Schools closed until February? (part 3)

mirrorwall14 · 07-01-2021 01:49AM

Bananaleaf wrote: »

Definitely do it. I will look out for it and share the life out of it. It's a brilliant post

My dad would be proud. English teacher. I was never quite as good as one of my sisters though.

Anecdote there, on one of the few in person visits to him this year he was saying ‘I used one of your English essays all the way to end as an A1 example in school’. I was like really? Which one? Turned out it was my sisters which I had totally plagerised lol. I had added one whole section but the whole concept and a lot of the imagery were hers lol. We laughed a lot!!

Tippex · 07-01-2021 01:53AM

km79 wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/0106/1188012-schools-leaving-cert-education/

Alan Kelly says that Dr Tony confirmed to him this evening that NPHET were not consulted
Wow

Why am I not surprised she couldn’t string a sentence together today. The Department are a basket case

NIMAN · 07-01-2021 01:54AM

I am sure this has been talked about, but can't read back through all the thread, but don't NPHET continually tell us schools are not an issue for the spread of the virus, and are safe places? I have heard it said often.

So why are the schools closing now?

I would guess that my kids will be lucky to be back in school for St Patricks.

Follow_ur_lead · 07-01-2021 01:56AM

NIMAN wrote: »

I am sure this has been talked about, but can't read back through all the thread, but don't NPHET continually tell us schools are not an issue for the spread of the virus, and are safe places? I have heard it said often.

So why are the schools closing now?

I would guess that my kids will be lucky to be back in school for St Patricks.

This in a nutshell.

The cases have got to this number without schools being open. They seem an easy target tbh.

carr62 · 07-01-2021 01:56AM

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

.

.........thank you for posting this. I am a parent who is so sad tonight. I feel that our Government do not care about our students, teachers, or other school staff. I feel that they do not care about education. Cancel the exams, figure out an alternative and let us stay safe.

Bananaleaf · 07-01-2021 01:58AM

carr62 wrote: »

.........thank you for posting this. I am a parent who is so sad tonight. I feel that our Government do not care about our students, teachers, or other school staff. I feel that they do not care about education. Cancel the exams, figure out an alternative and let us stay safe.

Please also help us by contacting your TDs and telling them how you feel. Get your friends to do the same. We need to come together on this

picturehangup · 07-01-2021 02:40AM

TheTorment wrote: »

Great!! Missed it. Can you give a quick summary?

Is it to be found anywhere?

https://www.rte.ie/radio/radioplayer/html5/#/radio1/21890779

If she says schools are safe places one more time...

CharlieHaghy · 07-01-2021 03:24AM

picturehangup wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/radio/radioplayer/html5/#/radio1/21890779

If she says schools are safe places one more time...

Her fringe is lovely though, will need cutting at Easter when the schools will reopen.

...Ghost... · 07-01-2021 03:43AM

Rodin wrote: »

Teachers are clearly not frontline. The frontline HAVE to go to work.

You may be onto something there. Frontline workers are given every possible protection against the virus. Teachers are told to wear a mask, shut up and get on with it. Teachers can't catch covid. That's why the 2m rule is halved and time is reset if they stick their head out the open classroom/cabin window in the middle of winter.

Murple wrote: »

You’d never heard of her before possibly because she was only elected to the Dáil in February 2020 and was made Minister for Education 4 months later. It speaks volumes that someone with such a lack of experience was given such a role in the middle of a time like this.

Let's not forget it took 4 months to put a government together, so she had no experience at all.

Alqua · 07-01-2021 03:47AM

mirrorwall14 wrote: »

Thats not a bad idea. I will actually. I wouldn’t publish it on social media myself because I’m not able for the inevitable ‘but’ and ‘whining’ teachers. But though an intermediate I don’t mind

Please do. There's a letter to the editor in it too. "Sir,-"

khalessi · 07-01-2021 03:51AM

picturehangup wrote: »

https://www.rte.ie/radio/radioplayer/html5/#/radio1/21890779

If she says schools are safe places one more time...

I ahd a djrinking gmae for ervrty tiem she siad shcolos sfae I dnrak a 6 keg:D

Ted_YNWA · 07-01-2021 05:17AM

@Mirrorwall14

That is an excellent post that sums up the current sh1tshow.

I have edited it out of a couple who quoted it, purely for the benefit of people browsing on phones.

mirrorwall14 · 07-01-2021 07:22AM

Ted_YNWA wrote: »

@Mirrorwall14

That is an excellent post that sums up the current sh1tshow.

I have edited it out of a couple who quoted it, purely for the benefit of people browsing on phones.

That’s fine Ted. I did go on a bit

thomasdylan · 07-01-2021 08:42AM

The HorsesMouth wrote: »

Hospitals? 25 people in a small room? Dont think so and it's disingenuous of you to say so. And while I understand there are covid wards in hospitals..they are a very small amount of people and the staff are given full PPE and all the protective measures known to man (as they obviously should).
So there is no comparison to schools.

You're not saying schools are more dangerous than hospitals?

The HorsesMouth · 07-01-2021 08:54AM

thomasdylan wrote: »

You're not saying schools are more dangerous than hospitals?

I'm saying the working conditions are incomparable. No one in this country during this particular time of the pandemic will be working with 25+ in cramped conditions with no PPE except teachers,snas and other school staff.

Dave0301 · 07-01-2021 08:55AM

thomasdylan wrote: »

You're not saying schools are more dangerous than hospitals?

I would say that is unlikely given the infection rates among health care staff.

However, some early data from the UK would suggest that teachers could be more open to infection than other professions (TES article)

In Leeds, the prevalence rate was, on average, 1089.5 for primary staff and 1750.5 for secondary staff, compared with 404.3 for the local authority as a whole. This average was taken for a period spanning from the week ending 19 October to the week ending 20 November.

And in Birmingham, the rate among school staff was more than three times higher than the local average. The data shows that, across the same time period, the prevalence rate was, on average, 1146.1 for primary staff and 1027.2 for secondary staff, compared with 312.2 for the local authority as a whole. This excludes the half-term week.

In Greenwich, London, the prevalence rate was also significantly higher for school staff – at, on average, 264 for staff across primary and secondary schools, compared with 98 for the local authority as a whole. However, this average was taken for a longer period – spanning from early September to the end of November.

The three councils were the only ones to provide school staff Covid prevalence rates out of 28 approached by the union.

richardw001 · 07-01-2021 09:09AM

I would have been someone who would have looked for schools reopening on the first lockdown (parent not a teacher).

This time round I feel they should shut completely with no distance learning (including leaving certs) - for at least 2 months.

The commonality here with the last closure is that the government are causing stress for students, teachers, and parents by not being prepared and indecisive.

So this time there are more options here for them with a vaccine on the horizon -

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

The problem with the last lockdown - is the students that had parents and teachers that cared about them managed to get work done - but with huge stress for all involved.

But even worse - the poor kids that didn't have parents and teachers that cared about them - are in a significantly worse situation - with half a year of no learning.

To get some sort of fair playing field especially for exam years - they could push the leaving cert out to September, have schools open over the summer and leave the next 2 months as the equivalent of the summer holidays.

I know the above would be inconvenient - however in the greater scheme of things I think its the most logical, least stressful and fairest solution.

07-01-2021 09:10AM

@mirrorwall14
Brilliant post. It deserves to be published.

jimmytwotimes 2013 · 07-01-2021 09:25AM

richardw001 wrote: »

push the leaving cert out to September, have schools open over the summer and leave the next 2 months as the equivalent of the summer holidays.

I know the above would be inconvenient - however in the greater scheme of things I think its the most logical, least stressful and fairest solution.

I'd agree that the LC cud be pushed out but pushing it out that far will create some problems.

At a guess, you cud probably push out as far as mid/late July and have a LC then.

Wiping out the entire summer wud mean running one academic year straight into another which wouldn't allow time for IT switchover from one academic year to another, book scheme arrangements etc. This switchover isn't a case of flipping a switch and hey presto done.

You'd prob burn out next years LCs as well, running from Sept-ish to the following august? (5th yrs wud need same amount of tuition before their LC)

While pushing it out has merit as an idea. I wud assume a month between this and next academic year wud be needed to switch over and let students have a small breather.

That and they'd all have to be vaccinated or the situation cud get out of control with the new, more infectious varient. Does it look likely all students and staff will be vaccinated by then?

carr62 · 07-01-2021 09:46AM

Bananaleaf wrote: »

Please also help us by contacting your TDs and telling them how you feel. Get your friends to do the same. We need to come together on this

I most certainly will. Last night I emailed the Taoiseach's office and Dept of Education. I've had 2 friends text me this morning to ask who they should email. I have no idea really, but we will bombard as many as possible today. I have never done anything like this before, but I feel I have to do something. We hear all this talk about "frontline" workers. Since when do you put children in a front line. Or teachers either ( certainly not when it's a queue for improved conditions!). As I said in my emails last night, these kids have long memories but a very short time til they acquire the vote. I would just like teachers to know that we as parents stand behind you. You may not know it as we are mainly the group who are not vociferous or politically active. We are not on the committees or making contact with you often. We are now the ones at home, worried sick about sending one of our children out the door as a pandemic rages. We know it's not safe. Ok, most of us probably don't have kids hoping to be vets or doctors ( but surely those kids would have good enough school records to do well anyways). Most of us, like me, have never been in the lucky position to buy our kids a grind. Our kids rely on school and our teachers for their education. No one knows the effort teachers go to like us. This is just too much. Teachers and kids are not guinea pigs. Shut the schools. Cancel the Leaving Cert. For goodness sake think outside the box. Maybe increase college places - give them all a place on a course of their choosing (not necessarily location). Keep the first term online if that helped, then do exams to determine who continues and who doesn't......I don't know, I know I'm rambling now, but whatever happens my daughter won't be going back to school. Keep safe all, and keep reminding ourselves of what really matters in life - and it isn't the exams!

appledrop · 07-01-2021 09:50AM

Students not happy on Morning Ireland saying they were not consulted.

TUI basicially saying it won't be happening.

They said on Monday at meeting the government were pushing for schools to fully open which obviously then didn't happen.

It really is unbelievable. If Norma and Co really thought on Monday all schools could open I give up.

Irish Times reporting that some Principals may refuse to open on Monday.

jimmytwotimes 2013 · 07-01-2021 09:58AM

appledrop wrote: »

Irish Times reporting that some Principals may refuse to open on Monday.

We have a meeting tomorrow to discuss our 'covid plan'.

Our fella delighted

Read. A. Room

mirrorwall14 · 07-01-2021 10:09AM

carr62 wrote: »

I most certainly will. Last night I emailed the Taoiseach's office and Dept of Education. I've had 2 friends text me this morning to ask who they should email. I have no idea really, but we will bombard as many as possible today. Is!

These are the emails of every cabinet minister who signed off on that decision. Have at it and more power to the parents.

micheal.martin@oireachtas.ie,

leo.varadkar@oireachtas.ie,

eamon.ryan@oireachtas.ie,

paschal.donohoe@oireachtas.ie,

minister@finance.gov.ie,

michael.mcgrath@oireachtas.ie,

catherine.martin@oireachtas.ie,

Darragh.obrien@oireachtas.ie,

simon.coveney@oireachtas.ie,

norma.foley@oireachtas.ie,

heather.humphreys@oireachtas.ie,

roderic.ogorman@oireachtas.ie,

Simon.Harris@oireachtas.ie,

helen.mcentee@oireachtas.ie,

stephen.donnelly@oireachtas.ie,

charlie.mcconalogue@oireachtas.ie

alroley · 07-01-2021 10:26AM

jimmytwotimes 2013 wrote: »

We have a meeting tomorrow to discuss our 'covid plan'.

Our fella delighted

Read. A. Room

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.

jimmytwotimes 2013 · 07-01-2021 10:38AM

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.

Let the fun commence

scrubs33 · 07-01-2021 10:54AM

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.

As did we. Staff meeting tomorrow with timetable to be presented for 'discussion'. I think we will see more of this over the next few days unless unions step up to the plate.

Sammy2012 · 07-01-2021 11:03AM

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 · 07-01-2021 11:06AM

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 · 07-01-2021 11:21AM

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 · 07-01-2021 11:22AM

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?

Schools closed until February? (part 3)

Comments