Coronavirus & Primary Schools

[Barrittk]

Coronavirus & Primary Schools

Hi All! I am currently studying a masters degree in architecture and looking at the design of primary schools with consideration to coronavirus.

I was hoping to get some parents perspectives on their own experiences with primary schools and their children attending school during this time.

If anyone would be able to help, I would appreciate it! I am looking to get some information in answer to the following questions?

• Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?
• How do your children feel about attending school in this time?
• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)
• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

Yes, I feel comfortable sending DS to school.

DS is happy going to school.

The school has been great, DS is currently attending and they follow safety precautions. They are being taught the curriculum by their usual teachers.

• Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?

Yes I do

• How do your children feel about attending school in this time?

They are happy although they prefer 'normal' school

• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)

Yes they are doing a good job for both home and students in school.

• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

It has affected my 9 year old a lot more than my 5 year old. I believe she is not as far ahead as she would have been if not missed school. Her mental health has been affected. She is a different child when attending school and not. She is very unmotivated at home and struggles a lot where as at school she doesn't.

• Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time? Yes I do
• How do your children feel about attending school in this time? DD felt fine about going to school and not worried by changes in routine and practices in September 2020.
• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed). Yes I did in the Autumn term. DD has been refused a space in KW provision.
• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning) Mental health is impacted for sure, social isolation is an issue, and DD is getting very poor remote provision from school, so the impact on her education is significant.

Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?
No. I dont. I think kids and teachers should all be in masks like the rest of the work.
School have bubbled whole year groups so 60 kids plus teachers. Plus our own siblings so 120 exposed to each other. And of course they all have siblings in other years too. So its the whole school plus teachers etc etc plus the siblings at secondary and nurseries. Might as well just say the whole city. Oh and after school club which is by key stage. And having music tuition and then clubs.
We've had 2 cases (a teacher and the HT)

• How do your children feel about attending school in this time?

They were ok.

• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)

No! They should have kept to a maximum of 30 kids. And class after school clubs. And should have had online reading books. Ks2 could easily have kept to their own stationery. Weve had outbreaks of CP and nits. Dc caught a cold from school after just 2w. The kids all go in the hall for lunch. And clubs.

• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

Dc doesnt get on with the work well at home.

This is mainly all gov fault though not schools.
The rules are too lax.
It is also gov fault as no masks allowed.
Saliva testing on groups of kids would be better too.
In terms of design we are lucky that the school is entered by kids from the playgrounds not the entrance.
So most also have doors/patio for ventilation.
Rotas would have been preferable to this situation where some kids have missed 0 days others 2/3 of a year already. Plus time self isolating .
A big issue is the other parents too. Having play dates using their houses or cars. Or having relatives round. Or sending ill kids in. Everyone else needs to be protected from the covidiot parents (antimaskers too).
Also school is probably how all the key workers and hcp are getting infected.

Do you feel comfortable sending your child to school at this time- yes. I am happy with precast the school. On both occasions in the Autumn term where bubbles closed due to a positive test there was no onward transmission within the bubbles.
Ds is now attending school 3 days a week as dh and I are keyworkers. I am happy with this.
How do your children feel about attending school- ds is very happy. He feels secure and confident at school though he would prefer it if the whole class was there.
Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending- yes. Totally happy with the precautions taken- staggered break time and meal times, different gates and times for drop off/pick up, masks worn by parents and teachers at drop off/pick up and teachers/tas given choice in class, lots of hand washing reinforced.
How do you think not attending school affected your children- 7 year old ds didn't get a place in the first lockdown. He was OK for 5/6 weeks and then his mental health deteriorated. He was emotional and clingy,had temper tantrums, lost focus became obsessed with his Switch and on one occasion was violent to me (completely uncharacteristically). This time with attending 3 days a week he is his normal happy self.

- Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?

Yes I'm fine with it
- How do your children feel about attending school in this time?

They are fine with it, why shouldn't they be?
- Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)

Yes they are doing their best

- How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

Negatively, better all round for the child to be attending school

Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?
I did, right up until the end of the Christmas holidays when I was really stressed about it. In the end he only went back for a day in January. Autumn term I was happy for him to be there.

-How do your children feel about attending school in this time?
He liked being back with his friends but he complained about the cold no matter how many clothes he wore as they had all the doors and windows open all day. He wasn’t remotely worried about covid though.

• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time?

(Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed) Yes, his bubble stayed intact so we had no periods of disruption or isolation. The bubbles were big (70 in the year group, 35 per class) but I m not really sure what school could do about that as they don’t have the space.

• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning

He’s fine, he prefers being at home in the warm, we are learning as we can but I work 80 hours a week and he needs a lot of help but we are doing what we can. He talks to his friends online every day and they do a class teams maths lesson every morning. He misses football at break times but that’s about it.

How are these questions related to a masters degree in architecture?

Hi @WitchesBritchesPumpkinPants :) Architecture is not only about the physical design of the spaces, but it is about how people feel within the spaces. With the current pandemic, the way we feel within buildings is different to what we are used to. Pre-covid, public architecture was designed to promote interactions of its users whereas socially we are now having to do the opposite! The topic must be presented as an issue for discussion, with proof as to why there may be an issue and therefore a need for a review on the baseline primary school design that the EFA fund.

@Coasterfan, @Januaryissodull, @Vanillaradio, @HSHorror, @Deliaskis, @Waxonwaxoff0
Thank you all for interacting with my post, and commenting. It is much appreciated and great to get a point of from parents who are experiencing this first hand! Wishing you all the best, and hoping for things to get safely back to normal as soon as possible.

There's quite a few epidemiological studies on the hospital design efficiency from the point of view of infection control (ward layouts, shortest travel distances etc).
Not sure if too relevant to your degree, just something I came across recently and thought it might be helpful.

Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?
Yes, during autumn term. They are not currently attending but I'd be happy for them to.
Hand washing was horrid first time before 1st lockdown, harsh soap or sanitiser perhaps. Both DC had sores which took a while to heal. Hasn't happened in autumn term so they must've sorted that.

• How do your children feel about attending school in this time?

Again, autumn term. Quite happy, happier than at school of moany mum that's for sure. Bit miffed about seating arrangments all facing forwards, they liked to be facing each other. Also did not like not being able to use diner hall. Missed mixing with other classes/friends at break.

• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)

Yes. They created a one way system. Kept class bubbles in certain areas. It's a very very old building so they have done the best with what they can.

• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

Massively effected them. Missing social aspect, missing group working. Too much writing and desk work, not enough exploring. Missing school community. Bored, unmotivated. Sad and angry. They argue as can't escape each other. Certainly this has effected their learning and enjoyment of learning. How could it not?

They are 7 and 9. 7 yr old far worse effected this time, 9 yr old coping better. School online learning much improved so they have more autonomy rather than relying on me. Also taught classes 3x per week and 2 assemblies.

Also have a preschooler still attending thank God. If he was home it'd be far worse for everyone, his development would definitely be effected by staying home again. I am so grateful he can attend as it means he's happy and I can focus on the two struggling at home better. Last year it all went spectacularly wrong.

Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?
I'm not sure I feel 'comfortable' with anything at the minute

• How do your children feel about attending school in this time?

My child would be fine

• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)

Yes I think so, doing what what they can

• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

I think it's affected her badly. Mainly her behaviour. She's angry And I'm sure her learning isn't as good either

That sounds really interesting. One thing I have noticed is that some of the things that were previously a problem in the design of a building are now an advantage eg numerous exit points can be a problem for children "escaping" / site management are now better for collecting children and socially distancing.
But narrow corridors are always an issue. My dds school has a wide corridor but before staggered starts had 3 classes worth of parents cramming in up and down including prams!!
Schools were just not designed for this and the school guidance seems to be written by someone who has never set foot in a school

But the parents aren't experiencing it first hand. And a lot of them imagine schools to be far more 'covid secure' than they possibly can be - mostly because they get told they are.

I work in a 70s built primary school. My classroom is not big enough to be more than 1m away from the pupils, there aren't enough entrances and exits to have one way systems, or dedicated doors that aren't shared by more than one year group and the corridors are too narrow for any distancing at all when people pass.

Combine that with no masks in primary and I imagine if you dropped any random parent (conditioned now to expect distancing, screens and masks in shops etc) that they'd feel something wasn't as safe as they are being told they are.

I was ok with my class being back before Christmas and would prefer them back now so I was teaching all of them rather than a handful of them in person and the rest online, so I'm not commenting the above because 'I don't want to teach'.

I should add its a very small school, less than 100 pupils, bubbles of less than 25, so I may feel differently in a bigger school setting.

• Do you feel comfortable sending your children to school during this time?

Yes. It is more important for her to have the social contact and education to me. Our risk is low as a household, we are working from home.

• How do your children feel about attending school in this time?

She is at home now. Was really happy to go back in September. Understands the pandemic as far as you'd expect a 10 Yr old to, the school put good control measures in.

• Do you think your children's school is doing enough when attending during this time? (Whether this is current attendance due to being a key worker or attendance during the Autumn term when allowed)

I think they did what they could. Its a newish building so corridors not too narrow. PE non contact. Dinner in classroom. Class bubbles enforced and closed if a positive case. Lots of hand washing. It got a bit scary before Christmas when half the classes were sent home in a week mind.

• How do you think not attending school has affected your children? (In terms of their well being, mental health and learning)

She's coping really well and can engage with the online lessons. But bored, missing friends, less physically active. Really wants to go back.