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Education

School staff not allowed to wear masks

(185 Posts)
GagaJo Mon 10-Aug-20 13:28:41

At my old UK school (worked there until xmas), the staff have been made to sign a document to say that they will commit to NOT wearing masks in the classrooms or in school.

The rationale behind this is that the school will put all of the governments 'safety' measures in place, so it won't be necessary.

Which is obviously tosh. Children don't understand social distancing. The classrooms are small. To be safe, you'd need a maximum of 6 people in a room. Class sizes are usually 32/34. Even if the class sizes are halved, that isn't a safe ratio.

I feel so bad for my friends. US teachers are writing wills before returning to schools, just in case. Seems UK teachers will have to as well.

Nannan2 Sat 15-Aug-20 01:31:41

The government,here and in U.S. dont care about if kids or teachers are happy, they care about keeping schools open, to keep the parents in work- so using teachers as childcare.

Nannan2 Sat 15-Aug-20 01:27:46

*meant why NOT give them visors??

Nannan2 Sat 15-Aug-20 01:26:50

Why give them visors?

maddyone Thu 13-Aug-20 11:12:50

Absolutely Gaga, happy children and happy teachers. In other words teachers who are able to choose whether or not they wear a mask in school. To force teachers to sign a document saying they will not wear a mask is appalling.

GagaJo Wed 12-Aug-20 23:12:03

Ellianne

^Bless her, so nice to hear about a happy child back at school.^
And that is all anyone wants. Our children have missed out on so much. We need to prioritise their needs.

And keep everyone in school safe.

Ellianne Wed 12-Aug-20 20:03:45

grin lemongrove

Ellianne Wed 12-Aug-20 20:03:14

Bless her, so nice to hear about a happy child back at school.
And that is all anyone wants. Our children have missed out on so much. We need to prioritise their needs.

grant1 Wed 12-Aug-20 20:00:28

Same issues here in the US. Many teachers are nervous about returning to in school school in a few weeks. Schools that have reopened have closed inside of a week or two because of covid exposure and rapid increase of cases among students and staff. So upsetting, as schools seem to be tackling many of the same issues worldwide with no good solutions yet.

lemongrove Wed 12-Aug-20 19:49:39

Elliane my DH is my favourite teacher but you can be the runner up.?

lemongrove Wed 12-Aug-20 19:47:53

Grammar.....before it’s pointed out.?

lemongrove Wed 12-Aug-20 19:46:44

Ellianne

You're right gillybob I couldn't care less what writing or comprehension skills anyone has on here. Our brains all work differently, we just want to Express ourselves. Thank you for pointing out how unnecessary the criticism was.

It certainly was unnecessary Elliane but the kind of posts criticising the grammer of other posters in a sneery way is practised on GN with depressing regularity.

Callistemon Wed 12-Aug-20 19:31:20

That's lovely paddyanne
They've done enough work at home!

My DGD can't wait to go back although the return has been staggered and one has an extra fortnight off which she's not too happy about.

maddyone Wed 12-Aug-20 19:24:36

Bless her, so nice to hear about a happy child back at school.

paddyanne Wed 12-Aug-20 19:20:07

the most important thing is NO HOMEWORK for the forseeable future .She's up in the clouds about that ...lol

maddyone Wed 12-Aug-20 19:09:18

paddyanne, I’m really pleased to hear that your grandchildren have gone back to school, that there were safety procedures in place, and that your granddaughter had a lovely day. Our children need to go back to school, and I feel pretty certain that the vast majority, if not all, teachers want to be able to get on with the job they love. Safety procedures in place though obviously. And clearly if teachers wish to wear masks then they should be able to, and those schools which have coerced teachers to sign a document saying they will not wear a mask, are in my humble opinion, unprofessional and completely out of order. Could it be challenged legally I wonder?

paddyanne Wed 12-Aug-20 18:11:59

My GC went back today ,I have one here with me now and she tells me her teacher had masks on all day,that she changed them through the day and only took it off when she was at the far end of the classroom away from the children who were there.Only half a class today and tomorrow and all back together on Friday.
No one can take pencils or crayons or notebooks etc in they are all provided in seperate trays for the children.Handwashing first then hand sanitiser as they entered the classroom.Marking on floor for one way system.

She seems comfortable with it all and although its not how it was it will quickly become "normal" she's 10 .my daughter tells me her two had a fab day and no issues at all .

Ellianne Wed 12-Aug-20 16:58:26

That's fine Maizie, I said I was happy to be corrected if you meant something different. Could have been in a more pleasant, jovial manner though.
Nevermind, I'm actually even more happy to win the favourite teacher award!

Lucca Wed 12-Aug-20 16:39:25

cupcake1

Ellianne touché grin! gillybob flowers for addressing the vitriol on here, it’s a disgrace. Obviously it’s just us ‘plebs’ that misinterpret posts and prejudice is a VERY strong word to use - pot and kettle spring to mind! I know which poster I would want to teach my DGC. I despair for the children of the future with so many obstacles to manoeuvre especially reading SOME of the posts on here.

If you’re referring to my post, would you not say that “teachers are the biggest snowflakes” is prejudiced ?
Also please note my last sentence.
I was actually attempting to pour a bit of oil on troubled waters..... oh well.

MaizieD Wed 12-Aug-20 16:23:32

Ellianne

Don't worry cupcake. The laugh's on me.

You certainly missed out on some comprehension skills teaching somewhere in your education. * Maizie* certainly missed out on some grammatical skills' teaching in HER own education. Correct me if I'm wrong, but she didn't apply the apostrophe to show possession in her haste to criticise me. It is the teaching OF comprehension skills she was trying to say.

Grammar not a terribly strong point either, Ellieanne?

'Skills' in that sentence was the plural of 'skill'. Putting an 'of' in front of it doesn't make it possessive...

cupcake1 Wed 12-Aug-20 14:47:29

Ellianne touché grin! gillybob flowers for addressing the vitriol on here, it’s a disgrace. Obviously it’s just us ‘plebs’ that misinterpret posts and prejudice is a VERY strong word to use - pot and kettle spring to mind! I know which poster I would want to teach my DGC. I despair for the children of the future with so many obstacles to manoeuvre especially reading SOME of the posts on here.

Ellianne Wed 12-Aug-20 13:03:14

You're right gillybob I couldn't care less what writing or comprehension skills anyone has on here. Our brains all work differently, we just want to Express ourselves. Thank you for pointing out how unnecessary the criticism was.

eazybee Wed 12-Aug-20 12:47:49

The Prime Minister recovered and went back to work, which is what many people wish to do, despite the scaremongering actively encouraged by some.

It is a crisis that the schools have been unable to function properly for six months, and calculated risks have to be weighed against future consequences if we don't return to full time education. We have to learn to live with this virus.

gillybob Wed 12-Aug-20 12:41:58

Well I hold my hands up and say my "grammatical skills" are pretty poor, but there again I didn't think they were a condition of posting here on Gransnet. Neither my qualifications (negligible) nor my career path.

Hey Ho.

Ellianne Wed 12-Aug-20 12:26:23

Don't worry cupcake. The laugh's on me.

You certainly missed out on some comprehension skills teaching somewhere in your education. * Maizie* certainly missed out on some grammatical skills' teaching in HER own education. Correct me if I'm wrong, but she didn't apply the apostrophe to show possession in her haste to criticise me. It is the teaching OF comprehension skills she was trying to say.

Lucca Wed 12-Aug-20 12:21:37

Not a very productive thread really. Some entrenched views from posters who repeat themselves WITHOUT reading other posts. One or two who lob in a one/two sentence prejudice.
It’s a shame for those who wNt to have a rational discussion.( I include posters from all sides in That by the way. ).