Homeschooling the Government!

[AlmostStace]

Like many of you I'm really struggling to homeschool. It's an impossible balancing act and my mental health and that of my kids has suffered, and we're among some of the luckier ones that don't have to worry too much about feeding ourselves. If men were doing the majority of childcare then support for parents would be through the roof; I'm sick of the Government ignoring the gendered nature of the crisis!

I'm taking part in the Women's Equality Party's action this Saturday to get this Goverment homeschooled on the realities of Covid childcare and it'd be great to get as many people as possible joining in.

We're making videos, taking pictures, etc with our individual messages on them all this week and posting them at 3pm this Saturday, 30th Jan to Rishi Sunak's social media using #Homeschooled. All details on the below link. I hope some of you can join us in sending a powerful message!

www.womensequality.org.uk/home_schooled_action

@faerin

I just imagined every parent turning on a webcam and filming what is actually happening in their homes at this time so the government can see what the consequences are of all this shutting children inside.

We get ICU footage pushed in our faces of crying nurses and all that. We don't even see the hell parents and children are going through. Or rather, the government sure don't.

God, I wish someone would do this.

My youngest child (17) is going through complete Hell as a result of her school not being open (there was arguably no reason to shut it at all - small rural school without a single case of Covid, and with testing in place).

If any member of the government were dealing with this on the home front, they would never, ever have come up with this damaging and catastrophic policy.

I completely sympathise with anyone trying to work from home, the whole situation is pants.

However, we are in a pandemic, we 're almost there with the vaccine, the last thing we need is a stampede back to schools the way they were the last time.

Then you will I’m sure be delighted to learn that ‘stampede back to schools the way they were’ is not on the WEP’s list of things they are asking the government to do.

Here is their list: www.womensequality.org.uk/nurseries_closing_letter

• legal right to shared furlough or guaranteed Self-Employment Income Support for all parents. Currently, parents only have the right to request furloughing and 75% have been refused/“
• Early Years and school staff to be prioritised in the next round of vaccines so that they can reopen safely as soon as possible.
• Increase child benefits to £50 per child and maintain the £20-a-week uplift in universal credit. With children at home, household bills are mounting and forcing families into poverty.
• Ten days extra paid annual leave for all parents and 20 days for single parents to help them manage caring responsibilities
• A bailout for nurseries to stop them closing permanently.

Is that okay? May we talk about how hard it is now?

Also I think this is a brilliant idea. I am so so so tired. I am constantly being hauled over the coals at work for not getting more of everything done. I’m supposed to care for children (including a toddler because nurseries are shut because Scotland) and homeschool at the same time as doing my job, and the best I can do is be inadequate at all of it.

Absolutely agree that schools need more money so that when they do re-open they can do so safely. So much of their already overstredged budget has been used for covid-related stuff.

School staff (not forgetting cleaners etc) need to be prioritised for the vaccines and we need to have a government that gives too hoots about education.

In the interim, a legal right to furlough for parents and extra holiday days (as they've done in Germany). And a comparable provision for those who are self-employed/have their own companies.

It still frustrates me that GVMT didn't test more creative solutions last year eg outdoor classrooms, classrooms in empty civic spaces like museums and theatres where easier to distance etc etc. Other countries have done well with this type of approach.

Also to include the parents on mat leave with a baby taking up every second, it's impossible to homeschool their older sibling.

@GoldenOmber

Also I think this is a brilliant idea. I am so so so tired. I am constantly being hauled over the coals at work for not getting more of everything done. I’m supposed to care for children (including a toddler because nurseries are shut because Scotland) and homeschool at the same time as doing my job, and the best I can do is be inadequate at all of it.

Your message really struck me. I'm not sure if or would help, but you probably need both.

I think this is what is so upsetting - that we end up feeling guilty and shit because we feel inadequate at parenting and inadequate at working right now. And the fact is, it's the circumstances that are shit, not us.

Boris Johnson stood in front of the nation today with that tragic figure of 100,000 deaths and said "we truly did everything we could." That's what inadequate looks like. A man who thought he had the skills and depth to lead a country just because he wanted to be "world king". So the fact that you even have the energy and self-awareness to question whether you're doing a good enough job shows that you are absolutely not inadequate.

@lunapeace

Also to include the parents on mat leave with a baby taking up every second, it's impossible to homeschool their older sibling.

Absolutely.

I'm not on maternity leave but I have a 2 year old and a 4 year old who is doing preschool from home. Everything seems to assume that homeschooling involves a 7+ year old child and no younger siblings and a SAHM.

thank you CJA37. Yes, it is weirdly reassuring in some ways to think of someone in a position of importance like his and realise that at least I would be a lot less arrogant and useless than him!

What are the aims of this?

Bad day today. Glad to hear from other Mums of 7 year olds that are trying but not able to follow the full curriculum on their own. The real hard thing is that I have core hours that can’t be moved and these coincide with key learning times. What should I do? Shift the 4.5 hours of school work 7-9 (which would miss morning and afternoon registration and the one live lesson anyway) and 6-8.30? And yes, indeed PP, in school there is a TA and a teacher who teach and check the kids are on task (worse I can see they are there with the (cough) key worker kids whilst I’m struggling at home). The teacher and TA don’t to the best of my knowledge, speak for ten minutes, refuse to answer questions or give help then exit nor do they leave the kids a worksheet and bugger off for a fag. There are also other kids doing the same activity who can help if they are ahead or understand slightly more. I’m trying to do a job involving multiple meetings whilst simultaneously making sure my child is engaging with work. It’s just impossible. And my employer won’t allow furlough. I don’t know what I want - some recognition that’s it’s shit for me, shit for my kid, shit for the school too? A level playing field with the kids at school? Recognition from my employer they are denying me access to a state benefit whilst simultaneously impacting my wellbeing? None of these are solutions, but I don’t know how I will get through tomorrow never mind the rest of the week. Time is warping and blending a never ending amorphous lump of work/prep for home learning/home learning. In my spare time I get to be a carer for an elderly relative.

I’ve just finished work. I’m starting again in 7 hours. My parents are helping us some days and we are working around the kids. We are very lucky to have the help and the flexibility on working hours but neither my partner or I can be furloughed and can’t even get a switch to part time. It’s doable for us but it’s still hard. Without my parents help I think I’d be ill by now trying to juggle everything. Even with it I know I’m doing a very mediocre job of everything ~ homeschooling, work, parenting, keeping the house sorted, self care. I think the things they are asking for would all be helpful but particularly the right to be furloughed.

Why Rishi rather than the education secretary? I dont want furlough, I worked hard for my career. I don't want the schools back till it is epidemiologically sensible. I just want the remote education to be high quality and with some live content so that schools are stepping up and I am not having to do their job as well as my own

The whole situation is so sad. And so badly mishandled by the government and DfE.

The begging letters from school to keep kids home if humanly possible also annoyed me. I was straight with our primary - it’s absolutely fine that they can stay home for safety and to keep the number down, but we both work so I expect zero pressure on submitting homeschooling. They can’t have it both ways. Unless they are offering to pay our mortgage.

@lemons1571 yes we had a letter from school pleading with us to keep children home. I wrote back pointing out that we are keeping the children home despite our keyworker letters but it is quite unfair that keyworker children in school get a whole day of teaching from their teachers while keyworker children at home get a few stale videos and a thumbs up if they manage to submit work.

As a working mother who values her career and her children's education what I want to see is a campaign for all schools to provide high quality remote education which must include live contact each day and which must be delivered in a way that means children don't need constant supervision and support.

I don't want furlough. I don't want to sacrifice my career. I have worked hard for it! I just want the school to step up! (I know lots are now, but some still aren't)!

Some interesting points made here. @Justthebeerlighttoguide - I think it's great your school are flexible and that you have the ability to be firm with them about what you're prepared to do. Not all schools are: I have heard from parents who've been chased to do the set work and I know teachers who have been instructed to spend their incredibly precious time calling parents who haven't managed to do it to urge them on.

Now, I may seem a little one-note here but I don't blame those schools; I blame a Government culture that has long prioritised leagues and testing and scores over pupil engagement and creativity. Either way, it's putting too many parents in an impossible position. They are having to choose between their children and their jobs.

That's why I'll be at the rally at 2:45pm on Saturday and posting my contributions online at 3pm!

Thanks @GoldenOmber for the clarity upthread. Important to remember there are some good, practical asks in this campaign.

My heart sinks - "PM says it will not be possible to reopen schools in England after February half-term, but hopes it could happen from 8 March." (BBC report just now)

For those that are coping ... great.... Keep going! But for those that aren't coping the cost is too high. Not just for the kids (who will have been away from socialisation+education for nearly a year), but for parents who can't work + be with kids. Shaming those who aren't coping doesn't help.

We need funding and long-term strategic thinking to accommodate for a wider range of family needs - for those with circumstances which are unsustainable.

This campaign is a great way to make that reality visible.

This is a really great initiative, I look forward to joining in and raising the profile of women and kids' needs which have been all but forgotten in this pandemic.

The worst thing about homeschooling when you have a toddler, is constantly having to "shush" the toddler and avoid talking and interacting with them because it distracts the older one who is trying to work. I can't put a young toddler in another room for safety reasons, and if I go with the toddler into another room and leave the 7yo, the 7yo gets distracted, wanders off, stares out of the window, starts drawing on their workbook etc. It's hell. I'm worried that my toddler's development is going to be affected by the constant shushing every time they make a sound.

@user1477391263 totally. I have a 3yo, 7yo and 9yo. They are a perfect storm of distractions for each other and me. Nobody is making any progress unless one of us (me or dh) is on full-time duty. Not possible with 2x full-time jobs. And quite frankly, not really possible even if we do give it our full attention.
The nursery asks of this campaign are really important to me.