Off Topic - Teachers.

Are they genuinely concerned for health reasons or are they playing politics?

I think it's the latter.

 

I have to say, if this virus is as deadly and contagious as they say it is, I'm a bit surprised why there is a rush to send the kids back, especially when the summer holidays are just a few weeks away.....

 

Got me excited then - I thought this was a thread about whiskey.......

Serious subject though, and if they were playing politics, then they are not alone.

Public concerns are a magnet for those who like to make political capital at every opportunity - and this is amplified by the BBC (Biased Broadcasting Corporation).

 

Both.

Its a left wing profession and an opportunity to politically point score.

But how do you socially distance children? How do children behave? Its extremely difficult with small groups. Even the way we interact and communicate i.e. get down to their level goes against social distancing.

This looks like a an economic decision v a health decision. Primary kids back to school - parents can work. Comprehensive kids stay at home - parents many can still go to work. Its uneven.

 

My wife’s a teacher and whilst she is a ‘bit of a leftie’ like most teachers are, she’s not a militant. Her concerns are about being in an environment where 30+ people are in a confined classroom with her, followed by a different set, and another - every working day. Those groups of 30+ will also be mixing with each other between lessons and before/after school. An ideal breeding ground for the virus, with hundreds of young carriers spreading it far and wide.
Whilst the virus doesn’t seem to affect young people as much as older ones, so most of the PUPILS may be ok, the teachers - and their families will not. THIS is what concerns her.
At the same time, she, like everyone else, recognises that the country is on its knees economically and workers with young children can’t go to work when their kids can’t go to school. That’s not even taking the education of the pupils into account and the damage being done to their learning.
At the end of the day, with a cure or vaccine a long way off, the country has to make a choice between bankruptcy or safety. What a choice!
Whilst there are, undoubtedly some militants with a political axe to grind exploiting the current situation, there are many others who went into teaching in order to give young people the best possible start in life and help to equip them to be the best that they can. These people are simply concerned about being sent to work into an environment where social distancing is virtually impossible to enforce.

 

A tough one, as teachers could be at more risk of catching it from kids who could be carriers than the other way around. My issue is, if schools had done a better job over the past 8 weeks of teaching, then going back wouldn't be an issue. My 13 yr old daughter has been 'set' plenty of work during the lockdown, but, she has been taught nothing! Not a single Zoom class from the teachers, teachers taking hours to respond to any questions, if they even respond, simply isn't good enough. I have kept my daughter on a strict school timetable regime, so why haven't teachers?

 

Both.
As per my post above, there are some playing politics - particularly the union leaders, but your common classroom teacher is simply questioning how safety and social distancing rules can apply in educational establishments full of energetic young people.

 

Just heard on the news; it’s not the unions (for a change) that are refusing to open schools, it’s 2 local councils.

 

My mum is a primary school teacher and has similar concerns as she teaches a class of up to 30 kids ( she can teach Nursery up to Year 2), she goes into work every day currently as she has children in her class who’s parents work in the front line and has about 4/5 children in every day currently.

 

You'd think the supermarket workers would have just as much to be concerned about as teachers.
What's the difference ?
Left wing 'leaning'is my guess.

And how do other countries make it work, where there's a will there's a way.

 

Supermarket workers can socially isolate. They are also dealing in the main with adults.

I work in care with adults. With children it would be a significantly differing role. Children in particular the young comprehension and social skills are entirely different. Primary age kids not only think differently they use a different part of the brain to do it. They are not mini adults and so decisions should always take this into account.

Risk and therefore its control has to be different across services and industry.

Other nations are at differing stages of outbreak. How can Britain be compared to New Zealand? Bristol alone has had more deaths than some Countries as a whole.

We can. Employment law allows people to do this if work places are viewed as unsafe. But we as individuals chose a essential form of work. Coronavirus is the not the only virus that endangers the NHS etc .. Its certainly not the only risk I in my workplace have been assaulted several times, its part of the job when working with certain client groups, its a when not an if.

Teachers are a special group. Everybody is special but life, its workplaces are not equal. Services should be ran on what is equitable. Delaying the return to school for another two or three weeks will make school environments safer - It is not essential in this short term. ​

 

I know Wiz why don’t we all go back to work? ,

if the return to work isn’t done properly there will be a second spike and we’ll all be back under lockdown again.

The medical profession have to work through it to bring it under control, I’m sure the last thing they want is for teachers, or anyone else for that matter, to go back too early as that will mean there will be more cases and ultimately make their job more difficult and dangerous as more cases present themselves at the hospitals.

 

That is a bit like the armed services saying no to going to war, because it’s unsafe.

 

Wiz - it’s the COUNCILS of Liverpool and Hartlepool which are refusing to open schools in their area, not the teaching unions.
The unions are negotiating a back to work plan with the government. They aren’t refusing to return to work.
Parents are split on this too - and doctors are saying 1st June is too early.
I personally think it should be done by region, depending on the number of cases in that region.

 

you are talking unions and they are opposition would tend to agree … you have to remember, when union people say go on strike, or ban overtime , or lose some of your salary ….THEY DONT... NOWADAYS THERE IS VERY LITTLE FOR THEM TO DO... generally, so when they get a chance they like to look tough. ...take away the furlough and they would all be back at work ………….

 

max class size is 15 … so need more classroom space so certain years will miss out to accommodate ...

 

most supermarket staff are just filling the shelves, taking the money and paying little heed to 2m distancing odd one jumps out of the way when you get to close ...told to wait 2m to load on the belt, but when you load into your bags you are a metre away for at least 5 -10 mins. I wonder how good or clean the airconditioning filters are!

 

R&W
That Liverpool Council.
They are concerned about opening schools in a careful controlled way.

Why weren't they so careful allowing 3.5k A Madrid fans to visit Liverpool when they weren't even allowed to watch football the previous weekend in Spain.