Has covid 19 emphasised how essential schools are

[EachDubh]

And will people now fight for schools to be better funded by our government?

School budgets have been cut for years, (yes I am aware other departments have but am focussing on schools here). Many school staff fund our children's learning from their own pockets, many PTAs but basic essentials through fundraising. Some schools are on their knees struggling to afford paper, pencils, photocopying etc.

One thing the threads on the Covid forum have shown time and time again is school is essential. For learning, for safety, for emotional development, for social skills and development, to ensure skills learned at home are not missed by some, to support families, support communities, to be a role model, to give oppertunities, for exams... So is it not time tht we, as parents, stand up for our schools. Demand they are funded adequately, ask questions about why some schools can afford eniugh teachers and others can't. Ask why some kids have to learn in an environment that is unsuitable and unhealthy with damp and unsafe structures.

Is it finally time that the UK looks at other countries and asks why is their education system funded better, why are their schools more suitable to educating childen?

Think we all understood how essential and important education is, before Tony Blair said it 3 times.

I can’t imagine there were many people who didn’t view schools as essential before the pandemic

But very few people care about how badly funded they are, governments may talk about education but they are not willing to fund it. Our education system is in crisis due to lack of funding and abuse by governments.

Yanbu OP. The shameful underfunding of education and gaslighting of teachers appears to be a complete surprise to the majority of the public, having emerged during the pandemic, whilst many of us have been trying to highlight the problems fo years.

People have solidly voted Tory for a decade now, despite all the evidence that they underfund everything that won't personally enrich them. That'll most likely never change. If we were that moved to defend our critical pillars of society we wouldn't vote Tory.

@DontWalkPastTheCastle

People have solidly voted Tory for a decade now, despite all the evidence that they underfund everything that won't personally enrich them. That'll most likely never change. If we were that moved to defend our critical pillars of society we wouldn't vote Tory.

I have never voted Conservative, but for the first time I will be in the Welsh May elections thanks to Mark Drakeford's lack of ambition for the next generation and slow vaccine roll out. Wales has ben very poorly served by Welsh Labour.

Great post, well said.

I don't think most parents realise just how underfunded schools are, and now parents aren't actually going into school buildings they'll have even less of an idea.
Parents will just be happy that their children are actually in school.

School staff were clear about how we needed investment to support us to be aomewhat covid safe, the government were clear, there is no money but no one cared. Those of us who do are small voices carrying on the wind. It's like parents saying why isn't there better online learning, staff explain there is poor infrastructure , teachers are using own equipment or mobile phones but no one seems to question why, in 2020 uk we are unable to provide basics for our children's learning.

Unfortunately, I don’t think the anything is going to change.

The public opinion of teachers certainly isn’t going to change due to COVID. The media (and to some extend, the DfE) have done a fantastic job at demonising teachers and painting them as feckless and lazy at every twist and turn during this pandemic. It’s utterly tiring.

Funding won’t miraculously improve, either, even with public pressure. The UK will have a huge amount of furlough money to claw back and that will inevitably come from public funding cutbacks such as schools, NHS, etc.

In reality, people need to vote with their feet politically to make any change. Or accept a higher rate of taxation to increase funding available to public services.

What we need is fair funding, not all schools are underfunded but the funding is massively wonky with some schools getting thousands more per child than others. As a minimum that needs levelling up!

People cant see how stretched schools are financially or how that impacts on their child. Partly because schools work so hard and payout their own pocket to make it good. The only parents that 'get' a hint are those whose children need additional support. I've been heavy involved in the SEND crisis campaigning and people couldnt care less. They shrug their shoulders and see it as an individual problem.

Unfortunately whilst people use education as a political football we won't ever improve it.

Wasn't it tb whose made hospitals and school top heavy with slt?

Education and the NHS needs a specialist cross party committee... And forever taken out of politics

@MillieEpple

People cant see how stretched schools are financially or how that impacts on their child. Partly because schools work so hard and payout their own pocket to make it good. The only parents that 'get' a hint are those whose children need additional support. I've been heavy involved in the SEND crisis campaigning and people couldnt care less. They shrug their shoulders and see it as an individual problem.

Yes I agree. The current faux concern from many loud voices, in respect of both vulnerable and SEN children has been eye opening. Where were they before now? I have more respect for parents who admit they are only concerned for their own circumstances rather than pretending they are concerned about the welfare of others.

That is also true @PandemicPavolova.

@BooksAreNotEssentialInWales Very naive if you think Wales will be served better by the Tories.

@LynetteScavo

I don't think most parents realise just how underfunded schools are, and now parents aren't actually going into school buildings they'll have even less of an idea. Parents will just be happy that their children are actually in school.

This.

My remote teaching was better than my in school teaching. Partly down to my subject being decimated by zoning of bubbles/guidance etc and partly down to the fact I'm risk assessing every move I or the kids make in school. In school teaching of my subject is not as important as my safety. I have tried to prioritize safety (mine and the kids) above teaching. I have been able to teach GCSE and A level semi normally (but again not all of the syllabus due to restrictions) but KS3 has really been babysitting since September sadly.

I’ll be honest, I thought formal education was a waste of time before the pandemic. I favoured a system whereby children undertake manual work like chimney sweeping and shunting wagons in the coal mines, working their way up and acquiring practical skills.

[quote Nimo12]@BooksAreNotEssentialInWales Very naive if you think Wales will be served better by the Tories.[/quote]
Well welsh labour have a few months to massively up their game.

@BooksAreNotEssentialInWales

Me too. Mark Drakeford has been as much use as a chocolate teapot and far less inspiring. They’ve made worse decisions throughout this Covid pandemic than Westminster and that’s saying something. South Wales is in a right old mess at the moment. Good riddance I say.

@booksarenotessentialinwales
@dbml
...you can't be serious... I'll agree that Welsh Labour isn't good but you can't seriously think the tories will be better?? No-one who has read any of the Conservative policies could possibly think they would serve Wales well!!

@Stellaroses

I’m sorry, I’m not voting for more of the same. I’ll see what other parties have to offer, but I’m not voting Mark Drakeford back in anymore.

I’ve never voted conservative but the utter contempt we are held in by Mark Drakeford has pushed me beyond my limits. He sets us against each other, says we’re all breaking rules whilst not accepting any responsibility for the mess we’re in. He chose to spend precious resources on nightingales we are now told could never have been staffed, he sent untested people into care homes, our NHS had no ppe. Yes conservatives did the same but he is responsible for Wales and could have made different choices. Our children have lost more education than any other nation and had far less teaching during lockdown. Live lessons aren’t provided in most areas based on council policies. It’s been shameful and welsh labour take our votes for granted. It’s time to shake them out their complacency.

[quote DBML]@BooksAreNotEssentialInWales

Me too. Mark Drakeford has been as much use as a chocolate teapot and far less inspiring. They’ve made worse decisions throughout this Covid pandemic than Westminster and that’s saying something. South Wales is in a right old mess at the moment. Good riddance I say.[/quote]
Surely, without infection control measures, the situation in South Wales would have been even worse?

What do you think should have been done instead?

Surely had the Tories been in power in Wales, it's unlikely that things would have been better and they may well have been worse? (I had the impression Wales was managing things better than England in the summer)

No, covid has not emphasised how essential schools are. And no, parents are not going to be motivated to campaign for better funding.

The Tory government has used the argument that schools are essential for education, welfare and childcare for society as a whole as a means to justify keeping them open during the pandemic.

Parents use the "essential" argument to justify keeping schools open to serve their own individual desire and needs.

Education is essential, but schools are not the only place that education can occur. But parents now believe the school is essential as the only site or circumstances in which children learn. Parents have abdicated all responsibility for education. But then this is encouraged, right up until you receive a termly report, a reading book in the bag, or are forced to struggle to get adequate provision for your child with SEN. Then it becomes parents moral duty to act. Its foisted upon you, you are made to feel its your duty. And it is, because the education act states it is.

I've been shocked at the number of posts on the Covid boards from parents desperately trying to justify why schools should remain open. Even when shown proof that schools are unsafe, teachers vulnerable to covid, and that schools are driving higher rates of transmission these parents are desperate to offload their children to somewhere else. The childcare argument is less justifiable now than in the 1800s ! Many parents can work from home, and the percentage of mothers needing primary school as childcare is a tiny percentage of the overall workforce. Its sickening that people otherwise unconcerned about child welfare have suddenly become fixated on children in need or at risk when ordinarily they couldn't give two fucks. If they did schools would be better funded.

Parents will not pull their fingers out of their ears and get off their apathetic backsides to either educate or campaign. The vast majority of individuals behave as entitled, most are only concerned with their own selves, and only as an extension of this their children. Many seem to have believed that having children wouldn't significantly alter their lifestyle or career choices. Now schools closure will massively impact some families, whether that be maternal mental health, financially or child welfare. Many struggle to parent, and many can not cope without a break. Others still are genuinely struggling with children who have needs far above the average. And parents individually or collectively will only act once lack of funding massively impacts them as individuals. I fully expect to be slaughtered.....but I won't be changing my opinion. It may be controversial to point out that parents (in general) will not accept any inconvenience to themselves, whilst others who quite genuinely really do need support or have children whose needs are challenging on any reasonable measure are left without essential services. This is part of a much wider cultural phenomena where there are contradictions and dichotomy between individual, collective, corporate and political responsibility.