Schools closed until February? (part 3)

Sammy2012

alroley wrote: »

Same. Got an email that said the right decision had been made. They want us in 5 days to zoom all classes from school too.

Are you serious???? That's totally not on for the other 2 days!!!

The HorsesMouth

Well I know already from talking to colleagues who are SNAs that their union has sent out an email this morning basically calling for BOMs to be responsible and not open due to an irresponsible decision from the government. Also said they will fight has hard as they can over the next 5 days to reverse the decision to open. I'm guessing the teachers will be out with similar shortly

jimmytwotimes 2013

The HorsesMouth wrote: »

Well I know already from talking to colleagues who are SNAs that their union has sent out an email this morning basically calling for BOMs to be responsible and not open due to an irresponsible decision from the government. Also said they will fight has hard as they can over the next 5 days to reverse the decision to open. I'm guessing the teachers will be out with similar shortly

Ciara Kelly, parents and students got the last LC cancelled.

Teachers wud be better off say nothing

Bananaleaf

alroley wrote: »

Same. Got an email that said the right decision had been made. They want us in 5 days to zoom all classes from school too.

Lol. Not all teacher-haters aren't teachers :rolleyes:

Haven't even heard from ours yet, which is probably because we are an ETB, but no doubt will be the same.

Anyone heard from their ETB yet?

Endintheclowns

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

I took a break tonight. Discovered the **** show that is America. Then dived into bridgerton to completely forget the absolute crap that is the world.

I love to teach. Love it. Love it. I do my best. I’m sure some students hate me and others love me. No one is universally successful but I do my absolute damndest and I work hard.

However over the last ten years I have been increasingly hurt and marginalised by society at large, the media and my Department of Education my bosses. Leaks and leaks, no consultation. Finding out about my job from the media, not even from the department. Circulars on a Friday evening. The disrespect goes on.

Teacher bashing is now a national pastime. It was always there in the background. As the daughter of two teachers and niece of more I knew that. So I suppose you could argue I knew what I was getting into. However it is so so much worse now. The media, the social media, it is constant. It is exhausting. It’s is horrible. And it’s practically bullying.

Everyone always says ‘oh I’m not talking about you’, ‘you are a good teacher’, ‘oh I KNOW it’s not you’.... BUT....

There’s always a but you see. Always a but. It goes on and on and round and round and round.

There are bad employees in EVERY profession. There are good employees in EVERY profession. There are good and bad employees in the public service. There are good and bad employees in private industry. It is difficult to fire anyone. Public or private. The bashing has to stop.

Tonight however. Tonight. Where do I even start. Today I am flabbergasted at my ultimate boss. At her, a fellow teacher, who has just hung her whole profession and all the ancillary school staff out to dry.

If schools don’t manage to open for LCs they will be vilified by parents and students who want to be in.
If schools do open they will be vilified by parents and students who are scared or at risk and do not want to attend.
If we go live with all classes (against the wishes of many of our students I might add) then we’ll be overloading the students
If we do not go live with all our classes we’ll be lazy.
If the unions let us in it will be ‘fair play to the government for sticking it to the unions’
If the unions protect us then it will be ‘God damn unions’
The bitching goes on and on and on and it’s always our fault.

This is not a ****ing competition. This is not a competition. It is far, far more serious than that. It’s not a ‘whose job is less safe’. I’m sick of the comparisons. I’m sick of the ‘what about’

This is a pandemic. We have infection levels that are the worst in Europe. We are currently worse than the north. We have a new strain which is more infectious and spreading rapidly. When even Boris Johnson is closing schools and cancelling exams why in Gods name is my Boss decreeing and repeating over and over that it is ‘safe’ for the LCs and the staff to be in school.

I may give off about things. Like anyone I rant and get things off my chest. But usually I can at least see the logic. Even if I fundamentally disagree with it and fight it.

Tonight though.... Tonight I truly feel that my government has absolutely no respect for education. At all. And not just teachers. I’m talking about us all. Parents, teachers, students, SNA’s, caretakers, secretarys, bus drivers, the list goes on. They will all be back next week. To satisfy the political ‘promise’ that they would keep schools open. At all costs? That’s what it seems to have come to

I am worried for my colleagues, teachers and all the ancillary staff from bus drivers to secretary’s. I am worried for my students. I am worried for their families and what may spread silently in classrooms with just cloth masks. I am worried for our country. I am worried about our health services. Our front line workers dealing with the potential hidden spread that will continue. In schools without adequate testing. Without adequate contact tracing.

And without actual advice from NPHET or the CMO that this is actually a safe proposal.

What if it doesn’t work?

Well unfortunately based on my last ten years, there are many who will blame the teachers. Again.

Wow. Incredible post

Thank you.

...Ghost...

Bananaleaf wrote: »

Lol. Not all teacher-haters aren't teachers :rolleyes:

Haven't even heard from ours yet, which is probably because we are an ETB, but no doubt will be the same.

Anyone heard from their ETB yet?

My OH says there is an online school meeting scheduled today, but the principal and management treat the rest of the staff with as much respect as Hitler treated the jews. So, they may well be expected to fortify the front lines......porta cabins and tiny rooms and kangaroo internet access. Let the games begin.

Bananaleaf

jimmytwotimes 2013 wrote: »

Teachers wud be better off say nothing

I dunno. Would we be staying quiet so as not to offend the public? The ones who are on our side are with us, the ones who aren't will find something to criticise us for.

I think us teachers shouldn't give a sh1t what is thought of us. Enough is enough, put the foot down.

If anything , first years should be back in the building. Give working parents a break ffs (this is directed at the govt btw, not you!)

Bananaleaf

...Ghost... wrote: »

My OH says there is an online school meeting scheduled today, but the principal and management treat the rest of the staff with as much respect as Hitler treated the jews. So, they may well be expected to fortify the front lines......porta cabins and tiny rooms and kangaroo internet access. Let the games begin.

Well if I am told to teach online on site and the internet doesnt work when I try to stream, there will be no make-up lesson.

Benimar

alroley wrote: »

Same. Got an email that said the right decision had been made. They want us in 5 days to zoom all classes from school too.

So your Principal wants their staff, when we are all asked to stay at home, to travel into work for no other reason than to do Zoom classes, something that can (and should) be done from home?

I think I know what sort of person you are dealing with there!

Follow_ur_lead

From reading this thread it's apparent teachers don't want to provide any support for the kids. Remote learning for the best part is a disaster. I fully understand and agree that from 1st to 5th year kids should be kept off.

6th years should be brought back though. With the schools less populated it will be safer. Teachers want all out or nothing though.

I actually have sympathy for the minister.

Leftwaffe

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

From reading this thread it's apparent teachers don't want to provide any support for the kids. Remote learning for the best part is a disaster. I fully understand and agree that from 1st to 5th year kids should be kept off.

6th years should be brought back though. With the schools less populated it will be safer. Teachers want all out or nothing though.

I actually have sympathy for the minister.

Yeah, not bothering with this. Next.

mirrorwall14

First meeting of the day done already here. Management being fairly reasonable and we have a lot of data from surveys to back us up. Students want a variety of methods and teaching which isn't unreasonable. We're looking at 1 live class a week minimum with each group, ideally one class of video demo and one class of work to do which is to be corrected and given back. What we do for any excess time is our choice. However absolute maximum of 40 minutes per class period. Homework or written work to be calculated in that slot, not in addition. Our students were overwhelmed completely and utterly as were staff

Sammy2012

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

From reading this thread it's apparent teachers don't want to provide any support for the kids. Remote learning for the best part is a disaster. I fully understand and agree that from 1st to 5th year kids should be kept off.

6th years should be brought back though. With the schools less populated it will be safer. Teachers want all out or nothing though.

I actually have sympathy for the minister.

Not a secondary teacher but how will it be safer? Have the classrooms gotten bigger in the last 2 weeks? I have a sister who is doing her LC this year and she'd rather be at home doing her work online. She missed 2 weeks in December due to being a close contact of a confirmed case. Shes happy to stay home and receive live classes and get on with her work. It's not only teachers who are concerned.

Follow_ur_lead

Redordeadqwwer wrote: »

Yeah, not bothering with this. Next.

It may not line up with the agenda on here but it is a rational expectation.
Teachers can no longer claim to be frontline.

jimmytwotimes 2013

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

From reading this thread it's apparent teachers don't want to provide any support for the kids. Remote learning for the best part is a disaster. I fully understand and agree that from 1st to 5th year kids should be kept off.

6th years should be brought back though. With the schools less populated it will be safer. Teachers want all out or nothing though.

I actually have sympathy for the minister.

Not biting either. Only a reply away from 'put them all on the PUP'

is_that_so

Redordeadqwwer wrote: »

Yeah, not bothering with this. Next.

Hmm, poster posts a reply to a post to say they are ignoring a post!

jimmytwotimes 2013

is_that_so wrote: »

Hmm, poster posts to say they are ignoring a post!

Hmm

jrosen

The problem again this time round will be individual schools taking different approaches.

Follow_ur_lead

Sammy2012 wrote: »

Not a secondary teacher but how will it be safer? Have the classrooms gotten bigger in the last 2 weeks? I have a sister who is doing her LC this year and she'd rather be at home doing her work online. She missed 2 weeks in December due to being a close contact of a confirmed case. Shes happy to stay home and receive live classes and get on with her work. It's not only teachers who are concerned.

There will be less kids in the school.

Remote schooling doesnt work for a lot of kids or parents. That is a reality.

Sammy2012

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

There will be less kids in the school.

Remore schooling doesnt work for a lot of kids or parents. That is a reality.

But the same number of kids will still be in a classroom together. They are not going to split up classes. So they will be having the same classes, in the same rooms, for the same length of time.

I understand that remote learning isn't ideal but there is a national emergency going on.

Follow_ur_lead

Sammy2012 wrote: »

But the same number of kids will still be in a classroom together. They are not going to split up classes. So they will be having the same classes, in the same rooms, for the same length of time.

But the teachers and other pupils will have less social contacts? The teachers rather than having different classes with different years will only have 6th years. No?

iguana

richardw001 wrote: »

The one that I would favour is to push the school year out past June, July and August.

As a parent, I'd be really opposed to this, tbh. Whether or not we expect our kids to do schoolwork during this time, this isn't holidays for them. This is a time where they are living very limited versions of their normal lives and they have to cope with a stress few adults today have ever experienced in their childhood. If by the time summer comes things are quite normal and safe, I want to be able to let my child relax and let loose. And while I have an only child I worry about his social development out of school, realistically, school is not a place where children can truly relax and let loose. Where they can run off their energy and truly let go of the tensions they are experiencing now.

I can't wait for my son to get back to school and live his normal life. Doubly so as he was in the process of changing school and should have had his first day in his new school yesterday. But not at the expense of his normal summer. Not at the expense of him getting to get back to all his absolute favourite parts of life. Not at the expense of getting to visit extended family in other parts of the country. Proper holidays are essential for children's mental health every bit as much as having safe schools to go to.

penny piper

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

From reading this thread it's apparent teachers don't want to provide any support for the kids. Remote learning for the best part is a disaster. I fully understand and agree that from 1st to 5th year kids should be kept off.

6th years should be brought back though. With the schools less populated it will be safer. Teachers want all out or nothing though.

I actually have sympathy for the minister.

One of my children was in ucd at !7 and was well able to cope in College...what's wrong with these students at the same age researching/working remotely?
If it's not beneficial for the whole student population to be in attendance...surely it's even better for this period of time that there is no students/teachers in school.....you have to protect teachers/students...
I actually don't understand why the English, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland seem to differ so much on the Irish Government's strange stance...we do have the new strain of virus here......
It beggars belief that you could have sympathy on Ms.Foley....

Bananaleaf

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

There will be less kids in the school.

Open up the pubs, but just the bars not the lounges

Open the cinemas, but just half the screens

Open the shopping centres, but only the stores on the left hand side of the mall

Open hotels, but only the first floor

Open the salons, but the beauty parts, not the hair


Do you see how ridiculous it sounds when you apply that logic to any other profession?

jimmytwotimes 2013

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

It may not line up with the agenda on here but it is a rational expectation.
Teachers can no longer claim to be frontline.

What part of meeting 50 other people 3x a week during the height of the pandemic thus far isn't frontline?

I've 2 LC classes

Benimar

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

There will be less kids in the school.

Remote schooling doesnt work for a lot of kids or parents. That is a reality.

First Year college students have just completed a full Semester of online learning. Some of those would be younger than some current LC students - if it works for one, why not the other?

I've been dealing with remote delivery since March and it can and does work (once given a chance)

Sammy2012

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

But the teachers and other pupils will have less social contacts? The teachers rather than having different classes with different years will only have 6th years. No?

Okay so rather than teaching 8 classes a day they will teach 4. So rather than teaching 200 kids they will teach 100. Im basing those numbers on my own secondary school. It was a huge school and still is. So you think that 100 contacts right now is the way to go? Some of those both students and teachers will have family members living with them who are vulnerable. Would you be happy if your child was forced into this situation if you had an elderly family member in your household or a vulnerable child?

jrosen

penny piper wrote: »

One of my children was in ucd at !7 and was well able to cope in College...what's wrong with these students at the same age researching/working remotely?
If it's not beneficial for the whole student population to be in attendance...surely it's even better for this period of time that there is no students/teachers in school.....you have to protect teachers/students...
I actually don't understand why the English, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland seem to differ so much on the Irish Government's strange stance...we do have the new strain of virus here......
It beggars belief that you could have sympathy on Ms.Foley....

There is nothing “wrong” with any student but not all students are capable of working at home to their full ability. Some need and require the structure and guidance of the classroom.

jimmytwotimes 2013

Benimar wrote: »

I've been dealing with remote delivery since March and it can and does work (once given a chance)

Ever hear of social disadvantage?

It won't work for everyone no matter how much of a 'chance' it's given

Follow_ur_lead

Follow_ur_lead wrote: »

From reading this thread it's apparent teachers don't want to provide any support for the kids. Remote learning for the best part is a disaster. I fully understand and agree that from 1st to 5th year kids should be kept off.

6th years should be brought back though. With the schools less populated it will be safer. Teachers want all out or nothing though.

I actually have sympathy for the minister.

In a rational world, reduced workload entails reduced pay. Teachers (with the exception of those returning to the classroom to teach Leaving Certs) are not going to receive a huge amount of sympathy throughout the month of January. Those thrust on partial salary or PUP rightly feeling aggrieved by the soft landing of certain entitled public servants reluctant to engage in the online medium. Time for these individuals to take responsibility and stop whining, considering their relatively privileged position compared to many other sectors of society at present.