The Fifty-second Republic - Beware of Education’s ides of March

[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.

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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 booze is stashed - Thirsty Tuesdays, Fizz Fridays now in operation. Do not sit on the chairs and do wear a mask.

Has anyone else found their pupils’ parents are more needy and moany since returning? They are nitpicking over the smallest thing and wanting so much more of my time than they did before. I feel like I need to wean them off me, as they had a 24hour hotline via email during the closures and they can’t cope without it now
Perhaps that’s just my (infant) class’ parents...

I’ve had my second jab. I was really surprised as I was able to book it on the GP appointment app for 25 days after the first one. The nurse and assistant were quite excited to get someone in for “seconds”.
Though I felt unwell for 24 hours after the first one (the unwellness kicked in overnight) I had no side effects other than a sore-ish arm after the second, and taught all day the next day. I had told my learners I was having the vaccine and might be a bit under the weather, I think they were miffed that I was on form and made them work.

@MsAwesomeDragon

Yay piggy that's fab!! Dh is 52 so I'm hoping they'll get to him soon. They've opened up a whole load of extra vaccine places here. None of them are particularly big but they are more local than people had been able to book. So Boots in the city centre is now available to book on the booking system. I don't think they're down to the over 50s yet though, I think it's still over 55. I go for mine tomorrow. I'm group 6, so the GP is still ploughing through us vulnerables.

I'm one year older, but I had it last week. I went to my local vaccine centre a couple of times just before 'closing time' and the second time they had one shot left (somebody hadn't turned up) so they gave it to me (I showed my school i.d. badge). Before anyone comes at me, I work in a school across bubbles and if I hadn't received it, it would have just been binned - once a batch is 'opened' they have to use it I believe. So if anyone in their early-50s or late-40s and works in education really wants the vaccine, I suggest trying that - you might get it 3-4 weeks ahead of schedule and after Easter you can relax a bit.

Two teacher friends who are a job share.
One is 49 and had a jab. One is 52 and hasn’t. They live on the same street but are at different doctors.

DrMadelineMaxwell, I'm in North Wales, group 6. I'm having mine tomorrow.

Dh is half a century and bordering type 2. He's been invited next week, but can't go cos he works an hour away and the Dr wants him between 930 and 12.

I went to my local vaccine centre a couple of times just before 'closing time' and the second time they had one shot left (somebody hadn't turned up) so they gave it to me

Our area has specifically told people not to do that, any spare is going to priority listed people who they phone to come in. It’s not the same across the country.

I had a lovely time with the Y7 class today discussing books they enjoyed during lockdown, and reading to them.

Spent the rest of the afternoon composing very polite emails to my boss's boss telling him what he needs to do when neither of us are in on Monday/Tues morning, like coming up with some kind of work for 4 classes to do when covered, sorting out the Homework Club bookings and staffing, other quite important stuff. He must be paid at least 6 times as much as me.

I've had a good cry tonight. I am still being refused for my asthma and hashimotos (although my friend in Brighton has had it purely on Hashimotos). And today a neighbour who is in group 6 got told her appointment had been put back as there is no vaccine. They've run out!

Where I live they are literally just inching into 6 and mopping up 4 and 5. We are not getting the lovely swathes of vaccine, there are no leftovers for us to sweep up, we have one major Vac centre 30 miles away.

And yesterday I rang 8 sets of parents asking them to ensure their children are going home and not to the chip shop and park as they have been doing. They all just fucked off to the chip shop and park after school today. The community fb page shows just what is happening. Lots of lovely mum get togethers and happiness now the kids are back!

My class are feral again. I am having to do very many short tasks and reward 11 year olds for being able to sit. I am so sorry, secondary teachers. This year will be even worse.

Head told me today I won't be any good at the job I've applied for.

When i applied for a DH position, my H told me he 'didn't see me as DH material'. Yeah mate, that's why I need to leave. Got the job.

Where I live they are literally just inching into 6 and mopping up 4 and 5. We are not getting the lovely swathes of vaccine, there are no leftovers for us to sweep up, we have one major Vac centre 30 miles away.

That's pretty much the same here (are we in the same area?) Dh can continue to wfh, and doesn't have any relevant health conditions, so he'll wait his turn. The smaller vaccine centres are starting to be set up, so there are now 3 pharmacies that are less than an hour's drive away, which might speed the age groups up. But up til now most people have had to wait for the GP. So we can't be in the same area really, as we've still got plenty of vaccine, it just wasn't possible til this week to book anywhere locally to get it.

phleb my area was so slow at first that it made the press. And now it is racing ahead. I gave no idea what changed but please don't despair. It sucks about the hashimotos. I don't get why GPs don't have clearer lists of conditions.

That’s rubbish phlebas. Are they definitely refusing for the asthma or just working down the list of asthmatics?

I apologise if I sounded smug about the second jab. But I am pretty ancient (67) with a heart condition - some of you might know from my previous posts but others won’t.

Not smug, @borntobequiet. You’re the same age as my dad and he’s as healthy as a horse (cycles 100 miles a day 3 x week for fun), yet I was still delighted he had his.

We have a fair few TAs in their 50s, and I hope that they get theirs soon, as they do a lot of the up close work like hearing readers, first aid etc.

My thoughts are with the positive, the isolating and those who are more vulnerable and not vaccinated. I am feeling so much better now dh is dose one plus 2 weeks. There are still so many cv and not quite cv but definitely higher risk with no protection and no vaccine booked it. Horrible.

I'm sorry phleb and those in similar positions.

Here is Dr Zubaida Haque, non-scientist but expert on race issues, inequality in education, poverty, and iSAGE member, on school testing, she has some (rhetorical) questions:

https://mobile.twitter.com/IndependentSage/status/1370411636683649025?fbclid=IwAR2ra7pj6OPjCNWuk7744B7nBGTi9AtYovr3Eb5l5fqWIFFLL_451PAI2yU

One of my youngest colleagues got her vaccination letter today. (No health conditions, she said). I.must.not.be.jealous.
Always happy to hear anyone older or more vulnerable than me has theirs!
Going to have a glass of wine and channel generous thoughts.

@LillethCrane

Has anyone else found their pupils’ parents are more needy and moany since returning? They are nitpicking over the smallest thing and wanting so much more of my time than they did before. I feel like I need to wean them off me, as they had a 24hour hotline via email during the closures and they can’t cope without it now Perhaps that’s just my (infant) class’ parents...

Yes, some of them! They are needier than the children - but then when our bubble closed yesterday some of them were quite rude and aggressive about it as though it was all my fault, which I really didn't need.

phleb. Just thinking, have you tried to book online through the nhs site. It wouldn’t let me the other week because I wasn’t eligible, but when I tried a couple of days ago the message had changed to not letting me because I’d already had one dose. (I wasn’t actually going to book one, was just testing the group 6 criteria).

MrsH that is totally out of line and unprofessional and presumably they will be writing you a reference? I would approach them saying how shocked I was that they would say such a thing and that you concerned as to what reference had been sent given his comments. Are we allowed to ask to see references? What a dick!

I'm also knackered whoever said, 'is it just me'. Ds came home from school, got changed, went out for a bike ride, came home sat on the end of the sofa I was on and promptly passed out and started snoring. I managed to chivvy him up to bed.

I've had it confirmed I'm not at risk of redundancy, there's nothing wrong with what I'm doing in my role and all is well but there'll be no chance of extra hours in my department as we're definitely fully staffed. A pastoral tlr has come up (I thought they'd recruited for it last year so not sure what's changed) and I'm tempted but don't think I could handle the rejection and I know 'my face doesn't fit' effect is at play.

That’s good news about the redundancy, HoneyBadger.

Good news re redundancy/not honey. Would you enjoy the pastoral role (I know it fits with yr past experience and training)?

phlebasconsidered

Honey so pleased for you

MrsH you'll always be fabulous to me. Middle finger up to that HT and for you

Any of you in Manchester?

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/hundreds-pupils-sent-home-greater-20094070