Covid in Schools

rainbowtrout

km79 wrote: »

Who supervises them?
We already have two small break and two lunch breaks .
Neither of these would sit within the LC mock timetable For a 3 hour paper starting at 9/930 which they have have to to get two papers done in a day .
Our teachers have base rooms to students move . They have uploaded all their seating plans for contact tracing
Moving teachers (and choosing who will be the unfortunate ones to move ) will create a lot of problems
“Guidance “ was due from the JMB two weeks ago!

Well we usually run two exams a day when we have mocks. One from 9-12, and the other from 1.00-4.00 give or take for individual exams. Our normal lunchtime is at 1.15 so the teacher who would normally have the LCs in the middle of the day will get an early lunch and supervise them during what is normally lunchtime. It's never been an issue. Can't see it being an issue this year either.

You're describing teachers as being 'unfortunate' if they have to move. It's a bit dramatic. It's a temporary arrangement. Things like this crop up all the time in schools.

km79

rainbowtrout wrote: »

Well we usually run two exams a day when we have mocks. One from 9-12, and the other from 1.00-4.00 give or take for individual exams. Our normal lunchtime is at 1.15 so the teacher who would normally have the LCs in the middle of the day will get an early lunch and supervise them during what is normally lunchtime. It's never been an issue. Can't see it being an issue this year either.

You're describing teachers as being 'unfortunate' if they have to move. It's a bit dramatic. It's a temporary arrangement. Things like this crop up all the time in schools.

It’s not a normal year though
We have split breaks and split lunches
This will introduce a fifth break
It won’t be easy to manage . A bit of guidance would be helpful

I can’t seem to find an answer on whether the 72 hour quart one thing is no longer needed as per PH or did it just disappear to suit the SEC and DofE ?

r93kaey5p2izun

km79 wrote: »

I can’t seem to find an answer on whether the 72 hour quart one thing is no longer needed as per PH or did it just disappear to suit the SEC and DofE ?

Do you work in an ETB? It was never recommended by Public Health for schools, but ETBs included it in their Covid policies. No government or public health documents mention it.

km79

Camryn Gigantic Toothpaste wrote: »

Do you work in an ETB? It was never recommended by Public Health for schools, but ETBs included it in their Covid policies. No government or public health documents mention it.

Oh right
That’s interesting !
I work in a secondary school
The local primary school that my son goes to is operating it too

r93kaey5p2izun

km79 wrote: »

Oh right
That’s interesting !
I work in a secondary school
The local primary school that my son goes to is operating it too

I know it was raised at my union branch meeting as it was causing issues and in fact some teachers were in trouble with principal of a certain school for breaking it. The response received from ETB was that they chose to use it as Libraries Ireland adopted it as best practice and FORSA also issued advice to SNAs saying it should be used and that document was developed in conjunction with Ronan Glynn. However this was all back in March/April and advice has moved on since then. I don't know if the ETB in question has changed its stance since then, union was questioning if it was required as no official school documents include it.

wirelessdude01

Our school operates it as well.

Total pain in the hole though. I've a senior primary class and my.parents are crying out for homework to go back to normal. Feedback coming home a week after it has been submitted.

rainbowtrout

km79 wrote: »

It’s not a normal year though
We have split breaks and split lunches
This will introduce a fifth break
It won’t be easy to manage . A bit of guidance would be helpful

I can’t seem to find an answer on whether the 72 hour quart one thing is no longer needed as per PH or did it just disappear to suit the SEC and DofE ?

Will it though? Surely with the length of exams, a lot of them will have a break that will overlap with the lunch breaks already in place.

SlowBlowin

Can I ask how do teachers react/feel when a parent makes the decision to keep their child at home as they are worried about the increased infection rates ?

As a non teacher I am sure I would be balancing "why do I have to be here" with "education is vital", but I wondered what the consensus is in your staffroom ?

Apologies if this has been asked before, but I can't find any specific posts and thought this was the best thread to ask.

km79

Camryn Gigantic Toothpaste wrote: »

I know it was raised at my union branch meeting as it was causing issues and in fact some teachers were in trouble with principal of a certain school for breaking it. The response received from ETB was that they chose to use it as Libraries Ireland adopted it as best practice and FORSA also issued advice to SNAs saying it should be used and that document was developed in conjunction with Ronan Glynn. However this was all back in March/April and advice has moved on since then. I don't know if the ETB in question has changed its stance since then, union was questioning if it was required as no official school documents include it.

That’s brilliant info thanks

wirelessdude01

SlowBlowin wrote: »

Can I ask how do teachers react/feel when a parent makes the decision to keep their child at home as they are worried about the increased infection rates ?

As a non teacher I am sure I would be balancing "why do I have to be here" with "education is vital", but I wondered what the consensus is in your staffroom ?

Apologies if this has been asked before, but I can't find any specific posts and thought this was the best thread to ask.

I'd guess most teachers don't feel anything? Nothing to do with us.

SlowBlowin

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

I'd guess most teachers don't feel anything? Nothing to do with us.

So there is no talk of whether you think its a good or bad decision, or whether schools should be opened or closed ?

wirelessdude01

SlowBlowin wrote: »

So there is no talk of whether you think its a good or bad decision, or whether schools should be opened or closed ?

I answered the question you asked. What we think or feel isn't considered at all. Children miss days all the time for a huge and wide range of reasons. We go in, do our job the best of our ability and most importantly in the current circumstances in the safest possible manner for ourselves, our families, our students and the wider school community as a whole.

rainbowtrout

SlowBlowin wrote: »

Can I ask how do teachers react/feel when a parent makes the decision to keep their child at home as they are worried about the increased infection rates ?

As a non teacher I am sure I would be balancing "why do I have to be here" with "education is vital", but I wondered what the consensus is in your staffroom ?

Apologies if this has been asked before, but I can't find any specific posts and thought this was the best thread to ask.

We don't react at all. We teach the children in front of us. We don't know the situation in every household, and I don't have the time to question why a parent has decided to keep their children out.

rainbowtrout

SlowBlowin wrote: »

So there is no talk of whether you think its a good or bad decision, or whether schools should be opened or closed ?

Most of us don't have a staffroom to operate from anymore. I am lucky enough to have my own base room, so when I have a free class I have two choices, sit in my classroom or sit in my car. I teach with my classroom door open and all the windows open. My room is just inside a main door into the school so it becomes a wind tunnel on a cold day. When there was a cold snap two weeks ago I was teaching with a coat and hat on in my lab. When I have a free class I am on my own in my room with the door closed so I can try and warm up a bit. I don't see some of my colleagues and friends from one end of the week to another because we can't use our staffroom. So whether a student is in or out due to covid is way down the list of things to talk about when I do see them.

SlowBlowin

To explain I am a grand parent who has a 12 year old I am guardian to, he has ADHD so I always work closely with the school, and I hold a great admiration of the teachers and the help they give. My wife has cancer and has undergone extensive chemo, and even though we are obviously an "at risk" family we still feel guilt that we are keeping the lad at home, almost as if we are letting the teaching staff down as they still have to go in.

I guess in a way in I was seeking reassurance that it was the right thing to do, so thought the best place to ask was here.

wirelessdude01

SlowBlowin wrote: »

To explain I am a grand parent who has a 12 year old I am guardian to, he has ADHD so I always work closely with the school, and I hold a great admiration of the teachers and the help they give. My wife has cancer and has undergone extensive chemo, and even though we are obviously an "at risk" family we still feel guilt that we are keeping the lad at home, almost as if we are letting the teaching staff down as they still have to go in.

I guess in a way in I was seeking reassurance that it was the right thing to do, so thought the best place to ask was here.

You have a choice/chance to protect your family. As a teacher I'd tell you don't worry about anyone else.

SlowBlowin

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

You have a choice/chance to protect your family. As a teacher I'd tell you don't worry about anyone else.

Thank you very much, seems stupid but that does make us feel better.

We only made the decision yesterday so he's only going to lose a few days.

hesaidshesaid

SlowBlowin wrote: »

To explain I am a grand parent who has a 12 year old I am guardian to, he has ADHD so I always work closely with the school, and I hold a great admiration of the teachers and the help they give. My wife has cancer and has undergone extensive chemo, and even though we are obviously an "at risk" family we still feel guilt that we are keeping the lad at home, almost as if we are letting the teaching staff down as they still have to go in.

I guess in a way in I was seeking reassurance that it was the right thing to do, so thought the best place to ask was here.

Hi there

You should feel absolutely no guilt. If I see empty seats on Monday, I'll be hugely grateful that the parents/guardians chose to protect their/the children's health by keeping them home. And I will really wish that I had the option to make that choice.

SlowBlowin

hesaidshesaid wrote: »

Hi there

You should feel absolutely no guilt. If I see empty seats on Monday, I'll be hugely grateful that the parents/guardians chose to protect their/the children's health by keeping them home. And I will really wish that I had the option to make that choice.

Thank you, we have contact with the teachers but more so the SNA staff and coordinator, even so its difficult to ask then directly, and they are all so busy..

Stay safe, you are appreciated here greatly, and I too wish you had more of a voice/choice.

Treppen

SlowBlowin wrote: »

Thank you very much, seems stupid but that does make us feel better.

We only made the decision yesterday so he's only going to lose a few days.

In the general scheme of things the kids will be grand.
We have a good few out long term, for a multitude of covid reasons, were not really supposed to enquire too much bbecause of personal medical privacy or something, and were fine with that.

If it makes you feel any better there's the odd one or two students in my school that go on family holidays during school time every year for a week or more. So ya we do throw our eyes up to heaven when they come looking for the notes to catch up :PAC:

rainbowtrout

SlowBlowin wrote: »

Thank you very much, seems stupid but that does make us feel better.

We only made the decision yesterday so he's only going to lose a few days.

There won't be much happening in any school in the country on Monday and Tuesday, he won't be missing anything.

mirrorwall14

SlowBlowin wrote: »

Thank you, we have contact with the teachers but more so the SNA staff and coordinator, even so its difficult to ask then directly, and they are all so busy..

Stay safe, you are appreciated here greatly, and I too wish you had more of a voice/choice.

I’m a very high risk secondary teacher working from home. We pulled our six year old yesterday and he’s not going back until after Christmas. An extra few days before seeing very high risk family members is important and he is our highest risk factor. Seeing the swabs and case numbers only confirmed the decision for me to be honest

Will Yam

rainbowtrout wrote: »

There won't be much happening in any school in the country on Monday and Tuesday, he won't be missing anything.

It will be interesting to see if there is a rise or fall in Covid numbers from next Sunday - 5 days after schools close.

rainbowtrout

Will Yam wrote: »

It will be interesting to see if there is a rise or fall in Covid numbers from next Sunday - 5 days after schools close.

It's already rising rapidly and schools are still open.

shesty

It has risen and fallen a couple of times since September.

I doubt the next 2 weeks will tell much. Especially if they close up every.other.thing at the same time.:( Tells you nothing really.

Will Yam

rainbowtrout wrote: »

It's already rising rapidly and schools are still open.

Yes, but if it continues to rise after the schools close it sort of dispels the notion that the schools are a significant contributor to growth.

deiseindublin

Not unless nothing else changes it doesn't.

rainbowtrout

Will Yam wrote: »

Yes, but if it continues to rise after the schools close it sort of dispels the notion that the schools are a significant contributor to growth.

It doesn't really tell us anything. Christmas more than any other time of the year, is a unique situation where people are socialising way more than normal. Schools will close but it's not like all of those kids just disappear, they will be with families and they will be visiting and socialising just like everyone else in the next week or so.

amacca

Will Yam wrote: »

Yes, but if it continues to rise after the schools close it sort of dispels the notion that the schools are a significant contributor to growth.

+ theres a very significant lag period...the numbers you are looking at now are a result of changes in behaviour up to two weeks ago if Im not mistaken

Bobtheman

shesty wrote: »

It has risen and fallen a couple of times since September.

I doubt the next 2 weeks will tell much. Especially if they close up every.other.thing at the same time.:( Tells you nothing really.

I disagree. I can see the schools closing. The new strain. Projections etc