Schools could be closed until Feb half term!

[DfEisashambles]

Reported in the DM. I’m surprised at this and don’t think it’ll go ahead.

It is childcare. It’s only our very warped view that means this is somehow an insult. As a primary teacher part of my job absolutely is the privilege of caring for other people’s children. It’s not beneath me to help them with their coat, or comfort them when they fall over. It makes sense that teachers feel the need to distance themselves from nursery practitioners because they are so disrespected in society - poorly paid, often very young and often not well qualified. But anyone who has been fortunate to have their child cared for by someone with compassion as well as intelligence will know it makes a huge difference who is looking after your child. We facilitate learning, playing, teach, and yes care.

Exactly this. Most parents don't view schools as only being free childcare - I think they'd be pretty outraged if we stuck their kids in front of the TV all day and didn't bother to teach them anything! - but the way our society is set up, that is one of their essential purposes. We (everyone, not teachers specifically) can't upend how society functions overnight and then just shrug at parents and say "well it's your problem, you sort it out".

I also think it's pretty insulting towards actual childcare practitioners when school staff are insistent on distancing ourselves from 'just' being childcare.

I really hope schools don’t close.

I have a child in year 11 and I feel their GCSE years have been fucked up enough already without another stint of ‘home learning’ which was no more than assignments emailed to the kids from teachers - no Zoom lessons or anything structured.

On a more selfish note, my DP is a primary teacher and for the first lockdown got to spend all those weeks exercising, gardening, baking and was asked to do very little work for school by his head. Had to go in about 3 times on a rota to supervise key worker children. Whilst I was having to work out of the house as a key worker doing longer more stressful hours than usual and come home to find him playing video games. If I have another spell of that I feel I may kill him

I'm in childcare and when I did the vaccine calculator thingy, it suggested I would get my vaccine around sept 2021. I completely get that there are more people more vulnerable than me, but if we as society want to prioritise schools and childcare being open, then we need to prioritise vaccinating school/childcare staff and children to make it safe? If it's schools driving the current transmission, and we need them to be open, we surely need to start with transmission there? A reduction in transmission is going to be reflected in hospital admissions and deaths, just like it did over summer.

I'm not saying that I believe children and staff should get priority. I actually think we should close schools for a short time abs big impact. But this balancing act with schools v the economy has done nothing to halt transmission since sept.

December I’m glad you are honest about that the majority of dd2s primary teachers vanished in lockdown for months we got one worksheet and nothing was submitted no help whatsoever and when I dared question that on here I got my head bitten off by outraged teachers!

Teachers at dd1 secondary were working remotely throughout

Of course school is childcare (among other things).

Who else is responsible for the safeguarding of children during the hours they are legally mandated to be in school?

@Kaliorphic

Social workers aren't being vaccinated to protect the individual social worker, but rather the client groups that they work with.

That is exactly why I want my childrens teachers vaccinated. To protect the kids and our families those virus spreading germs teachers.

It works both ways

What are your workplaces doing to support?

They’re fighting to survive and avoid making their staff redundant actually.

"when I dared question that on here I got my head bitten off by outraged teachers!"
Yes, because many of us WERE working harder than that poster's husband. Not our fault if there are slackers in the profession.

@Ilovemyhairbeingstroked

My bet is that after the meeting today - nothing will change and then after another week they will realise the cases are out of Control and at the last minute they will change their mind .

I agree

@GawdrestyeJerryMentlemen

So what are fee paying schools doing? Are they beholden to the same governmental rules?

No idea we have not been told anything yet. 3 children at 3 different private school. One year 6, one year 9 and one year 11.

@psychomath

I think it’s pretty insulting to all the curriculum planning, training, CPD and professional standards for teachers to reduce it down to the level of being a parental convenience.

A) It devalues the educational aspect- which is the primary reason for good attendance. This attitude goes hand in hand with those who don’t understand why they can’t take their kids out for two week holidays in the middle of term.
B) It is not what our education system was set up to do. School is terrible childcare. It starts too late and finishes too early to cover most people’s working day (including other teachers).

What had happened is that as the government wanted both parents to be working and didn’t want to pay for the subsidised childcare to make this possible, it has increasingly fallen to schools to fill the gap in an adhoc way.

The problem with this system is it cannot air any extra strain/ look at the moaning around snow days, school holidays and building maintenance closures.

This government has successfully cut, cut, cut until schools now provide childcare, SEND services, EdPsych services, social care services, mental health services. But with the same budget and staffing they always had.

School is education. It became childcare by default. And it is an insult to us and our kids that this is the shit situation we find ourselves in.

So, yes school is childcare. But I see no reason to be happy with that woeful situation. The only people is truly benefits is the government.

In the original lockdown I worked in my own school in the hub. I also provided a weekly learning grid, with lessons and resources for each curricular area. Alongside this I made videos and posted them. Sometimes these were lessons, sometimes stories I read to the class and other times taught sessions. None of the lessons were live. I then marked everything submitted via the online classroom and gave feedback. I also responded to messages relating to learning from parents as well as general cries for help when people felt it was all getting too much. Every teacher in our school did the same.
Ours is a big standard state primary school. I couldn’t have done anymore and if anyone missed out it was my own daughter whose needs were almost always last.
This portrayal of slacker teachers is not one I can relate to at all.

Unfortunately I think schools will need to close in order to limit the spread of covid whilst the vaccine is being rolled out.

So many people (if you believe what you read on here) think the restrictions don't apply to them and I just don't see people conforming to restrictions in sufficient numbers all the time schools are open. There is an element of "What's the point of me not seeing my sister when the children are in a classroom with 30 others all day.?"

“ I also think it's pretty insulting towards actual childcare practitioners when school staff are insistent on distancing ourselves from 'just' being childcare.”

Totally agree but sadly any form of care is viewed as being lowly by society. Funny how it’s always things traditionally women have done that are somehow low skilled and low paid (or unpaid in the case of many mums!).

@TheKeatingFive

By your reasoning the Scouts are childcare. And Saturday morning football clubs. And soft play centres.

Caring for the well being of children is something totally different from your primary purpose being to look after children so their parents can work.

One is the benefit to the child and the other to the parents. Parents often forget that on school we only focus on the benefit to the child. We have no remit to provide parents with a service.

What are your workplaces doing to support?

They’re fighting to survive and avoid making their staff redundant actually.

Exactly. Not all workplaces are able to offer endless flexibility AND remain productive.

Lots of workplaces are being flexible but there is a limit to this.

@Notthe9oclocknewsathon

This is a problem. I agree. We need to make professional standards for childcare higher and value the contribution to society more.

But that would require thinking of childcare as a step on the educational ladder and not as just somewhere to keep kids so parents can go to work- which is the prevailing attitude her.

I would argue that as a secondary teacher I have no ‘childcare’ training. I’m trained to educate. Early years and KS3 are entirely different disciplines.

Pretty sure when it comes to benefits, mothers are expected by the government to work because their children are in school, so yes, it is considered childcare.

@SueEllenMishke

So lots of other work places need to go out of business to support yours?

By your reasoning the Scouts are childcare. And Saturday morning football clubs. And soft play centres.

I teach dancing to young children on a weekend. I absolutely am a form of childcare for some families and I'm fine with that.
It's not insulting at all.

So is this it then? No change?

news.sky.com/story/covid-19-government-sticking-to-plan-for-schools-to-return-from-next-week-michael-gove-tells-sky-news-12174034

As our numbers stand I’ll be fucking annoyed if this happens.

In the north west we’ve been sending our kids to school with numbers 600 per 100k and plus, we are much much lower than this now.
It sends the totally wrong message now there’s an issue in the south east all kids should miss out on education!

So lots of other work places need to go out of business to support yours?

Did I say that? No I didn't.

This idea that all workplaces have the ability to offer endless flexibility demonstrates a lack of understanding of how many workplaces operate.

People saying teachers should be vaccinated are entitled missing the point of the vaccination programme (and lockdown/tiers)
These measures are not to prevent people catching it, or to ‘eradicate it’ but to relieve pressure points on ‘our NHS’. So it fursn’t matter if there are people catching it as long as they are the groups that are least likely to show symptoms (children) or be hospitalised)people under 80 -which will surely be most teachers..

Those most likely to be hospitalised are not over 80.