THE FIFIETH REPUBLIC!

[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.

Do not give the staffroom password to others 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.

I really want one 😂

Hey everyone.

I've struggled today. So many people around me crowing about having the vaccination for various random coincidences and reasons. Feel worse now than ever in this whole year. Properly like my life isn't worth anything and I'm resorting to having to beg for a vaccine while others just get it on a whim then carry on working from home or in their socially distanced office.

Secret English teacher that's a compliment!

I always think my fellow English teachers read my posts and wince at the poor grammar.

Actually I'm a secret PE teacher, that's why I have so much time to MN. Just upload another Joe Wicks video every day and my work is done...

to everyone finding it tough at the moment, it seems there's a lot of it about right now.

I can't watch the news, don't watch the briefings. They're all liars and it's too much. Anything I need to know I'll get from reading about it, usually prefaced by 'that twat said...' which limits the impact.

Byline Times is the sanest easy read journalism available nowadays:

bylinetimes.com/2021/02/26/dates-not-data-johnsons-roadmap-out-of-lockdown-is-his-most-reckless-gamble-yet/

Hospitalisations are still almost at the level of the first peak last April but, in less than two weeks, all pupils will be back at school because Johnson has declared that “all the evidence shows schools are safe”. That is categorically untrue.

Plenty of scientists argue that schools are not yet safe: they are indoor environments, without full mask use, and make community transmission inevitable – not simply from children to teachers and other school staff, but between children, who will then carry the virus back to their families. That is not to say that schools should not reopen, but ministers should acknowledge the risk. In particular, schools are reopening before all vulnerable groups have been inoculated.

Thanks for that @borntobequiet. Like @noblegiraffe I’ve avoided the press for the past few weeks, it’s all lies and events pushing but I still want to keep abreast on updates.

Yup, I know so many people who have had the vaccine too. Not teachers though. DH said the press were reporting that we would have the vaccine by April (we would fall in the 40-49 category). Aah bless, he’s forever the PE teacher with his Positive Mental Attitude.

I do think it's quite likely that some of us who are 40-49 and also group 6 will get done in our age category sooner.

Even likelier for the 50-59s and 60-64s.

I do feel the group 6 people have been hung out to dry, I am 43 year old with Asthma that's treated with an inhaler and a steroid pill but don't even know if I am in group 6. Going back into the classroom scares me I lost my dad at 43 and don't want the same for my kids I know that irrational and if I caught it I would probably be fine but it still keeps me awake at night. I work in an FE college with around 2000 students in our building.

@JanFebAnyMonth

That sounds appalling *@Myusername2015* ! Do you have a union?

Oh gosh you poor thing. I'm
Really sorry. Agree that you need Union advice get well soon

Sorry people are feeling so down at the moment.

I spoke to a parent yesterday. She was so lovely, expressed huge admiration for teachers and said how much we are all appreciated.
I know plenty of people don’t like “teachers” but I’ve decided not to care about them.

I’m only going to care about the pupils I actually teach (and their parents). It doesn’t matter what random strangers think m, so I’m going to ignore them.

Hum, I'd have thought so if you have oral steroids.

It's the chaos around general asthma that's pissing me off.

As I've posted elsewhere, a Gp friend is adamant I'll be getting it soon with steroid inhalers only. I'm mid 40s.

Dh seems to think age 40's will get done by mid May, if not in April though.

I'm split over age groups, as I do think it's going to be fast and also gets those who are more at risk age wise sooner, plus the parents of kids. Any healthy teaching staff under 40 I know seems to feel little anxiety about cv.

At the same time it's hypocritical to say kids are vectors and "close" the schools for 3 months.

We had a load of new measures come in in jan, thankfully that's staying as till Easter. We've only had a handful of kids not in. I keep hoping our setting may be added to vaccine list as other local Sen school staff all received vaccines weeks ago. (MLD sen) there was some sort of complex guidance.

Some if our pupil's young, fit, energetic respite workers, who are also working at our school, with same or different kids have been vaccinated...! (Before staff in their 60s!)

Also, everyone I speak to asks if I've had my jab yet, being a teacher. (Might be the sen thing though.)

They all seem to be under the impression we are

People keep asking me, mid 30s and secondary teacher with no underlying conditions. They really think teachers are being vaccinated.

I'm going to change some of my routines to keep myself safe on the return to school. No more circulating the room. I will struggle with kids all in masks and verbal questions, I literally can't hear the answers but I'll just ask fewer (less?) questions. Book marking I'm refusing to do!

I am not doing anything today apart from binge watch ‘Behind Her Eyes’ on Netflix. I loved the book so hoping the series matches up!

There are many posters on the boards currently very happy that teachers as a profession are not getting the vaccines sooner but I bet if they were told that it would mean no more home schooling then they would be protesting in the streets to get school staff vaccinated

The first time a bubble or set of close contacts has to self isolate due to an infected teacher, the threads will start of ‘why weren’t school staff vaccinated’??

Especially as more will be tested now and even with the low success rate, it will pick up staff and children who last term, would have gone unnoticed. I don’t believe any school has zero cases throughout all of last term but I do believe many went unchecked.

Very shortsighted but it is what it is.

Can someone please explain the ons data occupation thing that came out?

Was that showing risk of actual infection? (Where teachers were third?)

I see Ongoing claims that teachers are of no more risk. Which will be death not actual infection?

For that teachers/ police thread.

From what I understand, people tend to us the ‘risk of death’ stats as their argument teachers are low risk but if they were to use the risk of infection rate, teachers were too 5 high risk occupation.
It’s all about how the government and MSM have reported this really. Happy to be corrected though!

Sorry about my typos there!

I guess people stick with the angle that suits their viewpoint more.

This one?

Teachers are catching it shedloads but we're not yet dying enough for sympathy.

JVT used the 'no increased risk of death' argument in the press conf and that's being quoted back on that thread. This is mainly due to the demographic of teachers being youngish and female.

(I also think the 45+ men in teaching are skewed by being SLT with lighter TTs and more office time, ergo less exposure. But that may be personal experience influencing my judgement there!)

You can post that ons stuff as much as you like and people literally DO NOT SEE IT. Just go back to saying other professions are riskier.

Herc, you're right. Any male in primaries will have their own office after about 2 years in a classroom.

@motherrunner

I am not doing anything today apart from binge watch ‘Behind Her Eyes’ on Netflix. I loved the book so hoping the series matches up!

I loved it a real twist at the end