anybody know if Higher Ed teaching staff count as key workers?

[PlumbNormal]

It's term time this time, surely we do? Just like other teachers in schools and FE

Are you working out of the home though?

Neither of my DC at Uni have any face to face to imagined that most staff were working from home? Would Higher education be counted as compulsory?

Just playing devil's advocate as to how the decisions will be made. I work for a company that deals with life assurance amongst other things. We are deemed key workers but as virtually all are working at home wouldn't be eligible either I presume. I don't have any school age DC but it must be a nightmare for those who do and need to work. Not all employers are able to be that flexible.

Yes it will be online but it's live and there's lots of it as there is no casual teaching anymore. So if we can't provide that service then university students (already suffering) will be further disadvantaged. The hope is also that we will start off online and move f2f asap

Also if schools are closed teachers will also be working from home

I m HE and i ve been teaching labs throughout semester 1, like many of my colleagues.

Instead of one big lab of x60, 6 small of x10 - very groundhog day...

I see what you mean about "compulsory" being different at school vs higher education, but I'd like to think it is compulsory in the sense that, without it, students degree outcomes (and potential future prospects) could be affected

the unis will push F2F at the first opportunity as student discontent is growing (and some bits of some programme can t be taught offline, esp practical skill)

No we mostly don’t. That includes the (many) staff who have delivered F2F teaching - our place has delivered on a blended basis. A lot of staff cannot (understandably) access schools to support teacher training for this reason as they are ‘guests’. I guess some might be key workers by virtue of their professions though - nursing lecturers for example?

Hi @Marasme, I've also been teaching more students in shorter time slots. It's hard! Hour after hour, same material. Groundhog Day indeed!

sorry for x post @PlumbNormal

Not in Scotland but dh teaches in higher education & has been told he is a key worker. He is teaching face to face though.

It may make a difference that his college delivers both further and higher education courses (though he is exclusively higher Ed)

Thanks @Comefromaway , do you know how he found out?

Just from his college. But they deliver A levels, Btecs, Higher Education Diplomas & Degrees.

Our kids are too old to need childcare though.

He did have to teach a lot live online during lockdown and also during a bubble closure (though during one bubble closure they insisted he travelled into college to teach on zoom from college!)

Are you working out of the home though?

Neither of my DC at Uni have any face to face to imagined that most staff were working from home? Would Higher education be counted as compulsory?

I'm teaching 50% of my lectures f2f and all my online stuff is 'live' so impossible to do while caring for a 6 year old. Even if we move 100% online I'm still expected to stick to the timetable.

We must count as key workers this time.

I concur with the drama that delivering live zoom teaching is when kids are around. I won t cope if we go back to this.

In England critical workers are simply defined as Education support & teaching staff & specialist education professionals. The specific sectors are not defined.

Don’t know for Scotland.

From looking, I’d say you come into Category 3. Scotland does differentiate between early years/schools and other education.

I just checked my council - it says no if you are working from home. So live lectures or no live lectures, I would not qualify, even though I am also a single parent. Fun times ahead.

Can I ask which Unis/courses all delivering so much live material? I'm not denying it's happening but isn't our current experience. DS1 is doing a masters in CS @ strathclyde. He hasn't had anything live other than an optional Q&A once a week which he hasn't gone to as felt he didn't need it. DS2 is doing Politics and IR (but doing one politics and one history this term) he has had one live on-line class a week for one of his subjects and nothing else.

I thought teachers were to be in school and either teaching the pupils who need to be in school or delivering the on-line material?

I know it's impossible to work full time with young children at home, this is why employers would never entertain such an arrangement in normal times, but it currently seems to be fine for govt to tell them to be flexible now. Not always easy though is it? As far as I understood it, being a key worker wasn't enough, you had to be a key worker and work outside the home and that means both parents or only one if a single parent household.

I deliver a professional masters course at a university in the north of England and I'm doing 50% on campus. My DH works at another university and most courses have students on campus at least once a week.

Our HR dept said they'd had lots of phone calls to ask this (FE rather than HE) and they've told everyone that both teaching and support staff don't count as key workers.

Ah @SueEllenMishke this is Scotsnet so you are probably working with an entirely different set of restrictions so information here may or may not be useful. From what I have seen, non scottish Unis appear to be delivering a lot more than has been our experience.

@WaxOnFeckOff

Ah *@SueEllenMishke* this is Scotsnet so you are probably working with an entirely different set of restrictions so information here may or may not be useful. From what I have seen, non scottish Unis appear to be delivering a lot more than has been our experience.

My course is also run in Scotland- Napier and UWS - and they are also teaching part of the course f2f.

It's not on the list I have but each LA is able to decide what industries and positions count as being key workers.

Either way you would need a letter from your employer so they are the first point of call - no letter means they won't be able to consider it under key workers.

Some private nurseries are considering other factors such as high stress/welfare of parents or if the only option of childcare is elderly grandparents but this not only depends on the nursery but also the LA. I don't think schools will take the same approach!