Schools closed until March/April? (part 4) **Mod warning in OP 22/01**

Coneygree

vid36 wrote: »

France Population 66 million had just over 3300 cases yesterday. Their rates are much lower than ours.

But apple + orange = magpie. Therefore schools are safe!!

blanch152

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

The Norma Foley school of public health advice.

Coneygree wrote: »

Hahaha funny that.

So teachers are now telling the public health experts that they know better about public health issues? Is that what is happening?

Crocodile Booze

blanch152 wrote: »

So teachers are now telling the public health experts that they know better about public health issues? Is that what is happening?

No. That is absolutely nothing like what is happening.

I'm not a teacher btw.

Coneygree

blanch152 wrote: »

So teachers are now telling the public health experts that they know better about public health issues? Is that what is happening?

I can guarantee I or any other teacher or SNA in the country knows about the reality of safeness in schools more than Norma Foley that's for sure.

wirelessdude01

KrustyUCC wrote: »

I hope you're right

I can see it being a long drawn out process though

I'd like to be wrong

No appetite to draw things out. Look at the secondary teachers who are regulars on here. Not one of them wants predicted grades. They want back so that a normal leaving cert can take place(refuse to use the word traditional as it brings out a rage in me). I want back, my Mrs wants back. The one caveat though is that we want back when community transmission at a low enough level that it doesn't impact on schools. Norma and her mantra that "schools are safe" isn't enough. When we are back we want to stay back. In my class I've 3 grannies in ICU, 3 further grandparents in hospital with Covid and another 5 at home with positive results. 5 of my class tested positive since we broke up for Christmas. It's very real when it's that close to home. Two of my colleagues tested positive, they were told by public health they were more than 90% sure it was caught in school on the 21st/22nd of December but it would be put down as community transmission as there was a slight chance it hadn't been.

combat14

leo varadker has offered to help out and administer covid vacciness

why doesnt norma do a week in a school with zero to minimal social distancing and report back to us then

Crocodile Booze

combat14 wrote: »

leo varadker has offered to help out and administer covid vacciness

why doesnt norma do a week in a school with zero to minimal social distancing and report back to us then

I wouldn't want her near my children anyway. I doubt she even knows the two times tables.

downthemiddle

combat14 wrote: »

leo varadker has offered to help out and administer covid vacciness

why doesnt norma do a week in a school with zero to minimal social distancing and report back to us then

The way things are going Norma will end up vaccinating and Leo in the classroom!!!

billy_beckham

Coneygree wrote: »

I know our branch passed a motion today which wouldn't see members return until the 14 day incidence is less than 500 cases a day.

Approx 2,000 cases today, roughly half I'm guessing in Dublin & Cork. Much smaller numbers spread across the rest of the counties. Why not open schools in counties where cases are below 500/day? Would the teachers be happy with that I wonder??

downthemiddle

billy_beckham wrote: »

Approx 2,000 cases today, roughly half I'm guessing in Dublin & Cork. Much smaller numbers spread across the rest of the counties. Why not open schools in counties where cases are below 500/day? Would the teachers be happy with that I wonder??

I believe that it will take some form of imagination to resolve this impasse. Genuine leadership is required to break the deadlock but unfortunately it seems to be lacking on all sides. It is much easier to engage in finger pointing.

km79

billy_beckham wrote: »

Approx 2,000 cases today, roughly half I'm guessing in Dublin & Cork. Much smaller numbers spread across the rest of the counties. Why not open schools in counties where cases are below 500/day? Would the teachers be happy with that I wonder??

89 people died too

Stateofyou

Ray Donovan wrote: »

Norma doesn’t roll that way.... https://twitter.com/mcconnelldaniel/status/1351565670723559433?s=21

That woman talks some nonsense. Is she on a 1 woman crusade there or does she actually have the backing of Government. Taoiseach? It's madness.

thomasdylan

Stateofyou wrote: »

What about teachers own families, their children's and spouses needs? Their own mental health and need for a break. How would you feel about giving up your own holidays for your employer to make up for lost productivity this year?

Just on this, I got an email from the HSE today saying that they recognised people have been unable to be given leave because of Covid and staffing pressures. They will try to carry leave over to the future but can't guarantee it.

I think if this goes on, there has to be the consisideration of moving holidays about. Taking two weeks off now an adding it in as in person teaching to the end of year. If the leaving cert goes ahead I don't think an extra week of extra prep for leaving certs would be an unreasonable ask.

Locotastic

km79 wrote: »

89 people lost their life from Covid in the past 24 hours

That is not true, 89 of the deaths announced today occurred in January, not necessarily in the past 24 hours. Doesn't make it any better but its false to say its within the last day.

tigger123

Stateofyou wrote: »

That woman talks some nonsense. Is she on a 1 woman crusade there or does she actually have the backing of Government. Taoiseach? It's madness.

Its not Norma Foley, its a whole of Government position. There's no way she's fighting this off her own bat.

mirrorwall14

billy_beckham wrote: »

Approx 2,000 cases today, roughly half I'm guessing in Dublin & Cork. Much smaller numbers spread across the rest of the counties. Why not open schools in counties where cases are below 500/day? Would the teachers be happy with that I wonder??

That’s the way it should have even done in the first place in my opinion. Rolling county closures when communities had outbreaks

Stateofyou

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

Any school worth their salt has a plan in place. Know that we have.

But that is so unfair. All that stress and time spent making plans when it may not even go ahead. Which draws away from the attention other pupils and staff need at this time. And their own families too. I know our school principal has been working non-stop since Friday trying to get a handle on this. Because that's the way the Minister chooses to roll it has to affect everyone so negatively? So selfish and inept.

appledrop

Germany and Scotland have both extended their lockdown including keeping schools closed until mid February.

KrustyUCC

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

No appetite to draw things out. Look at the secondary teachers who are regulars on here. Not one of them wants predicted grades. They want back so that a normal leaving cert can take place(refuse to use the word traditional as it brings out a rage in me). I want back, my Mrs wants back. The one caveat though is that we want back when community transmission at a low enough level that it doesn't impact on schools. Norma and her mantra that "schools are safe" isn't enough. When we are back we want to stay back. In my class I've 3 grannies in ICU, 3 further grandparents in hospital with Covid and another 5 at home with positive results. 5 of my class tested positive since we broke up for Christmas. It's very real when it's that close to home. Two of my colleagues tested positive, they were told by public health they were more than 90% sure it was caught in school on the 21st/22nd of December but it would be put down as community transmission as there was a slight chance it hadn't been.

That's fair enough but I know teachers who have said to principals that they won't be back until after st patricks day and if schools are back before then they'll be calling in sick

Many are quite content to stat at home ... fair enough others aren't

TBF for the vast majority of children home schooling can work with support

Not for kids with special needs imo

I can already see the regression in my two nephews

community transmission at a low enough level that it doesn't impact on schools is a very high bar

Even take a poster earlier "branch passed a motion today which wouldn't see members return until the 14 day incidence is less than 500 cases a day"

Current 14 day incidence is 1334 so a reduction to 500 will take a good while yet even allowing for current positive trends in reducing cases

Those are sad examples and i'm sure replicated up and down the country

No easy fixes alright

titan18

appledrop wrote: »

Germany and Scotland have both extended their lockdown including keeping schools closed until mid February.

Irish schools are magic

wirelessdude01

Stateofyou wrote: »

But that is so unfair. All that stress and time spent making plans when it may not even go ahead. Which draws away from the attention other pupils and staff need at this time. And their own families too. I know our school principal has been working non-stop since Friday trying to get a handle on this. Because that's the way the Minister chooses to roll it has to affect everyone so negatively? So selfish and inept.

Happened the secondary principals already so this is obviously Normas way of making sure that the primary principals also waste an equal amount of time.

Crocodile Booze

appledrop wrote: »

Germany and Scotland have both extended their lockdown including keeping schools closed until mid February.

Obviously didn't hear Norma telling the world that schools are "safe".

appledrop

titan18 wrote: »

Irish schools are magic

Yep that magic fairy dust we sprinkle over everyone at school gates is amazing all right.

wirelessdude01

KrustyUCC wrote: »

That's fair enough but I know teachers who have said to principals that they won't be back until after st patricks day and if schools are back before then they'll be calling in sick

Many are quite content to stat at home ... fair enough others aren't

TBF for the vast majority of children home schooling can work with support

Not for kids with special needs imo

I can already see the regression in my two nephews

community transmission at a low enough level that it doesn't impact on schools is a very high bar

Even take a poster earlier "branch passed a motion today which wouldn't see members return until the 14 day incidence is less than 500 cases a day"

Current 14 day incidence is 1334 so a reduction to 500 will take a good while yet even allowing for current positive trends in reducing cases

Those are sad examples and i'm sure replicated up and down the country

No easy fixes alright

Realistically we probably won't be fully back until Feb 22nd. Privately politicians are briefing journalists that this is what is expected will occur.

tigger123

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

Realistically we probably won't be fully back until Feb 22nd. Privately politicians are briefing journalists that this is what is expected will occur.

Not having a go, just wondering, where did you see this?

This government loves to leak, but I haven't seen Feb 22nd mentioned anywhere.

hesaidshesaid

Regarding the Scottish and German school closures, I wonder what their versions of Public Health are telling government. Surely there is communication between various European NPHETs? Obviously there are varying case numbers and positivity rates but they must be sharing info regarding the new variants etc.

That webinar yesterday just inflamed everything IMO. If Norma and CMO just came out and said, look schools aren't safe, nowhere is, but there are certain kids being really damaged by these lockdowns, can you find a way to get the most needy back into school? I think people would engage. It's not just kids with SEN, it's kids in violent homes etc. The DES letter last Fri contained a section which allowed for those kids to come back 'if schools had capacity'.

Teachers and SNAs are not selfish, self-serving wasters no matter what the current media campaign and DES would have people believe. There's a need for honesty and respect and accountability on both sides to come to a fair solution on this.

appledrop

In fairness we stayed in school during last Level 5 lockdown with over 1300 cases.

If some unions are now saying they won't go back unless under 500 well that's the Dept + Norma fault for their disastours handling of current situation.

Any goodwill that was there is gone now and they only have themselves to blame.

vid36

tigger123 wrote: »

Not having a go, just wondering, where did you see this?

This government loves to leak, but I haven't seen Feb 22nd mentioned anywhere.

It was in Sundays Newspapers .

KrustyUCC

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

Realistically we probably won't be fully back until Feb 22nd. Privately politicians are briefing journalists that this is what is expected will occur.

Yeah it would give an extra 3 weeks and would seem to be a decent date

3 weeks extra is an awful long time to get case down etc

It's also basically two months without school for our most vulnerable though

I'd take the extra three weeks at this stage all told

Stateofyou

khalessi wrote: »

Germany closing schools

https://www.dw.com/en/germany-coronavirus-merkel-and-state-premiers-meet-over-new-measures/a-56271628?maca=en-Twitter-sharing

"Other issues being discussed include a rule to require employers to allow staff to work from home if that is feasible, and a requirement to wear FFP2-standard masks in shops and on public transport. The tighter mask-wearing rule was already introduced in the southern state of Bavaria at the start of the week."

"...called for heavy restrictions on activities outside the home, an evening curfew and a mandate to wear FFP2 masks in the workplace. If schools are to be opened, classes should be cut in half and students should also be made to wear FFP2 masks, he said. "

Jaysus...