really are exceptionally selfish though - there is a significant minority who will send their kids in with obvious covid symptoms (yes, they get sent home, but not before they have put others at risk). There's also the ones who don't seem to realise they should keep siblings off if one is waiting for a test. And the ones who just "know" it's not covid!

Some parents are shockingly ignorant too. I had to explain to one parent that 38 is definitely a temperature and regardless of whether you think it's Covid-19, you probably shouldn't be sending your daughter into school.

[quote Thunderpunt]@noblegiraffe do you continue to post thread after thread for some narcissistic reason.
It feels like you need constant validation. [/quote]
Wanting the truth in the public eye is neither narcissistic or a need for validation.

It's actually taking your social responsibility seriously.

What's your reason for wanting the truth hidden?

It's the star, but this front page is rather....

Wow Neurotrash. Never thought I'd have respect for the star but it's finally out there isnt it.

I think in the area I live there's quite a large proprotion of families who are under 40 with no underlying conditions, so they know they're likely okay. And blatently breaking rules (facebook showing birthday party aith famiky in second lockdown) because they're "making up their own mind." And sending into school because they need the childcare (not cushy work at home /flexible profession.)

I feel stuck. I'm at risk and my body is so messed up I really dont want to catch it (if I didnt have it in March). Im terrified my kids will bringnit home to me.

When they had a rapid test in the upper 3 years they found 9 completely asymptomatic children in a friendship group. Of course its spreading...

@lljkk

"They aren't current school photos "

Indeed.

Well they are not that out of date since children are wearing masks in at least one of them and therefore has to be a photo since September so not exactly ancient !!!

It's not ripping through ours... we've had 1 positive since sept
And 1 in our primary school

They both got it from their parents

@Ilovemycat13

It’s frustrating that schools are open and yet universities are still online only. They are (most of the time) more responsible adults who are paying 9k a year course fees alone.

I am doing a midwifery course and 99% has been online. I’m learning how to palpate an abdomen this morning, online. Using a doll.

Is there a plan in place to make you actually learn it on people? If not this has a potential to be disastrous down the line...

It's not just what's going on in schools either; there are forever large groups of teenagers hanging around the high st after school in my local area - the kids are sometimes wearing different school uniforms.

@Tangledtresses
How do you know for sure though?
Unless they are mass testing everyone in school.
Due to my work I have routine tests at work twice a week.
Tested positive - no symptoms until the following day.
My son was tested as a precaution and my husband, both positive no symptoms.
Turns out there were numerous cases in other school years the previous week and among. A parent in my son’s class was positive the previous week too.
Yet the school remained open. Of course it will spread. I’m convinced I caught this via school, rather than my job where I wear full PPE.

*among staff.

"We were fine and then suddenly we weren't."

That's exactly how the virus spreads in institutions, especially when so many carriers are asymptomatic.

[quote AnastasiaS]@Tangledtresses
How do you know for sure though?
Unless they are mass testing everyone in school.
Due to my work I have routine tests at work twice a week.
Tested positive - no symptoms until the following day.
My son was tested as a precaution and my husband, both positive no symptoms.
Turns out there were numerous cases in other school years the previous week and among. A parent in my son’s class was positive the previous week too.
Yet the school remained open. Of course it will spread. I’m convinced I caught this via school, rather than my job where I wear full PPE.[/quote]
Well no ones sick or has been since sept normally both my kids would've at least had something by now ... we have 300 cases in our whole county which is huge... I live in a town in the middle of no where and everyone knows everyone sort of thing. So it's definitely not spreading like wildfire here or did even back in March or April we had 5 deaths in total in our town all in care homes all over 80

So maybe we all just got lucky 🤔

They've just announced that rapid testing will occur in all secondary schools from jan for staff and pupils.

Which is positive.

I would argue they should in all sen schools due to the high number of adults and close pupil working relationships.

Looking at onward transmission rates, sen schools are proportionally the same rates as secondary.

I dont believe they will deliver mass testing to every secondary school in England sadly its just soundbites.

Why they haven't said wear masks in class God knows.

My understanding in Liverpool was only a handful of schools were part of the trial small %.

Our head emailed this week say our school will be doing testing in jan in conjunction with Bristol University study however email implied its specific year groups and entirely voluntary.
If you a family struggling financially you not going to permit them to test your child who maybe picked up virus from classmate so therefore entire household has self isolate.
It seems reading articles and listening to mps in parliament that hardly anyone successful in getting covid payment.
Why is it means tested surley lost income is lost no matter how much you earn your monthly bills are still the same.

Mass testing in Liverpool dident reach the areas most affected by the virus.
Read lots test centres not even within schools themselves just mobile testing within the area.
Then there's the accuracy of the rapid tests they using.

Problem with testing is it reactive not proactive.

Surely its better to avoid students and staff getting infected in the 1st place

Yes, when I've looked more carefully, it's not that straightforward.

'Huge expansion' of secondary school Covid tests in January www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-55318628