So when are we going back to school?

[RaraRachael]

I was under the impression that NS had announced that all schools in Scotland would start back on August 11th. I have had surveys from my local authority asking when we would like the week's holiday in lieu and if we want 1 or 2 in-service days before we start back in August.

Last night a colleague posted a piece showing all the start dates from the different authorities - some were 10th August, !1th, 12th up to the 18th and 19th.

I am totally confused

I’m glad he’s made this announcement without pandering to the unions.

Last week NS said the estimate of people with the virus was 2900 in Scotland. JS said 2000 today. If it continues to drop at the same kind of rate hardly anyone will have it. Just how few cases do there have to be for it to be “safe” for some people given schools were open fully in March when 1 in 40 people apparently had it?

I just wrote this on another thread
well John Swinney's final decision is right they should all be back full time in August what is wrong is that this has been obvious for at least 4 weeks by the end of April there were signs that the big peak had passed in Uk, it was also clear from Uk and many other countries that the risk to children was tiny; by the middle of May it was obvious that we had passed peak in Scotland there is no reason why Scotland could not have had blended learning for the past 3-4 weeks
what is so irritating about John Swinney is that he does not actually care about children or education but his political career when he says the welfare of my child is of paramount importance he is lying it is not his priority is still Scottish independance, his own political career and legacy they saw that public opinion has turned rapidly against their education ideas especially the bleanded learning for most of next year and possibly even next years exams so by the Next day Nicola had said one day a week was not good enough it needed to be 50% now they have seen that public opinion is not behind it, everyone can see that people need to be back to work that many people will be unemployed if not working within 4-5 weeks max. people can't work with part time school so 1 parent would have to give up work and then the number claiming UC would be through the roof, you can't justify part time schooling on the basis of a handful of new cases per day mostly in the care setting with 16 people in ICU and R well below 1 and about 1 in 1800 possibly infected
if 1 in 1800 are infected and 50% of new infections are in care settings that is only 1 in 3600 in the general community, most people will stay home with symptoms but even if only 50% stay home that reduces the risk outside to 1 in 7200 which is about 1 person in every 5th high school add to that the risk to a child of about 1 in 1000 chance of getting seriously ill with covid 0.1% of 1 in 7200 is a very very tiny number

@Needachemistrytutor

Quite a turnaround by John Swinney today. How are schools supposed to respond with two scenarios to plan for? Will parents be getting two timetables: one for full-time learning and the other for the ‘back up plan’? The schools must be running around in circles. I feel for the teachers.

I know some high schools which have given the new S1 co-hort exactly that - two timetables. I had a dc at a transition morning today and nothing was said about how the school week will look.

I've finally managed to access the EIS site which had obviously crashed earlier this afternoon. I think everyone in education is hacked off hearing things via the TV. JW has again loftily pronounced things without consulting any other body. I read that he said that "ministers are preparing for schools to return full time in August". Excellent - that'll save the school staff needing to work some of their already shortened holidays redoing all the planning and prep they've spent a fortnight doing.

@Ruralteacher: I read that he said that "ministers are preparing for schools to return full time in August". Excellent - that'll save the school staff needing to work some of their already shortened holidays redoing all the planning and prep they've spent a fortnight doing.

Well said!🤣

@Needachemistrytutor

Quite a turnaround by John Swinney today. How are schools supposed to respond with two scenarios to plan for? Will parents be getting two timetables: one for full-time learning and the other for the ‘back up plan’? The schools must be running around in circles. I feel for the teachers.

My S2 is getting two timetables - one full time and one part time. They said pre announcement that they were preparing for either scenario.

John Swinney and Larry Flannagan both saying kids might have to wear face masks.

Good luck doing that with the P1s, and the kids with SN etc.

@nextslideplease I don’t think it’ll be any easier getting teenagers to wear masks. Maybe we should have JS and LF show us how it’s done?

My S3 DD and all her pals have already bought face masks from Pretty little thing - I probably won't be able to get her a new blazer but she will have her face mask

There’s no way on god’s green earth my children will be wearing a face mask 6 hours plus a day. The EIS can go fuck themselves.

My youngest has ASD so he’ll be exempt anyway.

How many face masks each?

The EIS can go fuck themselves.

Well they can. but if this escalates and EIS ballots their membership, JS can say what he likes - he'll have a hard job opening schools in any capacity with no teaching staff.

Unions - turkeys voting for Christmas yet again. Wait and see their powers get reduced even further by the Tories once all this is over if they kybosh things getting back to normal.

Teachers can wear face masks if they like, my kids won’t be.

How few people have to have this before people get a grip and get back to work with sensible precautions?

If 2000 people have it now that’s what - 1 in 2700 people. If it drops further and is say half that in August - 1 in 5400 people. A lot less than the 1 in 40 that the EIS didn’t pull their members out for before or shout about masks.

@FizzFan

Unions - turkeys voting for Christmas yet again. Wait and see their powers get reduced even further by the Tories once all this is over if they kybosh things getting back to normal.

Teachers can wear face masks if they like, my kids won’t be.

How few people have to have this before people get a grip and get back to work with sensible precautions?

Whatever you think about unions, they speak for their members. And there are a lot of angry teachers around.

Personally I want to go slow, I want my dc eased back into school after all these months sitting looking at me over the kitchen table. I do NOT want a second lockdown over the dark winter months and/or Christmas. I'll be off the Forth Road Bridge if that happens. And I think I'd have to queue for space on it to do so.

lets not forget us careers advisers who work in schools but are not employed by the schools.

Whose guidance do we follow?

When are we going to be allowed back in?

What about the fact we dont just go to schools but also to colleges, universities, community centres, employers, local offices etc - and can be spreading our germs everywhere?

Who is going to keep us safe in the schools?

We've been told we are likely to be working from home til the new year by our employer (skills development scotland) but if the schools are back full time in August, that might change.

(I'm enjoying being at home TBH and spending more time with DC)

@sassanach

lets not forget us careers advisers who work in schools but are not employed by the schools.

Whose guidance do we follow?

When are we going to be allowed back in?

What about the fact we dont just go to schools but also to colleges, universities, community centres, employers, local offices etc - and can be spreading our germs everywhere?

Who is going to keep us safe in the schools?

We've been told we are likely to be working from home til the new year by our employer (skills development scotland) but if the schools are back full time in August, that might change.

(I'm enjoying being at home TBH and spending more time with DC)

None of your points matter sassanach - know your place and do as you are told. Wait and someone might tell you via the TV. School staff = not important. The parents have to work no school staff are parents apparently and schools are there to safeguard everyone, mind kids between 9-3, solve all the problems of society, not have any opinions and basically put up and shut up. "Other people" have to do X , Y and Z, and therefore so should you.

I think I've got that message pretty loud and clear. Sadly now I'm off to get ready for a meeting at 7pm with a P7 parent re transition. Need to organise my dc first before logging onto it.

What a complete waste of time and effort. We have just spent the last 2 weeks in school planning for the blended learning that JS told us that would be the norm for much of the next academic year and now we're all back full time in August.

nothing to do with the fact that there are Holyrood elections in May

Even if the EIS say we should be wearing masks, I won't be.

We got an email with an appointment to visit the school for transition next week almost straight after the speech.

Can't see masks working in early primary tbh. Half of ds's class are under 5 anyway, of the 5 year olds one has autism, one has asthma and two including ds have speech issues which a mask will make considerably worse. Ds loves wearing his but even I struggle to understand him in it. A brand new teacher will have real issues.

Dinosaur

DD is going into P1 and one of the wee boys in her class is deaf. He needs to be able to see mouths for both lip reading and to use BSL with his signer. One of the girls in the class above DS has cochlear implants but still relies quite a lot on lip reading. Those are just two of the kids I can immediately think who will need people to not be wearing masks in their classes to communicate properly.

Well, I'm a teacher and I'm delighted. Kids should be in school full time and, while it's a pita that it's so late on to get organised, I'd rather do that than try to get the 'blended learning' crap to work in a way that's going to be of any real benefit to pupils.

John Swinney should be gone over this debacle. He's caused untold angst to teachers, local authorities, parents and children.

If he'd just listened and said they'd try for full time with part time a back up, and taken charge instead of dumping it in schools this could all have been avoided.

Really pleased that the aim is for full time teaching come August
Anything else was totally unacceptable

If kids wearing masks reduces risk of transmission and is the difference between kids being back in school full-time rather than 4 days out of 15, I think it’s a bloody brilliantly idea, and relatively, a very small sacrifice.

Also, a good lesson for kids - that they’re doing something for the greater good.

If mask-wearing reduced the wearer’s risk of catching the virus, rather than reducing risk of transmission, just about everyone would be wearing them.

Completely understand it might be impossible for children with SEN or hearing-impaired children to wear them, but for all other kids I think it’s a small and temporary price to pay to get back to bloody school.

I work in a SEN with children with severe and complex needs I don’t think any of them will keep masks on and will be scared or rip them off me. Communication is a huge problem for my children and children need to see my face to read my expressions so I won’t be wearing a mask either.

I’ve spent the past 2 weeks hanging 2m signs, moving desks and chairs, stripping and cleaning my classroom, making up labels etc and my class is going to have to change.

Yes they needed to back full time but the timing one day before the holidays after all the work that’s went in

Please leave the walls clear, please! It’s so overstimulating normally...

Thanks for everything you’ve done to try and prepare