No more masks in classrooms - hurray!

[TeddingtonTrashbag]

Hurray!
I am a secondary teacher and just hope it really happens.

www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2021/05/06/exclusive-end-masks-classroom-boris-johnson-defies-unions/

Well the problem with the infection rates before Christmas in kids was that they were bringing covid back home to their families.

The idea that it's now ok to ditch mitigation measures and allow covid to swill around in the unvaccinated youth once again while their parents are most likely unvaccinated or not yet fully protected seems a bit premature.

Some people seem to think that masks in schools were to protect teachers. As if the govt gave a shit about teachers. These people apparently really weren't paying attention to why schools had to close.

Xenia, Secondary school children are better served wearing masks and having a teacher who will stand closer to them to discuss their work because of the protection provided by the masks. They are better served wearing masks to avoid a situation where they can’t go to school as teachers are ill and no supply staff want to come in. They even limit their chances of post viral illness. Masks are mildly uncomfortable. Our young people could certainly cope with wearing them until the government decides the risk is so low that no one needs to wear them any more.

Parents don’t need protecting

If they were at risk they’d be vaccinated

Again people can’t seem to get past the fact that they’re not at risk

If you’re currently unvaccinated it’s becauae you have a ridiculously low chance of being ill with covid

The numbers of healthy individuals under 40 is minute

@noblegiraffe

They weren't best served by the lack of mitigation measures from Sept - Dec that allowed covid to spiral out of control in secondary schools and resulted in them being closed from Jan to March.

I think that was worse for their education than masks, tbh. Astonishing that others think that mitigation measures are the real problem.

I agree. It's really very odd. A sort of collective amnesia about the impact of the pandemic on school children from September - March [with a special collective forgetting around January 4th], and instead a belief that it is the full opening of schools, by and large successfully, with masks and mitigation measures, since March that is REALLY the problem.

That aside I agree masks should be gone everywhere not just schools

@Xenia

Secondary pupils are not best served nor their well being best served in masks.

Yet the carousel of being in and out of school between Sept and Dec was serving their well being?

Or their teachers being off and many supply teachers being in?

Strange how the call is that pupils must be in school at any cost as long as its not masks.

My understanding is that masks are to go BUT isolation for close contacts of cases is to stay.

So can someone explain to me why it is sensible to get rid of a mitigation measure that helps keep cases in schools low, as to my mind it is more disruptive to education to have to keep self isolating than it is to wear a mask?

@Pastanred

Parents don’t need protecting

If they were at risk they’d be vaccinated

Again people can’t seem to get past the fact that they’re not at risk

If you’re currently unvaccinated it’s becauae you have a ridiculously low chance of being ill with covid

The numbers of healthy individuals under 40 is minute

So you think it is sensible to allow cases in schools - in response to cases in the community - to rise, even though that takes teachers and pupils out of the classroom sue to illness and self-isolation? Rather than adopt a mitigation measure that applies absolutely everywhere else?

I hope eventually that contacts won’t have to isolate because cases won’t kead to severe disease

Data shows that already which is presumable why gov are continuing with plan

Covid isnt a concern if no one gets severe illness

(I expect it will defo be a case of no contacts isolating)

I mean 'sensible', as in 'conducive to the best education FOR ALL, not just the lucky ones who happen not to get infected or be close contacts'.

Are you speaking from a position of being vaccinated, or unvaccinated, pasta?

@Pastanred

I hope eventually that contacts won’t have to isolate because cases won’t kead to severe disease

Data shows that already which is presumable why gov are continuing with plan

Covid isnt a concern if no one gets severe illness

(I expect it will defo be a case of no contacts isolating)

I repeat - when that is the case everywhere, it can be the case in schools.

Not until then.

Can’tkeep

I agree but from the point of view that all masks should go - not just schools

I also agree it gives mixed messages but that doesn’t mean that they should stay imo

I am booked in for my first vaccine at 41 but as you know from my previous comments, I’ve never believed I had any risk of covid illness and the data backs that belief

Most people I know my age don’t even card if they get it which is why I guess I find Mumsnet so odd?

Honestly I find it odd that people can’t separate exposure to actual risk of illness

They are not the same

I agree teachers are more likely to be exposed to covid but most people do not even have symptoms

Those that are ill fall into groups 1-9

My teens are all relieved at the no more masks rule but we're in Bolton where infection rates are very high and in the last two weeks loads of classes have gone into isolation so I am worried tbh.
Only today my reception age dds class has been sent home for 10 days as a child tested positive. The Indian variant is to blame here in Bolton so don't really know what to think.
My siblings are teachers and are both worried at the no masks rule as both have asthma but not fully vaccinated yet.

Honestly I find it odd that people can’t separate exposure to actual risk of illness. They are not the same

I think you are misunderstanding my point.

The disruption in schools from September to December, and was not primarily caused by serious illness or death of those who worked in school or attended them. It was caused by high case rates, which meant high levels of self isolation and high levels of disruption and temporary teachers.

Reducing mitigation measures while in no way reducing the degree of disruption if cases do occur in schools is obviously backwards. If it is not considered right to stop all self isolation, for everyone everywhere, not stop mask wearing for everyone everywhere - and both of these are currently the case - there is no rational argument that they should be stopped solely in schools.

The more virus circulating, the more chance of vaccine escaping variants / variants that affect children.There is increasing evidence that some of the variants that have already arisen (Brazilian, Indian) may not only affect transmissibility but also lethality for younger age groups.

www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/mystery-shrouds-growth-covid-cases-young-people/

The most sensible thing to do, if you want to truly get to a point where everyone vulnerable is protected and we can ditch the mitigations for good, is to keep mitigations in place until we've vaccinated (fully) about 70% of the population (caveat: different scientists differ on the exact figures required for herd immunity). We're actually not THAT far off that. And then have really good controls in place to minimise entry of new variants into the country and deal with any outbreaks - which will be easier if a much higher proportion are vaccinated.

Obviously this is far too sensible though.

This government isn't big on prevention, as evidenced by the last year.

I don't actually understand the arguments FOR getting rid of masks right now other than a tiny vocal minority are against them?

All scientists are firmly in favour of them staying right now.
There are probably an equal number of children who WANT to wear them as don't. There is good evidence they reduce transmission and so disruption in schooling.

Those with learning difficulties when using a mask can be exempt, many are and they - as well as everyone else - still benefit from the reduction in transmission of the majority being masked.

The only possible reason I can think of is politics. Boris wanting a headline to distract from his wallpaper issues?

I am booked in for my first vaccine at 41

Why would you bother?

@Pastanred

Parents don’t need protecting

If they were at risk they’d be vaccinated

Again people can’t seem to get past the fact that they’re not at risk

If you’re currently unvaccinated it’s becauae you have a ridiculously low chance of being ill with covid

The numbers of healthy individuals under 40 is minute

Parents don’t need protecting. If they were at risk they’d be vaccinated It's not that easy. I am at risk and yet still not vaccinated. So in your opinion I should just suck it up?

If you’re currently unvaccinated it’s becauae you have a ridiculously low chance of being ill with covid

no, it's because there was a finite number of vaccines and the gov prioritised from 100 year olds downward. Nothing to do with science. Optics is more like it. As long as short term NHS overrun (and deaths are low) is stopped they are happy. Instead of ramping up NHS services, they have been cutting funding for decades. They don't give a shit about individuals.

Those that are ill fall into groups 1-9

Not the case. As for pp’s “kids don’t even get ill!” assertions? My 11 year old got very ill with covid last year, and has had long covid symptoms for a year. Perfectly healthy. No underlying conditions. Yes the odds are that many kids won’t be affected. But boldly asserting that anyone outside groups 1-9 doesn’t get ill is incorrect at best, and ignorant at worst.

Ds doesn’t particularly enjoy wearing a mask but compared to being in pain for a year, guess what he prefers. (It’s the mask.)

Pastanred
Again people can’t seem to get past the fact that they’re not at risk

What is strange is that 'as a teacher' you don't seem to be able to see that this is about being off with an illness more than the risk.

If you want to protect the education of children you need to protect those that are teaching them.

Pupils having an on/off attendance at school is not good for their education.
Teachers having an on/off attendance at school is not good got children's education.

removing mitigation from an area where very few have been vaccinated (and against scientists' recommendations) is plain stupid.

removing mitigation from an area where very few have been vaccinated (and against scientists' recommendations) is plain stupid.

Hear hear. The government have been stupid about this throughout.

DS1 is in Year 11. His school made it compulsory to wear a mask in September when they all went back. They had to wear them all day; in lessons and in communal areas. They were allowed to remove them to eat and drink only. As far as I know (and I appreciate I don’t know every child but I have friends with kids in other Year Groups) no one has had to self isolate as a result of Covid. DS1 actually got it in January when the schools were shut.
Seeing as they had to wear masks before Boris decided it was a good idea, I very much doubt they will be allowed to not wear them now. It makes more sense to keep them until the end of the Summer Term.

@SomeKindOfFloppyWeirdo

Those that are ill fall into groups 1-9

Not the case. As for pp’s “kids don’t even get ill!” assertions? My 11 year old got very ill with covid last year, and has had long covid symptoms for a year. Perfectly healthy. No underlying conditions. Yes the odds are that many kids won’t be affected. But boldly asserting that anyone outside groups 1-9 doesn’t get ill is incorrect at best, and ignorant at worst.

Ds doesn’t particularly enjoy wearing a mask but compared to being in pain for a year, guess what he prefers. (It’s the mask.)

I'm sorry to hear about your son. I hope he feels better soon.

I was 40 and had no known underlying conditions when I caught covid in the first wave last March (not tested though, although the paramedics wanted to take me in to hospital due to my symptoms, but I'm sure some here will say there's no way I had it...).

Several similar aged and otherwise healthy colleagues were also very ill, one of whom only recently returned to work. My lungs/heart still aren't back to normal. We teach university students, and I think the high viral load from who-knows-how-many-people being infected at once and breathing the same air for 2+ hours in an unventilated classroom is what made us 'extra' ill. If we'd all had masks on, maybe we would have had less severe cases.

So, not having masks at all in educational settings with (nearly) adult-sized learners - when we're getting so close to herd immunity - seems like a very bad idea.

If we'd all had masks on, maybe we would have had less severe cases.

Yes, there is evidence that wearing a mask may protect the wearer from severe disease.

www.nytimes.com/2020/07/27/health/coronavirus-mask-protection.html