Post primary return to schools roadmap

TheValeyard

Social distancing lasted until 11am break. Then complete breakdown.

First years literally swinging out of each other, 6th years giving each other jockey back rides...


IF I wasn't mobile I'd insert a Captain Picard Face Palm picture here.

Smacruairi

TheValeyard wrote: »

Social distancing lasted until 11am break. Then complete breakdown.

First years literally swinging out of each other, 6th years giving each other jockey back rides...


IF I wasn't mobile I'd insert a Captain Picard Face Palm picture here.

Back teaching secondary a few days. As expected, social distancing is impossible, unless you wanted to be a stazi member on a corridor and breaking up lunch chats between old friends. Even in the classroom, the spaces you had measured out quickly shift by 10cm here and there owing to diff body shapes so the social distancing in the classroom is obsolete.

That being said, it's good to get back to work, kids are in good form. No one wants to go to the overflow room as it's a pain in the bollix, so kids are sitting in chairs on corridors almost to stay part of class. Still have some parents complaining about procedures and airflow, some the opposite and saying when are we getting back to full time extra curricular.

As a staff member, I knew this would be the case, and I'm happy enough so far as I know the risk. You only have to look at this thread to see the evolution from "ah we are looking after staff concerns" to "ah the virus isn't that bad, relax". I'm just hoping that the death rate stays at 0 and there are no long term effects.

To be be honest, all the measures have mitigated risk basically **** all, it all just feels like a placebo, but I'm happy to go along with it. I'm now more inclined to say, just open up the country now. If we are open, everyone else can no problem.

My opinion from the other clusterfeck of a thread!

ethical

Just after hearing of a school with an overflow room that has a myriad of students from various classes/year groups in it! This fecks up all the other good work they are doing.
If one person in an overflow has Covid you can instantly infect virtually the whole school when students from this room return to their base classrooms.........it defeats the whole objective of trying to keep all students and staff safe.................its like trying to put out a fire using parafin oil!

Smacruairi

ethical wrote: »

Just after hearing of a school with an overflow room that has a myriad of students from various classes/year groups in it! This fecks up all the other good work they are doing.
If one person in an overflow has Covid you can instantly infect virtually the whole school when students from this room return to their base classrooms.........it defeats the whole objective of trying to keep all students and staff safe.................its like trying to put out a fire using parafin oil!

Yeah but if you have an overflow room for every class... Then you basically have room for double the school. Tbh the overflow room was never going to work properly for any school.

mirrorwall14

Smacruairi wrote: »

Yeah but if you have an overflow room for every class... Then you basically have room for double the school. Tbh the overflow room was never going to work properly for any school.

We have overflow but it’s by year group. Similarly the toilets are by year group too. Mixing kids completely in the overflow seems a bit mad tbh. Admittedly we’ve 150 in those year groups so there’s enough overflow to make it work

mirrorwall14

Crying laughing at this tonight.....

amacca

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

Crying laughing at this tonight.....

Thats a Dept training simulator.......the best strategy is to go to the corner, wait for most of the students to come close (but not too close)...then proceed to the next corner as they re-adjust to follow then rinse and repeat.

spurious

ethical wrote: »

Just after hearing of a school with an overflow room that has a myriad of students from various classes/year groups in it! This fecks up all the other good work they are doing.
If one person in an overflow has Covid you can instantly infect virtually the whole school when students from this room return to their base classrooms.........it defeats the whole objective of trying to keep all students and staff safe.................its like trying to put out a fire using parafin oil!

Sounds like my niece's school.
First 20 can fit in the class, the leftovers go to the overflow, while listening to 'their' teacher on some sort of headset, along with students from a selection of years.

ethical

One week nearly done and some teachers at breaking point without a proper staff room ,water turned off in staff kitchen and kettle taken away!
Wellbeing appearing in the agenda of every meeting and not even being mentioned,socially distanced meetings with little or no input from distraught staff as they are shariing a device amongst 4 or five!

Over flow rooms with a multitude of year groups killing all the good work being done besides and very open to spreading infection school wide.

Some staff waiting for 1st October so that they can exit with some honour,others wishing they could do the same. All this is playing in to the hands of management ,who never really liked staffrooms due to staff sharing their feelings and trying to come up with solutions on how to make a profession that has been decimated over the last ten years in every which way possible a little more bearable for each other.

Having spoken to a number of schools it is becoming clear that etbs are faring out worst,are they afraid of some sort of insurance claim! I can tell you they will have more serious issues on their hands if they do not cop the fcuk on and let their staff have tea making facilities and treat them in a more fairer way.There is a rotten stench of a two tier system manifesting itself again,(it was always in the upper echelons of the Goldenest of Circles both with the Religious and the etbs!) but is now filtering down to a more local school based level.

They can take our classrooms,they can take our staffrooms and kettles but by God they will never take our freedom to express our disgust at the way they treat unequal teachers!

Purple Mountain

My son started secondary this week.
He said there's no hand sanitiser on his bus and they can literally sit anywhere and with anyone.
He said the driver lets a roar if he sees them taking their masks off but can't see how he could be expected to police a coach full of teenagers and drive safely too.

wirelessdude01

Purple Mountain wrote: »

My son started secondary this week.
He said there's no hand sanitiser on his bus and they can literally sit anywhere and with anyone.
He said the driver lets a roar if he sees them taking their masks off but can't see how he could be expected to police a coach full of teenagers and drive safely too.

Did you expect anything different?

Purple Mountain

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

Did you expect anything different?

Well were we not fed the promise of hand sanitiser on the bus and them supposed to sit with siblings?!

rainbowtrout

Purple Mountain wrote: »

Well were we not fed the promise of hand sanitiser on the bus and them supposed to sit with siblings?!

If they choose to sit with kids that are not their siblings there's not a whole lot can be done. The bus driver can't spend his day policing the students on the bus regarding masks and seats. There has to be some personal responsibility on the students and their parents should be drilling that into them.

wirelessdude01

Purple Mountain wrote: »

Well were we not fed the promise of hand sanitiser on the bus and them supposed to sit with siblings?!

All window dressing as was predicted on here.

2xj3hplqgsbkym

Apologies if this has been asked already.
If a teacher has to self quarantine due to a family member being tested, is it just certified sick leave / force majour that has to be used?

Treppen

TheValeyard wrote: »

Social distancing lasted until 11am break. Then complete breakdown.

First years literally swinging out of each other, 6th years giving each other jockey back rides...


IF I wasn't mobile I'd insert a Captain Picard Face Palm picture here.

There's one for everybody in the audience.

SligoBrewer

Jonathan Mushy Ring wrote: »

Apologies if this has been asked already.
If a teacher has to self quarantine due to a family member being tested, is it just certified sick leave / force majour that has to be used?

C19 leave.

Random sample

Does any school have plans for running parent teacher meetings yet? Our principal is looking for ideas.

khalessi

Random sample wrote: »

Does any school have plans for running parent teacher meetings yet? Our principal is looking for ideas.

We normally hold our two days running, I was thinking that we should break them up over 4 days one a week and space out the meetings and offer a zoom meeting instead where possible

km79

Random sample wrote: »

Does any school have plans for running parent teacher meetings yet? Our principal is looking for ideas.

Physical meetings just can not happen
What would be the point of all that we are doing if we then invite 100s of visitors in to take to lots of different teachers
Will have to be some kind of online forum for exam years and maybe extra reports for non exam years

rainbowtrout

khalessi wrote: »

We normally hold our two days running, I was thinking that we should break them up over 4 days one a week and space out the meetings and offer a zoom meeting instead where possible

No reason why it couldn't take place by zoom. Allow parents to sign up for a 10 minute slot (or whatever) and send list of parents a link for that particular teacher. Teacher works their way down through the appointment list and only admits one parent to the zoom meeting at a time.

Treppen

Random sample wrote: »

Does any school have plans for running parent teacher meetings yet? Our principal is looking for ideas.

Tell him it can wait.

If it's important then teachers can ring home.

Failing that, parents can schedule as the year goes on.

50 odd parents in a zoom queue is a bit much.

solerina

Random sample wrote: »

Does any school have plans for running parent teacher meetings yet? Our principal is looking for ideas.

No, it has not even been mentioned,
I think we should set up some kind of form on VS ware and not have any PT meetings this year, we have enough issues keeping ourselves and our students safe without holding PT meetings.

RealJohn

km79 wrote: »

Physical meetings just can not happen

I disagree. I think they can happen, but parents need to have time slots assigned and strictly adhered to. If they turn up late, tough. If they turn up early, they can wait outside.
It would be difficult to accommodate everyone, but it’s doable.

km79

RealJohn wrote: »

I disagree. I think they can happen, but parents need to have time slots assigned and strictly adhered to. If they turn up late, tough. If they turn up early, they can wait outside.
It would be difficult to accommodate everyone, but it’s doable.

Seats tables etc would have to be disinfected after every set of parents
Who does that ?
How much extra time would have to be allowed ?
Where do parents wait ? In their cars I guess . If they have one
How do they know when to come in ?
Who polices entry and exit ?
What happens if they are not wearing/refuse to wear a mask ?

We have Already been told by our primary school that our sons PTM will be a phone call
A primary school PTM is much easier to manage as it can be done as parents of one class only seeing that one teacher
One in one out .
Secondary school is unworkable

RealJohn

km79 wrote: »

Seats tables etc would have to be disinfected after every set of parents
Who does that ?

Most people, now. The students do. Why can’t their parents?

km79 wrote: »

How much extra time would have to be allowed ?

Zero hours, zero minutes, and zero seconds. Why would we add any extra time?

km79 wrote: »

Where do parents wait ? In their cars I guess .

A queue of one, and no more than one, outside of classrooms. In bigger schools, maybe two, socially distanced.

km79 wrote: »

How do they know when to come in ?

Watches?

km79 wrote: »

Who polices entry and exit ?

Management, at the front door.

km79 wrote: »

What happens if they are not wearing/refuse to wear a mask ?

No entry, like other shops etc.

Rosita

I think in the context of the current restrictions talk of PTMs is taking the p*ss. They are of little value anyway and can be fairly easily replaced by more detailed school reports and phone calls if necessary. I think we will have many other challenges in the coming month without worrying about PTMs.

Treppen

RealJohn wrote: »

I disagree. I think they can happen, but parents need to have time slots assigned and strictly adhered to. If they turn up late, tough. If they turn up early, they can wait outside.
It would be difficult to accommodate everyone, but it’s doable.

We have an ban on any visitors to the school. Parents have to set up a zoom with the principal etc. if it's urgent. Nobody in to give talks etc.

I couldn't imagine 150 + parents in trying do distance.

km79

RealJohn wrote: »

Watches?

.

A lot of what you said is perfectly reasonable
Unfortunately a lot of people are unreasonable

Add to that the teacher who just will not shut up and sees a long q as a badge of honor and it just won’t work

Long and short of it is that it can be done another way and should be done another way in the interest of public safety

I find PTMS a pure and utter waste of time for the most part too. The minority that need to be met with are the parents who won’t turn up

r93kaey5p2izun

I find it difficult to believe anyone finds post primary PTMs worthwhile enough to even attempt them in the current climate!