Re-opening Schools?

[gaijingirl]

Now staff who should be within reach of a much-needed break face spending christmas rushing about trying to sort out this latest half-arsed, nonsensical bullshit from the government. Union phone lines must be busy.

Exactly. The unions themselves are coming in for flack for not being stronger in the face of all this from the start.

 

[StoneRoad]

My OH taught physics, but took early retirement during budget-driven "re-organisations" and conversion into an academy (third session of at least five that I know of, in a period of three years or so). Also having a major re-build of the school buildings (I think some were CLASP derived).
And then spent some time on supply & EOTAS work.

Just now - to a 'phone head-hunter - There is no way I'm going back to teaching, no matter how much £££ you offer.

OH & I both think secondary schools are now acting as super-spreaders and are places to stay well away from.

 

[May Kasahara]

It's allegedly so that they can set up and train up staff (who?) to administer CV19 tests. My headteacher was delighted to receive that announcement about an hour before our whole-school farewell/thank you zoom meeting. I really do despise this stupid government who seem incapable of having the courage to make the right decisions at the right time - too busy writing stupid, threatening letters to schools folding under the pressure of the huge rise in CV19 cases right now. I feel awful for him and the rest of our senior leadership.

Details of school mass-testing rollout revealed

Handbook issued to schools reveals extent of schools' responsibilities from January

schoolsweek.co.uk

Both my kids are now home self-isolating now.

I wholeheartedly endorse this post. My poor colleagues. For fuck's fucking sake. And poor all of you on this thread too

 

[Mattym]

I want schools open but I want the government to tighten up everything else to allow this to happen.

Exactly that!

 

[elbows]

The government guidance is here if anyone wants to get more annoyed by this shit.

[Withdrawn] Actions for schools during the coronavirus outbreak

What all schools will need to do during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

www.gov.uk

There is too much to quote every area so I just picked on one theme.

Testing workforce requirements
Schools and educational trusts, supported by local authorities, will need to provide a small team to support the work. We recommend that this includes 1 to 2 members of staff with others being either volunteers (for example governors) or agency staff brought in for this purpose. Reasonable workforce costs of state-funded schools will be reimbursed. Armed forces personnel will support directly through planning with schools and colleges.

Over Christmas schools’ responsibilities for contact tracing end on 23 December, meaning teachers should be able to get the break that they deserve before resuming work in the new term. Schools that wish to can use an extra INSET day on 4 January to prepare to deliver the testing.

More detailed operational guidance will be issued shortly.

 

[MickiQ]

I'm workinf from home and trying to upskill staff on teaching online.

It's not easy cos there is some resistance.

Mrs Q has plenty of experience in teaching online, she did a lot of it last term when her school closed in Lockdown 1 along with all the others. There aren't enough STEM teachers to go round as it is, a lot of schools can't recruit enough so a lot just stick a warm body in front of a classroom and hope for the best. Getting the Geography Teacher to teach Maths is a pain when he's stood in front of them, when they're online its even harder.
These spivs (sorry entrepeneurs) that phoned her think they've found a niche in the market by offering to supply suitably qualified teachers to schools to do their online teaching (for a premium naturally) but for that they of course need actual teachers working for them.
Mrs Q reckons that the idea of using teachers in India to do online tutoring has been floated by some in authority but she thinks this idea is hysterical and that not many kids will listen to someone they can't even understand properly.
The guy also told her they reckon there will be big money to be made in private one to one tutoring next year as those who can afford it are willing to splash out to help their kids to make up for the disruption.
Wasting his time with Mrs Q though she has used the dreaded R word twice in the past week or two. She's 58 now and much though she loves being a teacher, I think the lurgy is the final straw for a great many like her.

 

[Indeliblelink]

It's allegedly so that they can set up and train up staff (who?) to administer CV19 tests. My headteacher was delighted to receive that announcement about an hour before our whole-school farewell/thank you zoom meeting. I really do despise this stupid government who seem incapable of having the courage to make the right decisions at the right time - too busy writing stupid, threatening letters to schools folding under the pressure of the huge rise in CV19 cases right now. I feel awful for him and the rest of our senior leadership.

Details of school mass-testing rollout revealed

Handbook issued to schools reveals extent of schools' responsibilities from January

schoolsweek.co.uk

Both my kids are now home self-isolating now.

Reading about the Lateral Flow device testing that will be used.

7. Lateral flow tests ‘work’
Concerns have been raised about the tests after research found that they can miss Covid-19 cases.

In its handbook for schools, the government accepted the tests have a lower sensitivity, but said they were “better at picking up cases when a person has a higher viral load. Hence the need to test frequently”.

The government added that “in validation studies conducted by Oxford University and Public Health England, they were shown to be as accurate in identifying a case as a PCR test (99.8% specificity).”

having a look at the link mentioned there

Covid-19: Safety of lateral flow tests questioned after they are found to miss half of cases

The lateral flow devices used in the community testing pilot in Liverpool only picked up half the covid-19 cases detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests and missed three out of 10 cases with higher viral loads, according to the government’s own policy paper.1 Given the low sensitivity...

www.bmj.com

The lateral flow devices used in the community testing pilot in Liverpool only picked up half the covid-19 cases detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests and missed three out of 10 cases with higher viral loads, according to the government’s own policy paper.1

Given the low sensitivity of the Innova lateral flow devices when used in the field, experts are questioning how they can be used to allow care home residents to have contact with relatives over Christmas safely or for students to know for certain that they are not infected before returning home.

Sounds to me that they're brushing over the fact these tests don't give very good results.
Better than no testing at all though.

 

[May Kasahara]

The government guidance is here if anyone wants to get more annoyed by this shit.

[Withdrawn] Actions for schools during the coronavirus outbreak

What all schools will need to do during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

www.gov.uk

There is too much to quote every area so I just picked on one theme.

"the break they deserve", this makes it utterly clear what the government thinks they deserve Absolute fucking cunts, and spineless cunts at that.

 

[spitfire]

"Dear 3K parents. Positive Covid case in 3K. All 3K pupils must self-isolate until 25th Dec. Email guidance has been sent.

The School."

Just received the above from Mini Fire's school. I thought self isolation is 10-14 days but they're saying 5 days?

No understand.

 

[LDC]

"Dear 3K parents. Positive Covid case in 3K. All 3K pupils must self-isolate until 25th Dec. Email guidance has been sent.

The School."

Just received the above from Mini Fire's school. I thought self isolation is 10-14 days but they're saying 5 days?

No understand.

It'll be 10 days from contact with the +tive case. So maybe they were last in school with other kids on 15th? Same as some people getting app or T&T notifications to isolate for less than ten days (someone on here got 1 day iirc).

 

[spitfire]

It'll be 10 days from contact with the +tive case. So maybe they were last in school with other kids on 15th?

Thank you for confirming it is 10 days. That makes sense as I have just interrogated the nipper and one of the kids went home on Wednesday. Couple of days sick, then a 24 hour test and that timeline make sense.

Cheers LynnDoyleCooper

 

[Indeliblelink]

Interesting but worrying twitter thread about results from testing efficiency of tests used on Birmingham and Scottish Uni students at start of December.


ETA -

Covid tests used on students ahead of Christmas 'only detected three per cent of cases'

The lateral flow tests missed students with Covid and gave them a negative result

thetab.com

ETA

Plans for 30-minute Covid testing in England halted amid accuracy fears

Exclusive: government shelves Christmas rollout of lateral flow test centres

www.theguardian.com

 

[Badgers]

Some vague media leaks about schools reopening but staggered returns for different ages

 

[SpookyFrank]

Yeah like many people I'm due back at work on Monday with no fucking clue what's happening and the prospect of being sent home again for another week. Sounds great, except I'm a trainee teacher who needs to do x amount of stuff with real classes to get my QTS

 

[Cloo]

Some vague media leaks about schools reopening but staggered returns for different ages

They'll have to give up on it within a few weeks if they do, thus extending the time in which everything is in a fucking mess.

 

[SpookyFrank]

Still nothing from the DfE on what happens next week. I can only imagine how many parents, teachers and other school staff are tearing their hair out at this point.

My guess is they'll go with a 'staggered return' and only year 10/11 returning to school, only to abandon that as well within the first week of term. Maybe for exams it seems most important to get older kids back in school, but most 14-15 year olds can look after themselves at home if necessary. The social need to be in school is greater for younger kids IMO.

It's unforgivable that they haven't called off the 2021 exams already, while there's still time to put together a halfway coherent alternative, and before schools and students waste even greater resources than they have already.

 

[weepiper]

This is wild, I can't believe they're still behaving as if the kids can all go back like normal at the start of term. They told us before Christmas that in light of this new variant ours would have an extra week of holiday and then * at least * a week of remote learning so not back in classrooms until the 18th of Jan at the earliest. Most people here are assuming the kids will be out of school for a good while after that.

 

[Mattym]

It's unforgivable that they haven't called off the 2021 exams already, while there's still time to put together a halfway coherent alternative, and before schools and students waste even greater resources than they have already.

Definitely and it'll be one of those decisions which will be made in the final week of April (if they do it).

 

[Steel Icarus]

It's scarcely credible in the face of Independent Sage recommendations/advice and statements/pleas from Teaching unions to delay the return of schools they're pressing on anyway, and calling in the army to do tests of kids. Utterly poisonous

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

Today’s Daily Heil front page?

“Don’t Betray Our Children - fury as schools poised to shut until February”



Covid has turned some people into members of a fucking death cult.

 

[Steel Icarus]

As someone on here said - this is the hill the Tories have chosen other people to die on

 

[Steel Icarus]

Children of Daily Mail readers have already grown up and left their hateful parents.

 

[nagapie]

I thought the plan was already in place, primaries opening, secondaries taking only year 11 and 13 for at least a week. Our parents were informed of the secondary arrangements at the start of the holidays.

 

[Steel Icarus]

I thought the plan was already in place, primaries opening, secondaries taking only year 11 and 13 for at least a week. Our parents were informed of the secondary arrangements at the start of the holidays.

Yeah, but since then Indy Sage has said it's a crazy idea and teaching unions have said there's no time to get ready for the whole load of extra stuff the twats in charge expect teaching and support staff to do.

And presumably the Fail has heard someone in government considering the idea of closing everything for January.

 

[Thora]

Wasn’t it actual Sage, not Independent Sage, that said schools shouldn’t reopen yet? Obviously I’m sure the independent one are saying it too.

 

[Thora]

I thought the plan was already in place, primaries opening, secondaries taking only year 11 and 13 for at least a week. Our parents were informed of the secondary arrangements at the start of the holidays.

Yep, that’s the current plan - ministers keep publicly saying they absolutely, currently hope that will happen, while all the newspapers are running stories about internal battles and ‘sources’ saying schools will remain shut.

So I predict we will find out what will actually happen on the 30th/31st.

 

[Steel Icarus]

Yep, that’s the current plan - ministers keep publicly saying they absolutely, currently hope that will happen, while all the newspapers are running stories about internal battles and ‘sources’ saying schools will remain shut.

So I predict we will find out what will actually happen on the 30th/31st.

That would ace. It'll actually be Jan 3rd though

 

[frogwoman]

23.59 on January 3rd, via Twitter.

 

[nagapie]

Yeah, but since then Indy Sage has said it's a crazy idea and teaching unions have said there's no time to get ready for the whole load of extra stuff the twats in charge expect teaching and support staff to do.

And presumably the Fail has heard someone in government considering the idea of closing everything for January.

I thought Sage were still saying to keep primaries open. And with only 11sand 13s coming in, gov could argue they're following the advice.
I'm a lifetime teaching union member but they have no power here. My head has already organised the tests and informed parents.

 

[nagapie]

Yep, that’s the current plan - ministers keep publicly saying they absolutely, currently hope that will happen, while all the newspapers are running stories about internal battles and ‘sources’ saying schools will remain shut.

So I predict we will find out what will actually happen on the 30th/31st.

I'm sure it will be what I said.