The Eight Republic - half term over - primaries under pressure- solidarity

[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-

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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

Oh yes carrie, I forgot.

We won’t make any progress on closing the disadvantage gap until attendance is compulsory again. I teach in a deprived area (highest OFSTED quintile) and our uptake is shockingly low.

We are a three form entry primary school with a nursery. We currently have 6 nursery children, 9 reception, 14 year 1 and 20 year 6.

And they certainly won’t be attending any optional summer schools if they aren’t coming to school.

Lots of the stuff I've been reading about getting kids back.to.school.advises against extra. Lessons, intervention etc cos kids may well be traumatised. That's kind of the opposite of what parents on here will want, but thry play the mental health card when it suits them. I think gov should suspend league tables for the next 5 years. That should be the union's next fight.

They have already said they are not shelving appraisal!

@Piggywaspushed I heard that. Nice of them to once again blame schools for something beyond our control.

Deprived area too, 50ish per year
About 8 nursery
15 reception
11 year 1
23 year 6.

I'm trying to get my head around a way of juggling face to face teaching for a rota of kids - all years returning this way in 2 weeks time - with making their online learning as meaningful as possible. As well as scheduling online 'check in's' (not lessons) to provide a midway point in their at-home days before they then come back to review and carry on with another face to face day.

That's my idea anyway. I'm sure when the gov advice comes out tomorrow it'll get blown out of the water.

We are giving the same work to both groups - those in school and those at home. We are just "supporting/supervising" the in-school crew to get it done, and then doing play-scheme-type activities the rest of the time.

I can't see how half a year group in at one time is going to work at secondary timetable wise, because one half of my science class may be two thirds of the re class etc

I obviously left my can-do attitude in the garden when I was drinking gin and sunbathing.

Deprived area here too. I don't know exact numbers, but it was similar to you two up there. Not many.

@Appuskidu

What did Gav actually say today-did anyone see?

No indication they are going to move the holidays or try to make us teach?!

Anything about primary and September?

hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2020-06-09/debates/1FB411B2-E5C6-4E6B-A9F2-1DDBF5F5E8B1/EducationSettingsWiderOpening

Wot Gav said

We've now got 2 bubbles, one is KW, one is Y6. KW get the same work as the children at home, the Y6 bubble are having their own curriculum. Is that the usual?

It's going to have to be different for secondary and primary I think.

Gawd what a mess.

Oh, yes, Beawill. We don't set at our school at all in ks3 except for maths, so it would be roughly workable. No good for ks4 though.

Slight diversion but relevant seeing as Gav said tests and assessments are on. I’m the assessment lead at my school and I have no words for the rage that the reception baseline inspires in me at normal times, but during a pandemic?! Our LA advisor has been questioning the DFE about this for weeks and keeps being told that yep, we will be doing this.

Wonder what progress scores will be based on for yr 11 in 5 years time.

OMG-that thread on, ‘what would you like the government to do about schools’ is dreadful.

Back as normal, no social distancing, taught by passing strangers. Sorted

It’s always nice to hear people who can safely work from home decide it’s fine for social distancing to end for teachers this second.

Bloody exhausted on those school corona threads.

Hopefully we have a planned announcement on Friday what we will be doing for rest of term. Head hinted at some part time at school stuff for autumn and how he wants to support peoples IT set up home

Grim

@Appuskidu made me giggle that it is fine for schools to be back but everyone else can still wfh in order to stop the virus from spreading.

At least our Gallic friend has gone PBP.

Dangling - we have options in y8 (languages), I guess if they go we could teach in form groups.

But y9 can't swap back as they've had a year of the other language. and ks4 is screwed.

I'm off to bed before I cave and click on something toxic!

I'm with you at the frustration of bring back retired teachers or fast track graduates through.

FGS! I teach A level and the idea of handing over my Y12s to someone who isn't fully cognisant with the exam board spec, got considerable experience at delivering an A level, in-depth subject knowledge and knows exactly how the mark scheme should be applied is just horrific.

Same with Y10s to be honest. If you're not teaching GCSE and A level on a day to day basis the idea that you can swan in and help is shit. I've had supply specialists in doing maternity cover in the past - and I've been in that position myself when I did supply and we all know it's damned hard work. However good your subject knowledge is, if you find yourself delivering a unit you aren't familiar with, which is fairly frequent in History, or an exam board you've not taught before you are paddling frantically to keep your head above water with exam groups.

But clearly anyone could do the job.

@BlessYourCottonSocks

I'm with you at the frustration of bring back retired teachers or fast track graduates through.

FGS! I teach A level and the idea of handing over my Y12s to someone who isn't fully cognisant with the exam board spec, got considerable experience at delivering an A level, in-depth subject knowledge and knows exactly how the mark scheme should be applied is just horrific.

Same with Y10s to be honest. If you're not teaching GCSE and A level on a day to day basis the idea that you can swan in and help is shit. I've had supply specialists in doing maternity cover in the past - and I've been in that position myself when I did supply and we all know it's damned hard work. However good your subject knowledge is, if you find yourself delivering a unit you aren't familiar with, which is fairly frequent in History, or an exam board you've not taught before you are paddling frantically to keep your head above water with exam groups.

But clearly anyone could do the job.

Because as much as they bang on about education, socialisation, iniquity and mental health what they really really want is fucking childcare.

Well, I vented my spleen a bit in that thread for 10 minutes while waiting for my latest lesson videos to upload. Haha. They are mostly really quite thick, so I wasn't too mean.