Let's boycott all school threads outside of Education

[Everyexitisanentrance]

Honestly guys we are getting a kicking on other threads. We repeatedly have to explain our contracts, holidays, why we are not doing more online, why we should be doing less on ...... it is never ending. So far we have been off for the Easter break plus a max of two weeks. There is a lot of the population that do not need childcare. We are open for key worker children but that gets ignored. All the social distancing issues are ignored. All the ppe requirements are ignored. Now it could be that the trolls just see us as an easy target, hence all the forlough calls. So as a union member, I am requesting that teachers do not have to explain themselves on other threads as we are just fueling the fire. (I have been guilty of this).

So I am calling for a union boycott!

I teach a practical subject, food and textiles. Although I could demonstrate techniques etc from 2m away, use the IWB and teach theory lessons and could easily have 10 or more in my classroom, I feel rather claustrophobic in the thought I'd have to teach wearing a mask and that my classes would have to as well. I rather rely on facial expressions to teach!!
Majority of my school arrive on minibuses. So they'd have to be replaced by coaches to have one child to a row.
I teach one/two days a week and work elsewhere for 2 days. If I'm to work more days at school so that no child misses my lessons then are they going to pay me for it? Will my other job let me go into school and teach extra days? (If my other job re-opened?)
I'm a single mum as well. If I got poorly there's nobody that can take care of my two as my parents are self-isolating and EXH lives miles away.
Lots of things to think about.

pinkrocker

There is also the issue of shared equipment and even just tidying up the work areas will break social distancing rules.

Unless each work area is entirely self sufficient. (but then there is cleaning for the next class.

Sorry the more that I think about it the more issues that I see.

My classroom is just mine though, nobody else uses it as it's a practical workspace. I bought my own Dettol spray to use between classes at break and lunchtime and after they'd gone home.
My poor kids, I feel so sorry for them! (my own and the ones I teach!!)

I read that one solution is the kids stay in one or two rooms... which also won't work for specialised subjects. I guess then they do move.

Does anyone have a horrible feeling that we might see a short term future of only core subjects?

I'm an SEN teacher. My whole role is going in to different schools, checking children's technology and doing 1:1 teaching etc.I can't possibly do that while social distancing. So I've no idea when I might be able to go back to my role properly.

Even then that would involve teachers moving rooms, handling equipment etc.

Class A is in room A with Teacher 1. Teacher 1 uses th equipment in that room, door handles, passes sheets to students, glue sticks go back and forth etc.

Class A stay put. Teacher 2 arrives. Teacher 2 has spent all of lesson 1 with Class B and now arrives to teach Class A. Teacher 2 handles the equipment etc.

By lesson 5, the equipment and room has had 1 class and 5 teachers, each teacher has been with 4 groups of students in 4 rooms, handled 4 sets of material etc.

Some of our corridors aren't wide enough for 2 people to pass 2m apart either. You're lucky to have a foot between people. Add in over half a dozen school busses as well and that makes transport an issue.

Someone just suggested to me that the kids do every other day.

This person has clearly never been in a school.

I am a nomad in my school. I teach in six different classrooms over the course of the week.

Resource sharing could be tricky - maybe we all have to wear gloves

Any plan will assume that behaviour will be great, and that even if it isn't we'll somehow have it all under control. Not taking into account that the children who display challenging behaviour due to anxiety or similar, are going to be in a much worse position. With associated challenges for staff.

We have 6 children who roam the school. They can't be confined to their classroom in normal circumstances.

In secondary, surely the pupils could only stay in one room together if they were all doing the same subjects? Have they not heard of options? People who know how schools work need to be in charge of this.
It's bonkers.

It’s truly bonkers. My very old secondary is full of bottlenecks where people have to cram through doorways or corridors and in my block there isn’t even room to line up outside classes. If I switch classrooms I have to wade through teenagers to get there.

I have never seen the school properly cleaned and last year even the floors weren’t swept some weeks due to issues with staffing.

Don’t even get me started on how many hand wash basins per 100 kids there are or when they can actually access them.

I cannot see how it could work even if we conceded we were going back to provide childcare rather than meaningful education.

And I too have vulnerable parents and am a single parent and have just discovered I have an auto immune disease. I didn’t sign up to be a guinea pig

Piggy I see my subject being classed as non essential in the very near future

But if they just do core subjects, what happens for university choices. Dd is going into year 10 next year. She wants to do Art.

No art = no designers of anything we use or wear.
No engineering/electronics= no computers, phones, cars
No drama= no tv
No food tech= no chefs or cooks

I did a day in school yesterday, I’d forgotten how busy it is. I didn’t have time to wash my hands

I like the way people think teachers/schools will have opportunity to organise and plan. It will be like the closures. 2 days notice and get on with it!

I think current year 10 if they come back in June might have severely reduced timetables. Options taught from home, core at school in half classes. ..

pfrench
Any plan will assume that behaviour will be great, and that even if it isn't we'll somehow have it all under control.

the Danish schools have a system by which they have to go through certain doors to get to classrooms including going outside.

And as you say any children that roam would simply destroy this.

My DD will be going into Y10, her school move them from Y9- Y10 after the May school hols. I wonder when she'll find out if she's got the GCSE options she wanted. I can imagine that's the last thing her poor teachers are considering?

pinkrocker

The school missed some of the options process where I am, god knows what will happen to the kids

I know, I don't want to ask in case it's the straw and the camel!!

and stick them in front of one of my particularly lively year 9 groups for an hour's lesson and observe and give them feedback. Doubt they'd ever criticise us again.

I think that's most unreasonable, you aren't giving them the full experience if you observe them -surely it should be a OFSTED inspector as well as you.

Yeah, I can see me asking innocently and then SLT saying ' thanks for volunteering for your subject to be mothballed piggy. So selfless in these challenging times.'

Piggywaspushed

I suppose the only good thing is that they couldn't get rid of us as we would have to take the core subjects.

I already do that too...
Jill of all trades.

Even with two days notice of school closure I am still kicking myself because of stuff left behind. So busy sorting stuff out for years 11 and 13 that eventually was not needed when I could have picked up more stuff for 12 and 10.

I reckon if classes are split there will be a lots of Jills .