Deferred State Exams 2020 [SEE MOD NOTE POST #1]

r93kaey5p2izun

Yes we always had the CP meeting with the PowerPoint on exam results versus the national average by subject. Such a load of nonsense. Comparing Maths - a mandatory subject, in a DEIS school where 30% have dyscalculia for which there's zero reasonable accommodations, with French, an optional niche subject with just 10 students taking it, half of whom were native speakers, and mostly just chosen by the most academic students for college entry. No surprise that French was always the "best performing" subject.

In more recent years we were getting a comparison to other DEIS schools. At least that was a bit more meaningful. But again, there's a massive difference between a rural DEIS school and somewhere with measures in place to mitigate a gangland feud, where students are regularly searched by Gardai just outside the school gate.

km79

First weekend in months my head is clear. I hope we do not get any news or updates until Monday

Treppen

In teachers minds there seems to be a fight between past results/stats VS what you think they could get on the day with everything going their way and the capabilities you've witnessed.

Just go with the latter.

The department have been banging on about formative grading for the past few years. And avoid summative results at all costs.

Now that the chickens have come home to roost they want you to use those FORMATIVE exams you've been setting for summative grade predictors. There is a definite mismatch.

The best you can do for your students is look at the mocks and increase the grade. If the department want to play games with stats don't get involved with it, let it fall on their heads when an appeal comes up. You're the professional who knows the students not them.

r93kaey5p2izun

Another late on a Friday communication from the DES. This one re managing access to buildings on Monday. How disrespectful to principals to drop this on them so late in the day.

https://www.tui.ie/_fileupload/guidance-for-access-to-schools.pdf

Treppen

Chaya Fresh Shoehorn wrote: »

Another late on a Friday communication from the DES. This one re managing access to buildings on Monday. How disrespectful to principals to drop this on them so late in the day.

https://www.tui.ie/_fileupload/guidance-for-access-to-schools.pdf

I'll miss their Friday evening updates during the Summer.

The department need to inform Schools that croke park hours really aren't that important either.

joebloggs32

Chaya Fresh Shoehorn wrote: »

Another late on a Friday communication from the DES. This one re managing access to buildings on Monday. How disrespectful to principals to drop this on them so late in the day.

https://www.tui.ie/_fileupload/guidance-for-access-to-schools.pdf

Better late than never.

It clearly emphasises that no staff should go in unless the work they need to do can't be done remotely.

Apparently some ETBs were sending out letters this week to teachers informing them they had to turn up to school next week.

km79

All quiet on the western front !
No leaks in the papers leads me to believe it will be later in the week before we get guidelines

Tick
Tock

Treppen

km79 wrote: »

All quiet on the western front !
No leaks in the papers leads me to believe it will be later in the week before we get guidelines

Tick
Tock

Listening to Brendan o Connor and a Bit of an awakening going on with the cancellation of July/August LC.... But yet there are take of primary returning in June... Cos you know... UK and Denmark can do it!

mirrorwall14

daithi7 wrote: »

Well done the public service unions, succeeding getting the state exams cancelled shows a few things, in case we ever doubted it:

- kid's education & assessment doesn't matter versus your agenda
- governments still cowto to public sector unions
- teachers holidays are just much too precious to be messed with cos of a pandemic.

Leaving cert replaced with a makey uppy bs predictive farce = a national disgrace!

Good lord we didn’t want the damn thing cancelled?! Go yell at the parents, the media and the students ffs. None of us want to grade our students like this

mirrorwall14

Had a zoom call with family in Germany on Friday night. I thought folks might be interested in the non media staged insight as to how a normal school is opening in Germany

Child is 18 so nearly finished school, senior cycle age here
1. Class sizes have been halved or more
2. She is only able to attend two days a week
3. School is open six days a week on rotation with extra teachers covering . She is attending Tue and Sat. From what I gather teachers teaching multiple subjects not just their own.
4. One way system on all corridors
5. Staggered start and end times
6. No going to the bathroom between classes or during breaks. Only during class with limits and records kept
7. Hand sanitizers and washing hands enforced

I think those were the main ones, they say massive changes to the system to make it work

Mardy Bum

daithi7 wrote: »

Well done the public service unions, succeeding getting the state exams cancelled shows a few things, in case we ever doubted it:

- kid's education & assessment doesn't matter versus your agenda
- governments still cowto to public sector unions
- teachers holidays are just much too precious to be messed with cos of a pandemic.

Leaving cert replaced with a makey uppy bs predictive farce = a national disgrace!

Unions did not want the exams cancelled. They wanted the government to provide safe working conditions by providing PPE and such like. The government cancelled them to save money. There is no other reason.

rainbowtrout

daithi7 wrote: »

Well done the public service unions, succeeding getting the state exams cancelled shows a few things, in case we ever doubted it:

- kid's education & assessment doesn't matter versus your agenda
- governments still cowto to public sector unions
- teachers holidays are just much too precious to be messed with cos of a pandemic.

Leaving cert replaced with a makey uppy bs predictive farce = a national disgrace!

Teachers did not call for the exams to be cancelled. Teachers wanted them to go ahead. Students and the national media kept calling for them to be cancelled. But don't let the facts get in the way of your rant against teachers. :rolleyes:

History Queen

daithi7 wrote: »

Well done the public service unions, succeeding getting the state exams cancelled shows a few things, in case we ever doubted it:

- kid's education & assessment doesn't matter versus your agenda
- governments still cowto to public sector unions
- teachers holidays are just much too precious to be messed with cos of a pandemic.

Leaving cert replaced with a makey uppy bs predictive farce = a national disgrace!

The unions didn't want the exams cancelled

spurious

daithi7 wrote: »

Well done the public service unions, succeeding getting the state exams cancelled shows a few things, in case we ever doubted it:

- kid's education & assessment doesn't matter versus your agenda
- governments still cowto to public sector unions
- teachers holidays are just much too precious to be messed with cos of a pandemic.

Leaving cert replaced with a makey uppy bs predictive farce = a national disgrace!

"The above is an example of somebody who clearly has not paid any attention to what went on, let alone read the forum charter."
Discuss. (80 marks)

teachinggal123

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

Had a zoom call with family in Germany on Friday night. I thought folks might be interested in the non media staged insight as to how a normal school is opening in Germany

Child is 18 so nearly finished school, senior cycle age here
1. Class sizes have been halved or more
2. She is only able to attend two days a week
3. School is open six days a week on rotation with extra teachers covering . She is attending Tue and Sat. From what I gather teachers teaching multiple subjects not just their own.
4. One way system on all corridors
5. Staggered start and end times
6. No going to the bathroom between classes or during breaks. Only during class with limits and records kept
7. Hand sanitizers and washing hands enforced

I think those were the main ones, they say massive changes to the system to make it work

Do any of the teachers here honestly think our unions would support this?

Most of the teachers I know wouldn’t go for this in a million years.

teachinggal123

Have any of the teachers here been asked/told to go back into school from tomorrow?

I’m thinking of the teachers who can’t work from home due to no space, poor broadband, no laptop etc.

jimmytwotimes 2013

daithi7 wrote: »

Well done the public service unions, succeeding getting the state exams cancelled shows a few things, in case we ever doubted it:

- kid's education & assessment doesn't matter versus your agenda
- governments still cowto to public sector unions
- teachers holidays are just much too precious to be messed with cos of a pandemic.

Leaving cert replaced with a makey uppy bs predictive farce = a national disgrace!

Gone fishing, back later

rainbowtrout

teachinggal123 wrote: »

Have any of the teachers here been asked/told to go back into school from tomorrow?

I’m thinking of the teachers who can’t work from home due to no space, poor broadband, no laptop etc.

Not in our school. School is open for any teacher that needs to access it. We have to let the principal know in advance etc.

wirelessdude01

teachinggal123 wrote: »

Do any of the teachers here honestly think our unions would support this?

Most of the teachers I know wouldn’t go for this in a million years.

Why wouldn't they support most or all of it? The only issue would be the 6 days system and I'm certain that in Ireland most families wouldn't really want it but some might. Would provide extra work for subs in any case but and it's a big but the govt wouldn't go for this anyway as it will cost money.

deiseindublin

It's not an option here anyway, unless we have 2 available teachers waiting to be employed for every one that already is.


Not really a deal breaker but you would go off your head giving the same lesson three times, not to mention how organised you would need to be to remember who you did what with.

History Queen

teachinggal123 wrote: »

Have any of the teachers here been asked/told to go back into school from tomorrow?

I’m thinking of the teachers who can’t work from home due to no space, poor broadband, no laptop etc.

We were given the option as all teachers should have been. Just procedure explained to us and form sent to us that we need to fill in if we wish to go to the school. Did something different happen in your school?

History Queen

teachinggal123 wrote: »

Do any of the teachers here honestly think our unions would support this?

Most of the teachers I know wouldn’t go for this in a million years.

God I hope we're not in a position where students will only be able to attend 2 days a week by the time September comes around. From an education provision stand point curriculums would have to be severely curtailed. I'd imagine unions will be flexible as possible while also protecting their members.

Treppen

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

Had a zoom call with family in Germany on Friday night. I thought folks might be interested in the non media staged insight as to how a normal school is opening in Germany

Child is 18 so nearly finished school, senior cycle age here
1. Class sizes have been halved or more
2. She is only able to attend two days a week
3. School is open six days a week on rotation with extra teachers covering . She is attending Tue and Sat. From what I gather teachers teaching multiple subjects not just their own.
4. One way system on all corridors
5. Staggered start and end times
6. No going to the bathroom between classes or during breaks. Only during class with limits and records kept
7. Hand sanitizers and washing hands enforced

I think those were the main ones, they say massive changes to the system to make it work

Sounds like an excuse for childcare really

r93kaey5p2izun

I saw something on Finland's schools yesterday. It basically looked like mass babysitting while students continued accessing online content or worksheets. Post primary were supervised by one teacher, no access to subject teachers.

km79

Treppen wrote: »

Sounds like an excuse for childcare really

Stopped reading at Saturday’s
Not. Happening .

km79

Chaya Fresh Shoehorn wrote: »

I saw something on Finland's schools yesterday. It basically looked like mass babysitting while students continued accessing online content or worksheets. Post primary were supervised by one teacher, no access to subject teachers.

That’s exactly what it is
Also read it

teachinggal123

km79 wrote: »

Stopped reading at Saturday’s
Not. Happening .

Sadly, this is how teachers will be remembered after this.

Lucky the nurses and other frontline workers don’t have this attitude.

joebloggs32

teachinggal123 wrote: »

Sadly, this is how teachers will be remembered after this.

Lucky the nurses and other frontline workers don’t have this attitude.

I reckon it might be 2 days in school for half the kids, 2 for the other half and one day for us to plan/upload work online

History Queen

teachinggal123 wrote: »

Sadly, this is how teachers will be remembered after this.

Lucky the nurses and other frontline workers don’t have this attitude.

I don't follow?

History Queen

joebloggs32 wrote: »

I reckon it might be 2 days in school for half the kids, 2 for the other half and one day for us to plan/upload work online

Will 50/50 work if 2m social distancing is still in play? I don't think it will in my school, wouldhave to be 1/3 pf the school population to be able to spread out adequately.

Either way I'm still holding on to the hope that we can open in September fairly close to normal with maybe improved hygiene/hand washing facilities etc (hoping I'm right and not just naive!)