Shaking hands with students

[Stripeyblue]

Hi,

We’ve had a directive today that standing outside our rooms and greeting each student personally is not enough. We now need to shake the hand of every student.

SLG have basically said we have to do this and are dismissing arguments related to hygiene and staff and students being made to feel uncomfortable. It is to apparently foster good relationships with students.

It’s a inner city secondary school. SLG are panicking because a recent invited inspection (not ofsted) judged us as RI and that behaviour is a major issue. Our last Ofsted judged us as outstanding.

What do people think about this? Can they make this kind of directive?

Paul Dix "Shaky Hands" (pivotaleducation.com/classroom-behaviour-management/resource-bank/pillar-1-consistent-calm-adult-behaviour/ here). We use a lot of his ideas, and I really rate them. But the whole point of the approach is staff buy in and complete consistency. Sounds like It's being introduced all wrong.

here

Oh ffs. What a waste of time.

'Our school is failing. I know! Let's SHAKE HANDS with our pupils. That will change everything.'

Paul Dix's book. The whole approach is a good one for us (I work in AP), but imposing one thing on a resistant staff is daft.

being forced to do it sounds awful. I can imagine some of my pupils being very upset by what would be seen as an intrusion on their personal space. I am in great favour of time invested in creating a calm and mutually respectful beginning to all lessons but I am not sure that forced hand shaking is mutually respectful

Ah wow. As a teacher, I would hate this. I really would. Who wants to shake hands with up to 35 people, 5 x a day? I teach up to 175 kids a day, sometimes. What if someone has a wart, or infection? I just couldn’t bear this. It’s a horrid policy.

And I am pretty sure the students would hate it too!

That sounds like a great way to spread d&v bugs at an even greater speed!

The (primary aged) children at my son's school shake hands with the head or deputy head every morning on the way into school, and with their class teacher on the way out of their class at the end of the day.

They're taught to shake hands, look the teacher in the eye and say 'good morning' and 'good afternoon'. I think it's excellent. It encourages the children to interact with adults in a respectful and polite way. Shaking hands is just a standard part of being a grown up in a professional environment (maybe except teaching???). Why not start them young?

I can't believe you're so against this and worry about hygiene. I mean unless you have open sores on your hands just use some antibacterial gel afterwards and job's a goodun.

I would hate it. Can you get a lot of staff in the same mindset? Or go to unions?

Yes I agree. Students are allowed to opt out but how many actually would? Many of the more reticent students would end up complying even though they are uncomfortable because they feel they have to do what authority says.

The response of SLG to hygiene issues is that they have ordered each member of staff our own personal anti bac 👍 Great!

Fallen I’ve watched the shakey hands video and agree with much of the premise. Mutual respect, modelling adult behaviour. I do this. I make eye contact. I greet at the door. I speak in a respectful way. I am very uncomfortable with the physical contact. This initiative wasn’t really sold to us in this way. It seems they see it as a quick fix. Staff are very unhappy.

I am also very uncomfortable that as a teacher of a number of years, I cannot have autonomy in how I establish relationships with my learners.

Aren't there some (probably for sexist reasons) religious groups where this is inappropriate

You really gonna shake all the hands and then anti-bac yourself. How to make them feel really good!

What an incredibly stupid idea.
Have they thought about what the first pupils are doing in the classroom whilst you are still in the corridor shaking hands with numbers 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30 ?
Neither pupils nor staff are going to be feeling comfrotable with this.

Risk of RSI?

And just think of the time wasted.

Arghhhh I would HATE this. Hate hate hate. All that touching! Vom.

Antibacterial gel is fine - if you don't have eczema or sensitive skin.
And shaking someone's hand and then immediately washing yours is not a good message.

It does seem very mutually respectful does it? Good morning, shake hand, furiously anti bac!

*doesn’t

You're the one who said it was unhygienic (which is frankly daft!)!!!

Yes I know I said that. And stand by it.

Why is it daft?

Risk of RSI?
Not as daft as this!

Is this every lesson or once a day? Just thinking of the wasted learning time as they all queue to shake your hand and get into the classroom. Ridiculous.

Every single lesson. And tutor. So 5 times a day.