Covid in Schools

babybuilder

Will Yam wrote: »

The national reproductive rate is about 7.5%. The rate in schools is 1.8%.

It’s quite clear that schools are among the safest places to be.

Hogwash. No testing in Schools. Asymptomatic cases not being detected. Positive cases among family groups out down as community spread when schools not being tested.
https://time.com/5868098/schools-reopening-coronavirus-denmark-south-korea-israel/
Many examples. Look up North for another example. There's this myth that teenagers are not vectors of transmission.

Will Yam

Darth Melkor wrote: »

You didn't answer the question.

On a similar note, if the rate outside schools is over 7% and in schools is 1.7% surely we should actually open up restaurants?

We should make it that the tables are approximately half a metre apart. We should strive for a minimum of 30 customers for every 25 square metres. We should ensure that patrons frequently pull down their masks. Rather than travelling by car to this eatery, we can pile the customers onto buses, maybe 20 to 30 per vehicle. The driver can glance occasionally in his mirror and give a shout if the passengers are without their masks and out of their seats.

In the restaurants, diners can get up every few minutes when the waiters aren't watching and engage in wrestling/ufc bouts, share bites of their chicken rolls, take a pull of each others fags or vaping devices and also shift as many as possible of diners from other tables. These restaurants could try to keep the customers confined in their poorly ventilated premises for up to 7 hours. Obviously, pubs and any other public venues should strive to achieve the same type of conduct. Then and only then can we begin to tackle this pandemic.

Also, the government if they had any compassion at all would immediately transport the elderly from nursing homes into schools. Why would they deny the vulnerable and critically ill the safest environment in the country?

All gatherings present risk. All.

So the trick here is to close down all those that are non essential so the essential ones can operate at less risk.

So we keep hospitals open. And supermarkets. And pharmacies.

And schools.

Darth Melkor

Will Yam wrote: »

All gatherings present risk. All.

So the trick here is to close down all those that are non essential so the essential ones can operate at less risk.

So we keep hospitals open. And supermarkets. And pharmacies.

And schools.

We keep essential services open while taking reasonable necessary precautions to make them safe for those providing and those receiving the essential service.

You consistently miss the point.

History Queen

Statement from Minister for Education

https://twitter.com/Education_Ire/status/1318300028348366850?s=19

Count Hairyfoot

They need to reduce the amount of students onsite every day but the bullheaded way the government went ahead with the all in all the time plan meant nothing else was considered. This should be straight forward at 2nd level as childcare isn't an issue. Mon/Tues/Wed on 1st, 3rd and 6th year in. Other years are remote. Thurs/Fri 2nd, Transition year and 5th are in and the others are remote. You immediately cut the amount in by 50%. Take over RTE 1 and 2 and also use them to broadcast classes that match up to the years at home which can help if internet connection is an issue.

km79

Count Hairyfoot wrote: »

They need to reduce the amount of students onsite every day but the bullheaded way the government went ahead with the all in all the time plan meant nothing else was considered. This should be straight forward at 2nd level as childcare isn't an issue. Mon/Tues/Wed on 1st, 3rd and 6th year in. Other years are remote. Thurs/Fri 2nd, Transition year and 5th are in and the others are remote. You immediately cut the amount in by 50%. Take over RTE 1 and 2 and also use them to broadcast classes that match up to the years at home which can help if internet connection is an issue.

That this isn’t even being considered by now and a robust plan from the dept of Education in place 7 months on is incomprehensible!
I have made the point to the poster above numerous times but it has been ignored every time .
Yes lots of places are still open
Every single one of them has restricted access and or numbers
Except schools

Rosita

Having looked at the government website and looked at the amount of activity that's being permitted I don't think this is related to the the common understanding of a Level 5 restriction. This will be revisited and schools will become part of the conversation in late November. They just lacked the stomach to really lock down right now and will pay a price for that.

wirelessdude01

Rosita wrote: »

Having looked at the government website and looked at the amount of activity that's being permitted I don't think this is related to the the common understanding of a Level 5 restriction. This will be revisited and schools will become part of the conversation in late November. They just lacked the stomach to really lock down right now and will pay a price for that.

I think that secondary will be curtailed after Halloween.

WorriedTeacher

Will Yam wrote: »

It’s quite clear that schools are among the safest places to be.

If only you could walk a day in my shoes....classroom.

Last week I had a sick child sent home early for her to reappear in class the following day, also sick and sent home. This child sits nearest to me in the class. Her elder sibling tested positive for Covid that evening. She then was sent for a test over the weekend. We have not had any word back from public health.

I’ve had to go into work today, teach 30 kids and pretend nothing out of the ordinary is happening. I, the children in her pod and the class deserve to know what’s happening. It is potentially breeding through the class and not being addressed rapidly enough.

This case is far from unique or far from the most ridiculous situation I’ve heard happening in classes. The advice given on a daily basis is completely inconsistent and in a lot of cases illogical.

In my opinion schools are anything but safe but it’s all been kept under the radar in the name of ‘protecting the privacy of those involved’ and keeping as many children in at all costs!

jrosen

I think there is a real political will to keep schools open as long as possible.

Reason being, covid isn't going anywhere and the government know its going to be with us for 2021 too.

We will close down now, open back up for December. Right now Christmas is the carrot. January into Feb we will see numbers rise and we will face back into restrictions again. This will be the pattern imo untill we have a vaccine that at the very least is distributed to people who work in the health sector, high risk people and possibly teachers too.

If we close schools now, we will face the same dilemma in early 2021 and again towards the end of the school year 2021.

Just my opinion mind you.

Treppen

jrosen wrote: »

I think there is a real political will to keep schools open as long as possible.

Reason being, covid isn't going anywhere and the government know its going to be with us for 2021 too.

We will close down now, open back up for December. Right now Christmas is the carrot. January into Feb we will see numbers rise and we will face back into restrictions again. This will be the pattern imo untill we have a vaccine that at the very least is distributed to people who work in the health sector, high risk people and possibly teachers too.

If we close schools now, we will face the same dilemma in early 2021 and again towards the end of the school year 2021.

Just my opinion mind you.

I would probably agree that this is the yo-yo method they'll approach.

Maybe we need more data about it's prevalence in schools. We got chapter and verse about a guy coming back from abroad and not isolating, but zilch about how it interacts between students.

Is there any tracking going on in schools at all?
Or are they just assuming that students/teachers come in with covid... stay immune for the day... then travel home and spread it as normal with no contact tracing?

We really should urge at the very least that this thing is tracked.

We ask for data but the department say they won't release it.
It's because the department don't HAVE the data.
It's because the department don't WANT to have the data.
Nearly every town has 700+ people congregating daily in an area smaller than a football pitch.
Nuts.

Warbeastrior

Count Hairyfoot wrote:

They need to reduce the amount of students onsite every day but the bullheaded way the government went ahead with the all in all the time plan meant nothing else was considered. This should be straight forward at 2nd level as childcare isn't an issue. Mon/Tues/Wed on 1st, 3rd and 6th year in. Other years are remote. Thurs/Fri 2nd, Transition year and 5th are in and the others are remote. You immediately cut the amount in by 50%. Take over RTE 1 and 2 and also use them to broadcast classes that match up to the years at home which can help if internet connection is an issue.

That RTE idea is mental but brilliant.

Panga

History Queen wrote: »

Statement from Minister for Education

https://twitter.com/Education_Ire/status/1318300028348366850?s=19

Thanks Norma for reassuring me that my workplace is the only place in society where it's safe for large groups to gather.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to buy my own medical masks which apparently work more effectively in my classroom than any other environment.

Thanks for removing the anxiety of being a close contact and having to be tested by deciding that I can not be a close contact of anyone in my workplace.

Thanks for forcing me to mentally block out the fact that this virus is airborne by failing to implement any measures to deal with that.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to work through a level 5 pandemic with no additional safety measures.

Thanks for giving parents the opportunity to send their children to school when they are symptomatic, fail to have them tested, fail to inform the school if they test positive.

Wanderer78

Panga wrote:

Thanks Norma for reassuring me that my workplace is the only place in society where it's safe for large groups to gather.

This is a dybolical way to treat all people in the school environment, we must not forget this going forward, I wish you the very best

paddyirish23

It's not just schools that are being kept low key, the factory I'm working in and I'd say most are at it too so they can keep operating.
2 lads on the same line tested positive last week but the other 2 working on the line with them told they not regarded as close contacts even though they working 12 hr shifts together!
The 2 lads rang the hse abt it and hse had to eventually get onto company to send them home. Crazy stuff and they wonder why it's rampant here!

Panga

paddyirish23 wrote: »

It's not just schools that are being kept low key, the factory I'm working in and I'd say most are at it too so they can keep operating.
2 lads on the same line tested positive last week but the other 2 working on the line with them told they not regarded as close contacts even though they working 12 hr shifts together!
The 2 lads rang the hse abt it and hse had to eventually get onto company to send them home. Crazy stuff and they wonder why it's rampant here!

That is a disgrace. Can your union or TD help? I wish you and your co-workers all the best.

paddyirish23

Big multi nationals run the place and no have no union. What we make are not essential but we are regarded at an essential business somehow

Wanderer78

paddyirish23 wrote:

Big multi nationals run the place and no have no union. What we make are not essential but we are regarded at an essential business somehow

We have to get on top of mnc's, we can't keep letting them away with things like this

paddyirish23

Wanderer78 wrote: »

We have to get on top of mnc's, we can't keep letting them away with things like this

I wouldn't be surprised if they are the ones telling government to keep the schools open either so they can keep operating and not have their profits eaten into. Can't open if employees are having to take time off work to mind their kids if schools are shut.

physioman

paddyirish23 wrote: »

I wouldn't be surprised if they are the ones telling government to keep the schools open either so they can keep operating and not have their profits eaten into. Can't open if employees are having to take time off work to mind their kids if schools are shut.

You could be right. If schools and creches closed it would destroy the economy

Wanderer78

paddyirish23 wrote:

I wouldn't be surprised if they are the ones telling government to keep the schools open either so they can keep operating and not have their profits eaten into. Can't open if employees are having to take time off work to mind their kids if schools are shut.

I wouldn't say they're simply telling, but they would be signalling to the government, it's a complicated one, nobody really needs to tell anyone anything, our economic needs have surpassed our actual needs

yankinlk

Mrsmum wrote: »

I don' t mean this as a contradiction to what your saying, more that you put it into my mind but I was talking to a teacher last week and she was saying there is a lovely calmness and kindness from the children these days. She said there isn't half the aggro between groups and that there is a lack of mean competitiveness. She was putting it down to children not having their heads melted with all sorts of after-school activities and big bday parties, other trips and events etc these days. That their lives have got quieter and they are enjoying simple family time and pleasures at home. She is quite oldstyle though so maybe just her impression.

Reading pages of this thread is depressing. No one responded or quoted this very positive post, but same page many quoted on the negative.

Relax, look after your selves, do your best on a bad situation. It will be OK eventually and the kids will bounce back (most posts here are about teachers not kids btw).

shesty

paddyirish23 wrote: »

Big multi nationals run the place and no have no union. What we make are not essential but we are regarded at an essential business somehow

A Friend in a small consultancy, it took the HSE 9 days to contact him as a close contact to someone who was positive.He knew the someone was positive from the day the result came through.

The HSE are as much at fault as anyone, and it is not confined to schools.

Wanderer78

this is just fantastic

https://twitter.com/i/status/1318080691393933313

RealJohn

yankinlk wrote: »

Reading pages of this thread is depressing. No one responded or quoted this very positive post, but same page many quoted on the negative.

Relax, look after your selves, do your best on a bad situation. It will be OK eventually and the kids will bounce back (most posts here are about teachers not kids btw).

Maybe it’s because not all of us are inclined to put it down to something so positive. My students had been getting back to themselves, and the misbehaviour was on the rise, and then we had a confirmed case and all of a sudden, it’s very quiet. It’s not contentment. It’s fear.

They fed us the line that they cancelled the leaving cert for the sake of the students’ mental health (which was a lie), but now the students are being put in the firing line, and they know it, and their mental health is no longer a priority, as long as mammy and daddy can go to work.

Icyseanfitz

The amount of students in my school with anxiety issues has gone through the roof, we had a kid who pretended to faint for 2 minutes to try and get home. Maybe some kids are doing better mentally being in school, but a lot are not.

Wanderer78

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

The amount of students in my school with anxiety issues has gone through the roof, we had a kid who pretended to faint for 2 minutes to try and get home. Maybe some kids are doing better mentally being in school, but a lot are not.

maybe school is boring them

KathleenGrant

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

The amount of students in my school with anxiety issues has gone through the roof, we had a kid who pretended to faint for 2 minutes to try and get home. Maybe some kids are doing better mentally being in school, but a lot are not.

And some of that is understandable given that anxiety issues among young people was already a problem pre-covid and the non-stop talk about covid on news, social media, adults talking about it in front of kids etc.

Wanderer78 wrote: »

maybe school is boring them

Oh lovely. Very helpful attitude.

Wanderer78

KathleenGrant wrote: »

oh lovely. Very helpful attitude.

why?

Balagan1

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

The amount of students in my school with anxiety issues has gone through the roof, we had a kid who pretended to faint for 2 minutes to try and get home. Maybe some kids are doing better mentally being in school, but a lot are not.

Parental anxiety might be a big factor affecting the kids and it would indeed be be very controlled parents who would have held it entirely together over the past weeks, especially this past weekend. And we are hearing a lot about the rise of domestic violence/abuse during the last lockdown. If you were a kid with that looming over you again, either personally and/or having to witness it within your family, then it must be agony. Does Level 5 provide for teachers to access help for kids who seem to be in trouble?