Educated guesses when schools will reopen

[frasersmummy]

Just that really

What do you think might be a realistic re-opening date.
Am I being optimistic thinking after the February break
I know no one has a crystal ball just looking for people's thoughts

It is depressing. Apparently he also said that remote learning is “working well” 🤷🏻‍♀️

I think after Easter hols at the earliest.
Though it’s very challenging trying to work and hone school, the unavoidable truth is we’re in the midst of a highly infectious mutating disease.
As soon as schools start to re-open the numbers will climb up again and they’ll end up having to shut down again.
I say this with no pleasure but I think the safest thing to do is keep schools closed until mass vaccine roll-out, hopefully mid-May. It’s really not fair on teachers otherwise.

I disagree.

As soon as vulnerable & elderly vaccinated and it's passed the window

The reason schools are closed is not to protect teachers, it's to temper transmission within the community and the risk of passing the virus on to the vulnerable. Once that risk is mitigated by the vaccination schools have to open, the long term risk from them being shut is too high.

Afraid teachers as a population are no more special than those that work in retail, transport, construction etc which continue to be open.

Passed the window for immunity to develop.

So mid March?

Waverless, it's a really good point you make and I do completely agree regarding teachers being no more special than those who work in retail and transport. Indeed, I think there's a valid argument for supermarket workers and bus drivers especially to be high on the vaccine list.
I suppose I'm just very worried about the new mutation. It's not just hitting the elderly and vulnerable.
I really do understand that the long term risk of schools being shut is high but I do feel that it would be the wise thing to do until max roll-out of the vaccine.
I don't think it'll happen because, from the Government's POV, it's too costly economically.
So I do think it'll probably be after Easter hols. But I think the numbers will creep up again after that because of the new mutations.
It's a grim state of affairs but that's the nature of viruses.

When they shut they shut. So depressing

Yep. Once they shut it seems much harder to open them again, even at much lower infection rates than that which prompted them to close in the first place.

We're already well into experiencing the long term consequences of disrupted education. Of course we all understand that virus suppression amongst at risk groups needs to happen, I'm less clear on whether the govt has any plan to catch up what's been lost.

Remote learning isn't the same as in school learning and is very unequal.

@anon444877

We're already well into experiencing the long term consequences of disrupted education. Of course we all understand that virus suppression amongst at risk groups needs to happen, I'm less clear on whether the govt has any plan to catch up what's been lost.

Remote learning isn't the same as in school learning and is very unequal.

Agreed. And even for those that do the work set it's disruptive as obviously the teachers have to assume people aren't doing it so there's a level playing field. My P4 child had the same maths work set today that he did last lockdown. And they'll have to recap it once they're back too for the ones who haven't done it at home.

Obviously, too, the work set is necessarily the same across the board for year groups, so no allowance for different abilities. I’m not criticising teachers, far from it, but it’s far from ideal

No my dc's teachers are wonderful, and I can see huge effort has gone in and that they're working horribly long hours. It's not the same/as good as in class though and it's nowhere near a level playing field though. School is supposed to be equalising opportunities, compensating for deficits in parental resources and levelling the playing field.

Sadly, the playing field will never be levelled while private schools exist.

Quite irrelevant to the educational problems related to covid remote schooling.

@ASmallMovie

Sadly, the playing field will never be levelled while private schools exist.

It’s can still widen dramatically however.

Having used both it’s not that hard to switch.

What's irrelevant to the educational problems related to Covid home schooling - the issue of private schools?
It's hugely relevant because the attainment gap between the two is widening further during home schooling.
I think this is an utterly shameful state of affairs.

No it’s not irrelevant, far from it.

JS has apparently admitted its unlikely for schools to reopen in early February. Just in case anyone was still thinking it was a possibility.

@ASmallMovie

Sadly, the playing field will never be levelled while private schools exist.

True! Also applies to fundraising PTAs etc - those in well off areas can raise much more for kids that way.

We've been quite happy with the remote learning provision from our primary, which is serving a deprived urban community (>50% fsm). Tablets, jotters, pencils and sharpeners were provided for all students last week. There are 3 daily live Teams sessions (especially like the noon session, it's the teacher reading a chapter of the current class novel). The teachers have differentiated literacy, mathematics, and "other" - something creative on the weekly theme - tasks daily for my P4 child, with feedback on all submitted work. DS is ASD, and does two days in school with exactly the same provision, supervised by a TA.

The main thing that's lacking is hands on creative building type work, though honestly I don't mind the lack of cardboard and milk jug creations being brought home! I think the most worrying thing is that there are a few students who aren't logging on, my DS says he hasn't seen them at all. It's not down to lack of connectivity, the school provided dongle things to families who needed them.

I believe schools won't open until the 60+ age group plus younger CV people are vaccinated. That should hopefully cut the ICU need by half. 5.1% of ICU patients are 80+, 22% 70-79, 28.6% 60-69, 23.6% 50-59.

I'm a fairly intelligent and engaged parent (I do wfh though and my time is more limited because of this) but my ds was meant to cover counting money and telling the time last lockdown. I had to give up on it completely because I just couldn't teach him, we used all the resources sent by school and bought additional things ourselves. He just wasn't getting it and started to get really distressed everytime we tried. That's a pretty big gap in his knowledge. I'm sure if he was in school with a teacher he would've got it straight away or got the support he needed.

What's irrelevant to the educational problems related to Covid home schooling - the issue of private schools?
It's hugely relevant because the attainment gap between the two is widening further during home schooling

Ok, so say private schools were banned. Can you not see that the attainment gap between children in the highest income houses are,generally, going to suffer less than those in the lowest income houses. The attainment gap is going to be vast between those children who’s parents can pay for laptops, WiFi, printers, extra books, tutoring PLUS their own input (and one assumes that the wealthiest parents are at reasonably intelligent) versus those children living in a towel block with parents who don’t speak English/don’t care/are academically challenged themselves and living off food parcels containing 2 tins of beans and an apple for a family of 10 for a month?
I honestly don’t think the attainment gap would be smaller if private schools didn’t exist.

It just looks like diversion to me, the kids doing worst are doing even worse with remote school, dragging kids being adequately supported down isn't an answer.

There is absolutely no question that the attainment gap would be smaller if private schools didn't exist.

Look at Finland, for example, which abolished its fee-paying schools and instituted a nationwide comprehensive system from the early 1970s onwards.

Not only did such reforms lead to the closing of the attainment gap between the richest and poorest students, it also turned Finland into one of the global educational success stories of the modern era.

I can't see the abolition of private schools happening here (yet, though I do think it will come) because it's a mass middle-class vote loser. But I think the widening gap - and the awareness of it - is making the status quo re private schools unsustainable.

I think (hope) they will be integrated within my lifetime.

I used to teach in a private secondary and I thought it was an awful environment for kids - appallingly pushy entitled parents (mostly), hideously unhealthily competitive, utterly obsessed with results, and not at all conducive to nurturing a love of lifelong learning.

I know it's a generalisation but it was my experience.

@ASmallMovie

There is absolutely no question that the attainment gap would be smaller if private schools didn't exist.

Look at Finland, for example, which abolished its fee-paying schools and instituted a nationwide comprehensive system from the early 1970s onwards.

Not only did such reforms lead to the closing of the attainment gap between the richest and poorest students, it also turned Finland into one of the global educational success stories of the modern era.

I can't see the abolition of private schools happening here (yet, though I do think it will come) because it's a mass middle-class vote loser. But I think the widening gap - and the awareness of it - is making the status quo re private schools unsustainable.

I think (hope) they will be integrated within my lifetime.

I used to teach in a private secondary and I thought it was an awful environment for kids - appallingly pushy entitled parents (mostly), hideously unhealthily competitive, utterly obsessed with results, and not at all conducive to nurturing a love of lifelong learning.

I know it's a generalisation but it was my experience.

Finland is a more egalitarian society anyway though. It would be interesting to know if that's partly because of the lack of private schools, or the school change about because of the society's general ethos. It's a bit of both I expect.

@ASmallMovie

There is absolutely no question that the attainment gap would be smaller if private schools didn't exist.

Look at Finland, for example, which abolished its fee-paying schools and instituted a nationwide comprehensive system from the early 1970s onwards.

Not only did such reforms lead to the closing of the attainment gap between the richest and poorest students, it also turned Finland into one of the global educational success stories of the modern era.

I can't see the abolition of private schools happening here (yet, though I do think it will come) because it's a mass middle-class vote loser. But I think the widening gap - and the awareness of it - is making the status quo re private schools unsustainable.

I think (hope) they will be integrated within my lifetime.

I used to teach in a private secondary and I thought it was an awful environment for kids - appallingly pushy entitled parents (mostly), hideously unhealthily competitive, utterly obsessed with results, and not at all conducive to nurturing a love of lifelong learning.

I know it's a generalisation but it was my experience.

I have taught in a couple of private schools too and share the same views.

@WouldBeGood

It is depressing. Apparently he also said that remote learning is “working well” 🤷🏻‍♀️

Hahahaha.

MSPs All Bring Your Kids To Parliament And Do FMQs While Simultaneously Chasing Preschoolers And Teaching P3 Maths Challenge 2021. Come on, let’s see all of them try it. I’m sure ParentClub has some Top Tips to help!