No More Tiers (Enough is Enough)

[WaxOnFeckOff]

Here it is - thread 365 - was getting too twitchy....

@IncludeWomenInTheSequel

It's bread and fucking circuses and a way for them to absolve themselves of the responsibility for their failings, I think.

Push the pressure and blame downwards onto individuals and you will magically forget that Johnson and Hancock gave away billions to their unqualified friends in place of purchasing proper PPE and installing a functioning track and trace system. And on and on and on.

You are so right. I didn't see the advert but children shouldn't be exposed to that.

I just don't know but it certainly means planning for after Easter for the years which aren't classed as priority.

And probably some point between mid Febuary and mid March for the priority years.
I don't see the point in then being any later than Mid March/ two weeks before the holidays for the priority years.

Does that make sense???
I actually wish SG would be clear in what they are saying. This has been a massive lesson in learning how to read between the lines.

There was something said the other day that they'd give two weeks notice for schools reopening.

I'm guessing it's for the catering companies to be ready and for teachers to prep for kids being back.

@NotAnActualSheep they have been criticised for not giving enough notice which then has an effect on supplying school meals and also the teachers then might need to find a space for their own children if they haven't been sending them etc.

Children have been blamed way too much in all of this when you look at the numbers it's simply untrue!
My nephew lives with my parents half the time due to a shared custody because of all the negative publicity around children when he got a temp he broke down thinking he was going to kill my dad (his grandfather) he's a young teenager so can't be shielded from all the negative news. He didn't have covid and he is so careful with everything but the mental strain that negative news around transmission in schools does to children is immense.

Yes, I understand about catering, and the need for teachers to prep, and cover their own childcare where needed. But there must be ways of dealing with that (especially as only some year groups will be in in the first place) that prioritise the education over logistical/ administrative considerations. We didn't have the option of school meals for the first week in August, and after that it was sandwiches only til Oct/Nov I think...then one hot option for those that wanted it. I'm sure they could manage to arrange sandwiches given a weeks notice...! Normally we would have to place orders by Wednesday evening for the following week, so I don't understand why the timescale needs to quadruple to allow the necessary food to be brought in and prepared.

And I totally agree about the negative messages children and young adults are being subjected to. How they could kill their teachers, parents, grandparents and so on. People should be ashamed to spread these messages, in any context... but for it to be government sponsored advertising is atrocious. Of course the (miniscule) potential is there, but the way the weight and blame is put on the people who may not even know they have a virus, and definitely don't have the emotional maturity to weigh up risk and so on, is disgusting.

@Lockdownbear

I just don't know but it certainly means planning for after Easter for the years which aren't classed as priority.

And probably some point between mid Febuary and mid March for the priority years.
I don't see the point in then being any later than Mid March/ two weeks before the holidays for the priority years.

Does that make sense???
I actually wish SG would be clear in what they are saying. This has been a massive lesson in learning how to read between the lines.

This sounds reasonable. Though if at least some years aren't back by "mid February" as promised, I really hope there is some justification. Nothing has got worse from when 18th Jan was pushed back as far as I can see, so there seems to be no reason why they can't go ahead with what (vague) timings they said. And yy to reading between the lines. I'm still sticking with "mid February" actually meaning April.

There's no chance we'll be back mid feb and I don't think that was floated as anything other than a review date.

I agree that the schools should be shut but home schooling isn't working either. Our initial assessments of online engagement showing very poor results.

Quality of work being handed in is also poor as is pupil interaction/ engagement in live lessons.

what about university students and staff? are they still going to be online learning too?

There was a report on John Swinney’s Twitter page today about how fantastically the first week of home learning went. One of the first lines in the report was something along the lines of people getting used to the fact home learning is here to stay. Gave me the fear! It’s no substitute.

We'll hit 400,000 people first-dose vaccinated tomorrow (or probably today actually) which is more than 10% of the adult population. That's pretty cool.

"I hope nursery and p1 get back soon."

Me too, because I don't think I can go on much longer trying to keep them occupied. It's very stressful just even trying to get to toilet on my own!

Was showed last night when we were watching the masked singer which is for families

Saw this littlebrowndog last night too, had my 10yo watching. No need for such extreme ads at this time of day.

@blowinahoolie

"I hope nursery and p1 get back soon."

Me too, because I don't think I can go on much longer trying to keep them occupied. It's very stressful just even trying to get to toilet on my own!

I have an 8 and a ten year old and it's doesn't get better as much as I had hoped! It's like the more attention you give them the more they need, in an increasing spiral.

"At least if the one in pre-school was back then I could teach my p1 whilst the baby sleeps I guess."

iquitelikenormalityafterall it's tough isn't it. Most posters on this thread seem to be at other end of spectrum in education system with their DC. Glad there's a few here that understand. My sanity slowly slipping away so I really do think they should be back (ELC children) mid February earliest. Absolute shambles of a Government. Royally mucked it up for so many children.

I'm teaching from home full time with a pre schooler and a p1. It's actually hell.

The government haven't fucked it up as such because the schools can't be open at this point but if they persist with the idea that online learning works then they absolutely will fuck it up.

I'm totally scunnered with it today.

As the parent of a teen, I can totally understand the impossibility of home schooling a primary school DC. Two friends I talked to are both saying that it's time consuming and one doesn't work and the other is self employed with a self employed husband so at least they're both able to provide support.

I simply couldn't have done it, and would have had to take time off. It was hard enough trying to bestir DS last time round and work, never mind be actively involved in it.

How anyone who hasn't got primary DCs, or isn't a teacher can actually comment on how successful or otherwise it has been thus far is ludicrous.

I have an 8 and a ten year old and it's doesn't get better as much as I had hoped! It's like the more attention you give them the more they need, in an increasing spiral.

I recognise this. I have a 9 year old. Even she gets fed up of talking at me all the time but finds it very difficult to stop. I have started doing other things round about her on-line school. She was feeling the need to double check everything "just because". It dawned on me she successfully manages to share her teacher with 25 others so it must be possible.

@kurtrussellsbeard

There's no chance we'll be back mid feb and I don't think that was floated as anything other than a review date.

I agree that the schools should be shut but home schooling isn't working either. Our initial assessments of online engagement showing very poor results.

Quality of work being handed in is also poor as is pupil interaction/ engagement in live lessons.

It sounds like it was intended as more than just a review date according to this. The review date is 2nd.

"If it is at all possible, as I very much hope it will be, to begin even a phased return to in-school learning in mid-February, we will."

Of course there is the potential for that not to go ahead, but given nothing has got worse since then, I can't see why it won't be "at all possible".

I can quite believe that remote learning hasn't been working for many, despite the glowing reviews JS has given it. I wonder if Education Scotland's survey results will be made public, or how they will be interpreted? It was quite an oddly worded survey, imo... focusing very much on the quality of the work/ learning environment provided (by the schools) and not on the whole concept, and how students were engaging. Almost as if they are wanting to pass the blame onto the schools for poor provision of work, which is as sleekit as sleekit can be and utterly unfair if so.

Re unis, Edinburgh Uni is entirely online for this semester, apart from eg medics and vet students, so nothing else in person until September. Other unis may think they are to do some in person stuff, but not til March or so, I think.

I was wondering because the job I've accepted (until I hopefully get dream job - funding dependent) is in a university. Its in a practical department where the students can't learn from home, but I'm not in a teaching role so I'm at a loss whether I would be WFH or not.

Don't really want to ask when I've not even started yet. I'm vulnerable though so I've highlighted that. I hope they are not now thinking FFS why did we hire her

@iquitelikenormalityafterall

There was a report on John Swinney’s Twitter page today about how fantastically the first week of home learning went. One of the first lines in the report was something along the lines of people getting used to the fact home learning is here to stay. Gave me the fear! It’s no substitute.

Why does he kept saying this?!

Absolutely no one agrees with him 🤷🏻‍♀️

@titsbumfannythelot

Great news *@Cismyfatarse*. Everyone loves a clipboard. I have a family member who works in an admin role at vaccination clinic who was vaccinated last weekend.

Do you think perhaps.... he'll get a radio??

Volunteered at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and hands down the best bit of my role was the wee ear piece and the radio.

Our school sent the loveliest email late on Friday to say, sometimes you'll have a good day and get lots done, but other days if nobody is in the mood, go outside and do something fun instead, because to small children almost everything is educational.

I thought that was very kind, to give permission to have a lost day sometimes.

Thanks @NotAnActualSheep I'd missed that.

@IncludeWomenInTheSequel that is a lovely email and absolutely true.

@IncludeWomenInTheSequel we had a similar email too.