Schools to get 2 weeks notice before opening

[Nellodee]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-55747064

Which means they will be definitively opening after Easter, and schools will be informed at 9pm on the last day of the term.

There needs to be a massive crackdown on the kids currently still in scoops first. It’s making a mockery of all of this. Practically every kid in DCs school had just 1 keyworker parents (there also needs to be a new list of critical/ non critical keyworkers ie. any teacher/ police/ NHS in the critical but Adam who works in a bank, does a few hours calls a day & somehow scraped into keyworker bracket- NOT). ONLY critical keyworkers kids allowed back. And deeper enquiries into what the other parents does. As we have so many lazy stay at home mothers as well as (non lazy) WFH in standard job mothers still sending kids in. That should not be allowed to continue.

In #schools

@sundowners I completely agree. If the other parent can wfh or doesn't work they should not be able to send their child in. It is so unfair on teachers, families of actual critical workers and the children missing out at home. Madness.

2nd half term is one month away from now so things could look very different by then. I'm still hopefully they will go back end of Feb

@storminabuttercup

Surely it needs to go by area? We're in west Yorks, I'll probably get flamed but cases are lower now than before Xmas when teachers were happy to be in.

I wasn't happy to be in before Christmas. I was terrified. New variant area, it was rife.

Cases are still higher than before Christmas, aren't they?

@UnmentionedElephantDildo

It is still vital that Y11’s and Y13’s are in school way before Easter. I don’t know why people think that because the actual GCSE’s are cancelled they shouldn’t be at school, the opposite is true. If they are having CAGs then they need to be in school to get the work done to be assessed for the CAGs because most schools don’t have nearly enough evidence and data. They also need to be in school if they are going to set the “exams” the Government are suggesting. You can’t expect them to miss a term of school and then come in after Easter and immediately sit exams and do well. Primary and lower secondary I can understand staying off until after Easter but it’s imperative that these kids are given the chance they deserve. They have had their entire GCSE and Alevel courses disrupted.

It certainly won’t be any earlier than Easter here. The teachers wouldn’t go back.

I was really, really hoping that they would be in by half term. It's dd's final year. Her assesments are not cancelled, she is doing a practical, vocational course and needs the actual skills taught rather than just the piece of paper, to enable her to go into her chosen career.

But aren’t the teachers back anyway? A third of our school is in due to ‘key worker’ status

It would be better to commit to opening once infection levels in the community reached a predetermined level to all children with rotas and social distancing, so kids get SOME time in school but the risks of transmission are much lower. With extra funding obviously. With the only kids allowed in full time being those from real key worker families (not just anyone, including those with a SAHP as well for example).

The lack of brains in the DfE is utterly appalling. It's not like many many scientists and other countries haven't handed them more workable solutions on a plate.

At the moment, everyone and his dog qualifies as a key worker. I know at least 4 other families (including ours) who technically qualify. We're all keeping our kids out because we can and don't think it's the right thing to do to send them in, but once infection levels get to the same point as before Christmas - where we were told to send them in or face sanctions, and that their education would suffer terribly if they weren't in school, I'll be thinking harder about taking up that "key worker" place.

Honestly they're creating a two tier system between the kids in school and those out. I'm completely ok with that for the kids of the medics, supermarket workers, care home assistants etc, they need their kids in school and they're putting themselves at risk - but I do actually mind there are a load of kids in school with SAHPs when mine is missing out.

And I'm just not ok with the idea that my kids will be out longer BECAUSE of all those kids in that don't need to be (not to mention the increased risk in school to the teachers and kids of the real critical workers).

Honestly, I'm amazed at how effective home schooling is for Y9-Y13. I've got about 80% engagement, which is actually higher than I had when we were badly infected, and the students are managing to learn new material on subjects as complicated as iterative functions. Progress in lesson is pretty similar to a normal year.

I realise that not all schools are doing as well as mine appears to be, but maybe the solution is not to throw back older children into a situation which will result in mass infection, but rather to raise the ability of disadvantaged students to participate remotely.

I imagine that the cost of providing mobile devices and internet access would be comparable to the cost of increased usage of intensive care facilities.

@Nellodee you would think so, wouldn't you? I also agree that my secondary classes are by and large just getting on with it at more or less the same rate of progress as I would have expected. We are live for at least a part of every lesson, though. I miss seeing the kids properly and being able to chat to them casually and pick up on pastoral issues etc, but apart from those for whom IT and WiFi is an issue I don't think their education is suffering too much this time.

I realise that not all schools are doing as well as mine appears to be, but maybe the solution is not to throw back older children into a situation which will result in mass infection, but rather to raise the ability of disadvantaged students to participate remotely

Yes, this too. Of course this is far too sensible a suggestion for the lack of brains that is Gav W.

The problem is the government is doing fuck all to help kids who need devices / better wifi etc. I actually think it's the vulnerable children who don't quite qualify for social worker intervention who are missing out the most. The ones that don't turn up on zoom and whose parents aren't articulate and pushy enough to claim their key worker status, even though arguably they have more need to have their kids in school than most. I know teachers will be trying to reach out to those families but there's a limit to what they can do, especially when schools are over-full anyway and there's no extra resources.

This also doesn't solve the problem of social isolation. Once infection rates are lower, a half way house would be something like kids participating in outdoor sports / drama / dance etc with their classmates but doing the indoor schooling from home to get a bit of social interaction but this government seems to go for an all or nothing, let's not fund education at all, approach.

Y11 DS is doing really well with remote provision and did in the summer term. They have had live timetable both times. Helps when they are older and don't need so much/any parental input

[quote Biscuitsneeded]@Nellodee you would think so, wouldn't you? I also agree that my secondary classes are by and large just getting on with it at more or less the same rate of progress as I would have expected. We are live for at least a part of every lesson, though. I miss seeing the kids properly and being able to chat to them casually and pick up on pastoral issues etc, but apart from those for whom IT and WiFi is an issue I don't think their education is suffering too much this time.[/quote]
I agree. Most of my classes are a bit like shouting into the abyss, though they do their work.

I have a couple of classes where the students actually "banter" a little bit, and god, I look forwards to those lessons!

Re key worker children - I think this time around employers are being less sympathetic. My employer has told us we are key workers and must explore that route before asking for furlough if we can’t work with a child at home. Mine is secondary so absolutely fine to have at home with me, but as a single parent, if she had been young primary I’d have had to send her in. I think a lot of pressure is being put on parents to send in so they can work - not much choice if that’s the case .

I have a couple of classes where the students actually "banter" a little bit

Oh my god... mine is banter hell, I have to perma-mute them in the meeting set ups, then only unmute them when I specifically want them to speak.

I've got one of those, but most of mine are just a bit tumbleweedy.

I think I'm going to get in touch with my union, though, and tell them I'm not going back until we get a "mute all" button that works in the classroom.