COVID infected child coming into school

[Dancerinthedark01]

Sorry - rubbish title

But DD11 just came home and says BoyA came into school this morning saying his whole family has COVID. He was late in because he’d just been tested. He then sat there sniffing and squinting his eyes. DD’s description.

Then half an hour later he was taken out of school because test came back as positive.

Is this normal practice now?

A week off in a year - do you mean this academic year, the one which is a month old with cases rising, or the calendar year in which the schools had to close for the second longest school closure in Europe?

I totally agree that schools should have been prioritized over pubs and garden centerss but was not surprised.

@PersephoneJames

I don’t know who Jenny harries is.

Half of the class were off. That’s not a normal, consistent education. But okay. I’d rather my kids were masked but received a full year of uninterrupted education, but tbf my dc coped well with masks (better than me) and very badly with isolating.

Why do you think masks will be enough to prevent Covid spread in schools? It may suppress the spread somewhat, but that's it. Look at Scotland!

Much of the class will end up being off regardless through the year. I'd have thought it better to get that out of the way early on rather than spread the process out by a few weeks.

@Delatron

God people place so much faith in masks. (Worn half heartedly by most kids)I’d actually like then to bring them back for a month and we can then really tell or have some evidence of their super amazing protective qualities. If only we’d have known how effective masks were last year we’d never have seen the exponential growth we have here...oh wait...

God people place so much faith in masks.

I agree. If they worked as people think they will Scotland wouldn’t have had similar peak and fall.

@MarshaBradyo

Do people think being able to go maskless into a shop or school is worth the endless hokey cokey of school attendance among teachers and children?

But look at the Scotland chart and how steep the rise and decrease is, with masks.

All I can say is that there are charts in the Twitter link which go in the other direction and that people will choose the chart to suit their point.

But charts aside, and ignoring all of the non-relevant-to-education-u-turns, the first day back after Christmas u turn, the vaccine u turn, the co2 monitor absences, the refusal to publish the minutes for the meeting about the vaccine decisions.. are these signs of strong and stable governance, or a bit of a worry?

So you just skip over Scotland because it doesn’t fit with the narrative you want?

This is worth reading. Our country is run by a complete and utter shambolic embarrassment of a government. Not acceptable during a pandemic

@PersephoneJames I’ve said not including forced absences though school closures and isolations.

Yes @Warhertisuff I too wholeheartedly supported lockdown one (I think it should have been sooner and pre Cheltenham and football matches).

The end goal of lockdown 2 was to power through vaccinations so yes supported that.

But I agree, what is the end goal and long term strategy with mitigations now? For an endemic virus? I’m the opposite of a Covid denier! I firmly believe it’s here to stay. That a virus will do what it will do and artificial measures merely suppress for a period of time. You take the measures away and cases go up.

I think those that are in denial are the ones that think we mask up this winter and we’ll all be done and dusted by Spring.

And everyone is ignoring the very strong, evidence based argument about Scotland and masks from @MarshaBradyo because it doesn’t fit their (non-evidence based) arguments or narrative

My understanding is that you stay off while awaiting PCR results. Also I really doubt schools are going to fine parents during a very confusing pandemic during a period of high infection rates.

@Warhertisuff I don’t. I’m not a scientist or politician BUT I would prefer for the scientists & politicians that we do have not to withhold the information that led to their decisions about my children (which goes against their codes of standard) particularly when those decisions are contrary to those of our neighbours whose numbers (not just cases but days of school lost, hospitalizations particularly of children) are also very different.

If something is withheld from publication that otherwise would be published and it concerns the welfare of my dc, it piques my curiosity and rouses a hint of suspicion, yes.

@PersephoneJames

A week off in a year - do you mean this academic year, the one which is a month old with cases rising, or the calendar year in which the schools had to close for the second longest school closure in Europe?

I totally agree that schools should have been prioritized over pubs and garden centerss but was not surprised.

If much of a class is off with Covid now, then largely things should be fine for the rest of the year. It can't really get any "worse" for that class! So yes, they've had their week or two off due to Covid.

Of course you can get reinfected, but generally people have the best part of a year before they're susceptible again, and when they are, they'll tend to have it less severely.

[quote PersephoneJames]@Warhertisuff I don’t. I’m not a scientist or politician BUT I would prefer for the scientists & politicians that we do have not to withhold the information that led to their decisions about my children (which goes against their codes of standard) particularly when those decisions are contrary to those of our neighbours whose numbers (not just cases but days of school lost, hospitalizations particularly of children) are also very different.

If something is withheld from publication that otherwise would be published and it concerns the welfare of my dc, it piques my curiosity and rouses a hint of suspicion, yes.[/quote]
@PersephoneJames

I agree with you regarding the minutes. Transparency in these things is important,
and withholding it doesn't help public trust.

Yep I think a week off for half of the kids (so they unfortunately missed the vaccinations). All
we’re well enough to dial in to access online learning. The rest have now been vaccinated. That should all kick in after half term and I foresee no more disruption. Half the kids will have antibodies from infection and the other half antibodies from the vaccine.

Going in to winter that’s a good thing.

I think we’re all in agreement about the need for speedier vaccinations for kids (and transparency from the government)

@Delatron

Yep I think a week off for half of the kids (so they unfortunately missed the vaccinations). All we’re well enough to dial in to access online learning. The rest have now been vaccinated. That should all kick in after half term and I foresee no more disruption. Half the kids will have antibodies from infection and the other half antibodies from the vaccine.

Going in to winter that’s a good thing.

Your school seems set for the winter... I think people overlook this fact when they're in the midst of an outbreak, and can't see beyond the end of their own nose!

I've seen posts on other threads saying "half the class has it now - it's only going to get worse!", when, no, the poster couldn't be more wrong. Give it a fortnight and things will be a lot better, and will remain so for the academic year (at least regarding Covid.

Yes that is very true Waher and Delatron

Half Ds class did get it too, now he and his friends are immune over the winter period.

@MarshaBradyo

So you just skip over Scotland because it doesn’t fit with the narrative you want?

No, but I don’t actually disagree with you but if I start attaching the screenshots of graphs that you could read anyway on that Twitter thread posted we would be at it all day which would be a waste of both of our Sundays. Also if I only post graphs which go against yours I look like a mask-raving-lockdown-lover which I’m not (just as insure youre not a COVID denier) I’m just seeking and expecting balance and transparency from the govt in charge of my DC education and health.

Dc1s class has over half the children who have definitely already had covid (confirmed by pcr), and probably more from the period we weren't routinely testing with LFTs to pick up the asymptomatic kids in secondary. They must be getting close to herd immunity stage. I had rather assumed the plan was to let kids all get it out of the way this half term so hopefully they will have it done and dusted by Christmas.

No, but I don’t actually disagree with you but if I start attaching the screenshots of graphs that you could read anyway on that Twitter thread posted we would be at it all day which would be a waste of both of our Sundays.

It’s one graph showing real world outcome with masks included! It’s not much to look at.

I think the crux of it is that people want to feel in control... Masks and other restrictions give the feeling that they're controlling the virus, and for some that's important psychologically.

@MarshaBradyo

No, but I don’t actually disagree with you but if I start attaching the screenshots of graphs that you could read anyway on that Twitter thread posted we would be at it all day which would be a waste of both of our Sundays.

It’s one graph showing real world outcome with masks included! It’s not much to look at.

Neither is the thread - whats your opinion on that?

This one?

mobile.twitter.com/chrischirp/status/1449437841260531717

Which chart do you mean? I don’t do Twitter but that looks long to me is it something specifically I should look at

@Warhertisuff

I think the crux of it is that people want to feel in control... Masks and other restrictions give the feeling that they're controlling the virus, and for some that's important psychologically.

Other European countries are more in control, UK hospitalisations are running six times higher.

Our issue was returning to school with excessively high cases, masks will not bring that down.

But Scotland would have even higher rates without masks, because it does limit things down a bit.

But Scotland would have even higher rates without masks, because it does limit things down a bit.

Why do you think cases in Scotland decreased so sharply?

All countries are on different timelines though.

You could argue back in Jan that the U.K. government was far more in control by locking down than France. Where Macron refused to entertain a third lockdown. We locked down for months. So we ‘controlled’ the virus with measures. Our cases fell dramatically. Because that is what happens. France’s bubbled along at higher levels but then miraculously settled down.

And surprise surprise our cases shot up when we came out of lockdown.. Because we’d suppressed the Kent variant so much maybe that is why Delta could take hold?

@MargosKaftan

Dc1s class has over half the children who have definitely already had covid (confirmed by pcr), and probably more from the period we weren't routinely testing with LFTs to pick up the asymptomatic kids in secondary. They must be getting close to herd immunity stage. I had rather assumed the plan was to let kids all get it out of the way this half term so hopefully they will have it done and dusted by Christmas.

I think it was the plan, or at least the obvious and inevitable result of their plans.

Once you've accepted this, and recognised it's probably the least worst option all things considered (though i think the vaccine roll out to 12+ pupils should have occurred sooner and more quickly), then actually, sending a child to school who may have Covid isn't really such an outrageous thing to do, as it fits with the strategy.

It seems inconsistent to me to recognise reluctantly that children will be exposed to Covid over the coming year (more or less quickly depending on restrictions in place), and then also being aghast that someone could possibly consider sending a child into school who may have Covid (if that child is otherwise well).

I'm not saying it's the right thing to do, but it's not entirely unreasonable given the inevitability of Covid spread whether or not children are kept off who have it, especially if parents have to balance that against earning enough to pay the bills and/or retain business/employment.