The Forty - Eight Republic - countdown for DfE media agency to wake up

[StaffRepFeistyClub]

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

Remembering when my two were small, I always found this half term the hardest. The wet, mud, cold. And that was without lockdown.

I absolutely love island life. Even when it's too windy to get supplies in. I never missed the big shops or nightclubs and there was always Iive music.
One of my dreams is to move back to an island again, but dh won't consider it :(

honey your life was so exciting!

You know when people on MN say 'no one in RL wants schools shut' and 'it's only on MN' as if that invalidates any opinions(completely at odds to any national poll, natch) who is it they are talking to? How many rules are they breaking by wandering around their local town, meeting up with all and sundry to canvass wide opinion?? Or do they juts mean themselves, their DP, their DMs , their own DCs (allegedly) and the teachers who have told them how great it will be to have Delilah back through gritted teeth??

That's why we always go away. Should be skiing. Christmas hols and Feb half term only good for skiing. The thought of longer winter holidays is meh.

Oh the mud! Every time we step outside we bring mud in. And you have to get outside regularly with a whirlwind 4yo wrecking ball.

I thought half term would be easier with not having to juggle 3 kids plus zoom teaching live to timetable.
Turns out I was wrong. The endless mud and lack of things to do..... Urgh

Oh yes the mud. We have started skiing again in feb half terms.... last year being out in the mountains and fresh air and no chance of doing any work totally sorted my head which was fucked at the time.

I don’t know anyone in real life that just wants schools back. I know lots are struggling with work/stress/kids remote learning - especially those with younger children. But they are all willing to take part time school or something on a smaller scale or wait it out a few more weeks...

@Piggywaspushed

You know when people on MN say 'no one in RL wants schools shut' and 'it's only on MN' as if that invalidates any opinions(completely at odds to any national poll, natch) who is it they are talking to? How many rules are they breaking by wandering around their local town, meeting up with all and sundry to canvass wide opinion?? Or do they juts mean themselves, their DP, their DMs , their own DCs (allegedly) and the teachers who have told them how great it will be to have Delilah back through gritted teeth??

I know what you mean.

Also people are a little more guarded in real life. I’d still say the same. I want to be back in class but I’m not convinced it’s safe.

But honestly if a parent at my school asked if they school was safe. I think I would waffle a bit about the measures we are taking. On here I’m more comfortable saying - “No, it isn’t safe. Not the schools fault. But sticking 30 teenagers in a tiny classroom isn’t safe”

I'm quite frank that I schools going back the same as September would be a bad idea. I've had discussions with people who are convinced the vaccine roll out will be done by March and are astounded teachers aren't being vaccinated. The media propaganda campaign has worked.

I think some people would hear a sound bite from me like "I can't wait for the students to be back, it's much easier when they're in the classroom" and think that meant I want them back next week with no extra measures. People are good at hearing what they want to hear.

@phlebasconsidered

I hope so *@Appuskidu*. So far in my list of friends and relatives I have an at home social worker, an opticians receptionist, an NHS office worker from home, an army at home worker and an at home Age uk worker all vaccinated while my mum is still waiting as is this 49 year old asthmatic in school teacher!

It's taking the piss.

Completely.

I’m fairly convinced Monday will bring ‘KS1 (and possibly 2) crack on as normal because... childcare’ and we’ll be back to crammed freezing cold classrooms and that horrible feeling of just waiting for who’s going to test positive next and screw all the plans/cover up.

I also worry (that I am going to get myself sacked for reacting loudly to) endless emails from ‘external professionals’ telling me I have to do more at school because they can’t possibly come in to visit and help as they must WFH, yet knowing they’ve all been vaccinated!

I think people make stuff up about what other people think to suit what they're trying to say.

I mean, how many times have we read that MN teachers (i.e. us) just want schools closed FOREVER?

One of the reasons I started that thread yesterday was after having two posters tell me in quick succession that I had a 'schools should remain closed' agenda. Next time I get told that I can just link to the OP instead of having to repeat the same stuff over and over again.

Bit like why I started the ' Noblegiraffe wants safer schools not closed schools' thread.

I mean, how many times have we read that MN teachers (i.e. us) just want schools closed FOREVER

This drives me mad.

• Poster suggests sensible small sensible mitigation’s
• some people leap on them accusing them of wanting schools shut for a year / or “forever”

So bloody annoying.

I'm getting frustrated about the amount of working from home people who have been vaccinated.

I feel at the moment that I have to fight and battle for everything.

I know I'm irrational.

It reminds me of the Columbo episode with the dogs who were trained to kill when they heard the trigger word. Someone reads nobles name and it turns into a frenzy.
There's a thread this morning about schools not going back til after Easter and it's mostly very calm.

Well it's a beautiful day here. DH is going out to his volunteer job soon. I am not going to allow myself to get stressed out about Monday's decision- too many times in the last year I've allowed myself to get overwhelmed by it all when I have no control over it. I just hope he follows the science as he says he is going to do. We shall see.

1. my local news site had a post about schools return and 99% of the comments said they didn't want them open yet/as before.

2. there was quite a lot of moanin by my fb friends in the last few days about all the WFH ppl who have been vaccinated and school staff not. No one told them off/that they were being unreasonable. Even the wfh vaccinated social workers/early help workers/SALTs.

Can't link to it but p2 of The Times is interesting : SAGE and the lauded JVT are calling for the govt to stop just focusing on deaths and mortality rates. They are concerned about high rate of complications for people admitted to hospital with Covid , especially given these are younger people, often with no prior health conditions (stick that in your pipe and smoke it , hey?) Young people are less likely to die but are proportionality more likely to survive and live with complications. This contradicts current narratives that covid is only dangerous in people with existing co morbidity and the elderly. It is increasingly important to dispel these idea, they said, warning policy makers that regarding this groups as 'low risk' based on reduced likelihood of mortality may not take into account ...long term consequences.

A quarter of patients who experienced complications were less able to care for themselves at discharge than they were before compared to 11.9% who had no complications.

A SAGE study based on 50000 discharged patients found that 30% required readmission within 140 days and 12% died...

May post this on data thread. It's an interesting discussion point (random , it would be good on your thread tbh)

I've left and not going back. I don't care if that makes me a coward.

Those 12% wouldn't count in the death statistics, would they?

That is worrying. Anyone bringing up long term complications will just be dismissed as being worried about bit of breathlessness after 5 weeks. Or someone will say that post-viral syndrome has always been a thing.

No, they wouldn't...

This is rarely mentioned when people try to claim loads of those who dies had been admitted with piles or something.

@sherrystrull

I'm getting frustrated about the amount of working from home people who have been vaccinated.

I feel at the moment that I have to fight and battle for everything.

I know I'm irrational.

I feel much the same, I’m trying to remind myself that it’s good I’m not high risk so not needing to be vaccine prioritised is really a positive but it’s quite hard to bite my tongue when people wfh (and moaning a bucketload about how impossible home schooling is) are vaccinated because they took their gran to her appointment and were given a vaccine there and then (or words to that effect).

I’m worried for myself and more so for DH. We’ve all been incredibly lucky so far to only have had one bout of DS needing to si. I don’t have much faith we’ll escape for much longer.

@RandomGrammarPun

I've left and not going back. I don't care if that makes me a coward.

As in teaching Rule?

Doesn't make you a coward at all.

But honestly if a parent at my school asked if they school was safe. I think I would waffle a bit about the measures we are taking. On here I’m more comfortable saying - “No, it isn’t safe. Not the schools fault. But sticking 30 teenagers in a tiny classroom isn’t safe”

I have been asked this by several parents and I've said, quite truthfully, that my classroom is as safe as I can make it with the resources I've been given, but I can't guarantee their children won't catch Covid in school. I'm not going to pretend it's completely safe when we've got bubbles bursting left, right and centre.

@Piggywaspushed

You know when people on MN say 'no one in RL wants schools shut' and 'it's only on MN' as if that invalidates any opinions(completely at odds to any national poll, natch) who is it they are talking to? How many rules are they breaking by wandering around their local town, meeting up with all and sundry to canvass wide opinion?? Or do they juts mean themselves, their DP, their DMs , their own DCs (allegedly) and the teachers who have told them how great it will be to have Delilah back through gritted teeth??

Who knows!

I don't know anyone in real life who is antilock down either. Only person I know is my daughters American Gramma. She is a Trump lover too. So take her opinion with the salt its worth.

Most say teachers should be vaccinated and a slow opening.