The Thirty-eight republic - Covid Carnage - Schools still waiting for test kits

[SantaAssociationRepresentitve]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff only – a sort of room of requirement. Baiters, haters, goaders, 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 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

Do not give the staffroom password just in case it attracts the wrong sort

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 booze is stashed - Thirsty Tuesdays, Fizz Fridays now in operation.

If you come with a stick to goad us then that is not allowed in the staffroom and you will receive a detention

Are we doing masks in classrooms now?

@RuleWithAWoodenFoot

Are we doing masks in classrooms now?

They are considering it.

schoolsweek.co.uk/government-planning-to-make-face-masks-compulsory-in-secondary-school-classrooms-dfe-official-says/?fbclid=IwAR1yFFUKMv-Ft8PiBsB5Gc8Iz5ZqvDFcRolcPtngRifKc-yQV2Cr5xRZ_64

@Hercwasonasnowball

Poor child

I'm having huge anxiety about masks on all in classrooms. I'm OK with it in corridors and most staff shout at me or don't mind if I need stuff repeating. I'm really going to struggle hearing the kids though. I already do with the few that wear them now. Sorry this is such a stupid whinge when my rational head knows masks are best for the safety of us all.

Would mini whiteboards help Herc? Could laminate some A4 paper and get kids to write answers / questions on those instead? Not ideal I know but we need to be resourceful.

crackle we're banned from whiteboards due to covid.

I'll works my way round it. I'll ask kids to lower their masks for 10 seconds to answer stuff. That's what they do now if I'm really struggling. It will be ok, just seems hard now. I'm thankful we have 2 weeks mostly online and then we shall see what happens.

Checking in!

@FiggyPuddingFiend

Those saying 98% accuracy is a lie, it isn't technically a lie it is getting the statistics to say what you want them to say. They are 98% accurate if you have a positive result, as in if you have a positive result there is a 98% chance you do actually have covid. Unfortunately they also give a high number of false negatives - they only pick up between 3 - 50% of positives.

It's a contextual lie as the context won't be given in the letter, not even within any smallprint.

I'd be truly shocked if it held up in court: it wouldn't if this was a private business.

Poor child absolutely heartbreaking

herc it's not stupid my dad really struggles in shops etc. because he is hearing impaired. Even with his hearing aids in he struggles. Obviously, he understands that we need to use masks but it is hard for people.

Herc I feel the same. I actually prefer remote T n L for teaching and my dd learning rather than masks but would also prefer masks to nothing at all.

Herc we bought in (stupidly - could have made them cheaper) a whiteboard for each child to aid assessment. They keep them in their bags. Might be worth having a chat with HT if masks are made compulsory? - they do help.

The masks thing is yet another interesting issue for middle schools! What is a teacher supposed to do? Whip the mask off when with years 5 and 6 and then put it on for 7 and 8??

I think this might be a ploy to shut teachers and unions up for a while.

Not stupid in the least, herc. I have trouble hearing colleagues with masks or the light reflecting off visors. Getting some primary school children to speak more loudly and clearly is already difficult.

Wonder if any schools will put something like “the DofE have instructed us to communicate to parents that the tests are 98% accurate”? That way the school is not claiming that falsehood.

Herc, do you already having a hearing aid? I used to work in audiology. They only need be very small and subtle.

I also would say that I think they should be worn by eg pastoral staff (ours never wear them when they have kids in their offices) and should be mandated for all first aiders. And for staff in shared offices and staffrooms (again, ours never do this).

@Hercwasonasnowball

crackle we're banned from whiteboards due to covid.

I'll works my way round it. I'll ask kids to lower their masks for 10 seconds to answer stuff. That's what they do now if I'm really struggling. It will be ok, just seems hard now. I'm thankful we have 2 weeks mostly online and then we shall see what happens.

We initially banned them too but it was so hard so the PTA was approached and they bought a mini whiteboard for all the children to have themselves (after one dress down day collection!) and in December this made a big difference to lessons and we don’t have to touch them. Might be worth an email to the parent head of the PTA? Or bending the ear of a sympathetic person in SLT?

@SantaAssociationRepresentitve

Message from the Head - no test kits have turned yet! He has a training session on Monday. The DfE told him to state that the tests had 98% accuracy so he tweaked the letter a little bit as we do have some litigious parents and he doesn't want to take the rap for DfE spin

That is shocking - where are they getting 98% from? A government that lies so blatantly is actually terrifying. No wonder we’re in this state.

Right - preparing to be a January pioneer of in-class mask wearing (primary, head has forbidden mask wearing at all).

I make my own 'normal' masks (did an assembly line in the summer so every member of my family has multiple masks in their favourite design and chosen fabric) but would really like a good source of the type of mask with a see-through window. Does anyone have a good one who would recommend the source?

The intention is to deceive basically, isn't it?

I actually think the guidance suggests all pupils in middle schools should wear them as per secondaries already (eg corridors). I'm sure the wording is something like "in middle schools with pupils in year 7 and above, masks should be worn in communal areas" rather than just by year 7 and above. I've looked at it a few times, but not recently (we're not three tier system; I was just being nosy).

schoolsweek.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Schools_Colleges_Testing-Handbook_version-3.3-Copy.pdf

talks about a 99.8% specificity. (thats what is prob in letter). The tests have lower sensitivity but they are better at picking cases when a person has a higher viral load. Hence, the need to test frequently

Do we think primary teachers will be allowed masks now? Asking for an anxious friend who has to go back to work as normal on Monday morning...

So my school are doing this now... "students will normally have their first test individually in their tutor groups, and the subsequently in science lessons (working in pairs)"

Oh goody.

For anyone who's a member of the NEU: twitter.com/NEUnion/status/1345049833950818304

Seems like we are expecting test kits to arrive on Monday, but reading between the lines, there will only be enough for staff.

I'm not sure how some of our parents will react, if they've been promised testing and it doesn't materialise- I think we might see some students just not returning to school. I also think some will be pretty angry if their children are asked to isolate because we can't offer the promised testing.

@Evvyjb

So my school are doing this now... "students will normally have their first test individually in their tutor groups, and the subsequently in science lessons (working in pairs)"

Oh goody.

Are they suggesting science teachers are to supervise students testing each other?

That's ridiculous!

As a science teacher, I will absolutely refuse to supervise that!

Well if you are facing 30 little people from separate households who may or may not have followed Tier rules since the end of the term then there is a concern. Yes, schools and staff have done great things to minimise risk and will continue to do so. But lets not fool ourselves that SD really happens in schools.

Yes, the risk maybe small but it is still a risk. No one can give you a guarantee that you will sail through covid showing no symptoms at all. You may well end up being a Long Covid sufferer or worst. The thing is that no one can really say what side of the coin you will get.

The see through window ones are not great tbh (I've only tried two though) they get very warm with being plastic and fog up a lot - there are ways round that I think as with glasses. The heat I found hard, but absolutely worth it with regard to hearing impaired students - I don't think would work for a full day though. We have to have masks with S4 and up, so three year groups (that's staff & pupils) and all secondary wear them in corridors. You get used to it, though I do take mine off between lessons and sometimes need to nip into the corridor to catch a breath. Definitely easier wearing when you don't have to talk much, it's harder for the teacher than the students.