The Seventh Republic - the debate rages on but for some it is half term!

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff. Baiters and bashers can jog on somewhere else.

If you are NOT staff and just have a general education query please start your own thread.

You can play here only if you are a member of one the following groups-

-ABBA - anti bashers and baiting association
-SWAB - school workers against bashers
-SWOT - school workers opposing teacherbashers
-STARS - schoolworkers together against ranting + slurs

Other requirements for staff room entry include the ability to find the staff room, the ability to find a clean mug in the staff room, knowledge of the photocopier codes, and the ability to sniff out where the toffee vodka is hidden.

If you are fed up with cakes and biscuits there is now a cheeseboard on offer

Yes, but we can also put them in a big hall and mass instruct...

www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/18473924.child-tests-positive-coronavirus-darlington-primary-school/

I was on the first thread (NC since this) and have been following the threads. Checking back in now that guidance for secondary schools has finally been released.

My school was planning to have 10s and 12s (not in the same weeks) from 15th June, with a quarter in for AM session a different quarter for the PM session. This will now have to be changed, because the guidance says that you can't have separate morning and afternoon sessions. I can see why lots of headteachers started planning in advance, but what a waste of time.

That is because the guidance that is put in place is not to help with timetabling and more to help working parents. (Lots of teachers are working parents )

This will now have to be changed, because the guidance says that you can't have separate morning and afternoon sessions.

The guidance for primary also said no rota or separate days etc, but nearly all the schools in our partnership are doing a rota/part time school. There is lots of room in the guidance for a head to make up their own mind, and ours made decisions based on parent surveys about what they'd prefer.

Yes I can’t see heads just throwing away all the prep that has been done

Of course the next thing to kick off will be if Giles in year 9 has got his options for year 10.

I mean new year 10 for September not the current batch due to go into 11

Wonder whether Weston Super Mare will send its schools back next week.

I can't see anything in the secondary guidance that protects staff from encountering multiple groups of students in a day.

There isn't anything.

The thing is, there are a variety of strategies (over and above the obvious handwashing, ventilation and cleaning) that can reduce infection, and can be applied in different circumstances:

• Distance
• Barriers such as screens
• PPE, such as masks
• Reducing numbers of contacts
• Reducing time spent in contact with any particular individual

Supermarket staff at checkouts, for example, have screens and distance, and the time spent in contact with any individual is small.

Nurses have PPE, but not distance or barriers or reduced time with an individual.

Factory workers tend to have distancing and (in some cases) screens, and PPE when distancing isn't possible.

Primary school teachers are expected to have significantly reduced numbers of contacts, but not barriers, distancing or PPE, and will spend 6 hours a day with a single group, so potentially 6 hours with an infected asymptomatic child.

Secondary school teachers are expected to have slightly reduced numbers of contacts and will have distancing, but won't have barriers or PPE, though they will tend to spend a shorter time with any potentially infected child.

It's swings and roundabouts - I would say that neither set of teachers is in a good position, but whether it is better to spend a shorter time with several groups, socially distanced, or a longer time with a single group, with very little social distancing, is something we will have to wait for the data to see.....

During the effing big press conference as predicted yesterday by me chloe

Bastards.

Quite. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say this has Gove written all over it.

So just listening to Boris : who knew there was a phase 2 1/2 eh? Shops and secondary schools!

Quite frankly I think my head will still stick with his plan. It means kids will have part days.

The head is more focused on getting the right kids with the right staff. Plus staff still have to do online teaching for other year groups. Guidance is okay but we need to go with best fit

I am going to have to read it properly but I am not convinced at all by the safety of teachers meeting multiple students in one day . I am sure there is nothing there about cleaning either. And if classes had separate sets of pupils they would need cleaning.

I am sure there is nothing there about cleaning either.

Luckily, our union reps had initial meetings last week about this and fed back. We than have some more meetings after half term but so far, seems a little more promising about how it will be dealt with than the car crash before 20th March.
It’s another good example of unions being helpful for the right reasons than those who deliberately seek to see them is a mere obstruction.

Separate morning and afternoon sessions were always going involve so many interactions though - including ones with students on the way home meeting up with those on the way in.

I reckon they should do mornings only .And not try and teach anyone because it is plainly ridiculous that that will be enough.

Same old. Not a single shit given about safety of school staff. What kind of meaningful education could actually happen let alone what measurable difference between distance and in person learning?

It has nothing to do with education.

I have no idea what I can teach from 2m away that I can't teach just as well virtually. In fact, I can teach better virtually, because I can see what they need help with if they just take a photo and send it to me. My eyes aren't good enough to see their work from 2m away, so they'll have to copy their working onto a mini whiteboard that I'm not allowed to lend them 🤷 I don't know what face to face teaching is going to improve over online. But I'll do what I'm told and try my best.

I wouldn’t even waste energy on how to make this meaningful educationally. Average year 10 student has at least 8 subjects. In school at a max of a quarter of year group. Ergo 1 week/day in 4.

It’s abject nonsense. Any sane slt is finding a way to offer year 10 and 12 twenty minute sit downs with form tutors to identify and iron out barriers to distance learning. Any moral slt has already been reaching out to their most vulnerable students and will continue to do so. My school has prioritised vulnerable students over Key workers kids. (The qualifying list was crazy eg you could work in an eon sales team call centre and qualify as a key worker).

This is utter nonsense from a bunch of privileged twats who couldn’t do the proverbial in a brewery. I guess it all depends if your head is on their way to retirement or still angling for career progression or the shrinkingly rare type who feels a duty of care for their community

Sorry. I feel like I silenced the thread with my rant

Clearly I’ll never be slt because views such as above are incompatible with the true purpose of schools.

This also can't be based on Denmark as they have no secondaries in at all. Germans went back to do actual exams. I know of no other precedent.

No, I agree with everything you said!

LOL