Coronavirus - political views - supporting or otherwise...

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

I played this morning with a friend who's 2 children are in private education and he has written to their school as, despite paying a pretty penny for their schooling, they have had no direct help from the teachers, and his wife is having to do it all

We have friends with pretty similar experience. The school has been trying to impose a ludicrous strict daily 'learn at home' regime on their youngest lad - that he is really, really struggling with and that could actually be long term damaging to him. The parents think it's simply the private school trying to justify not giving them any 'money back' or fees reduction for next year - and not actually that much about any commitment by the school to their child's education.

 

[patricks148]

It was a gringe worthy piece IMO and if Trump had made it it wouldn't have surprised me. Even the interviewer was trying to wind it up.

which article is this? as i said didn't know anything about him TBH, just read the biog of him. though some of the usual right wing trolls appear to think i'm a member of M, i'm not and not even a member of the Labour party or voted for them in the last two GE

 

[chrisd]

I couldn't think of another one - I suppose I could have said 'selfish' - and that would be the best of it. His underlying point about us all eventually having to live with the risk is however valid. Not sure that now is the time to be exposing ourselves to the virus wholesale though...

Given the promising news about a vaccination, he was likely wrong about living with the risk too. He also said that in the list of pandemics from over the years that coronavirus deaths were bottom of that list, didnt it occur to him that it might be the lockdown that is the reason for that ?

 

[patricks148]

Has a serial poster we all know been out with the spray can?

really, pretty poor underhand dig, i suggest you read MH post in the heading about trolling and flaming, and the person liking it ... really

 

[Old Skier]

which article is this? as i said didn't know anything about him TBH, just read the biog of him. though some of the usual right wing trolls appear to think i'm a member of M, i'm not and not even a member of the Labour party or voted for them in the last two GE

It was a live interview on BBC

 

[NWJocko]

This is in fact another area where privately educated kids, who already have advantages, may be get even more advantages. As in general the quality of the private school home schooling set will be very high as again, parents are paying for it. So private schools want to keep the paying parents especially happy. I've done no home schooling myself as the school makes sure she has all she needs without parents needing to do anything. There is some great home schooling going on in the non-private sector, but for completely understandable reasons the quality is more variable. So on average the longer home schooling goes on for I'd say the larger the gap may be, which may well become visible in future years exam results.

As for how I feel about this then as a parent I am obviously OK with it. As a chair of governors at a non-private school I want to ensure that non-privately educated kids get the best chances in life and the best education. And that may, or may not mean going back to school as soon as possible.

Isn’t your last paragraph pretty patronising/hypocritical?

How can you be happy your kids are getting even more of an advantage than they normally do for financial reasons yet want “the best” for the great unwashed by putting them more at risk than you (may be) willing to do with your own kids!?

For someone who constantly criticises Tories you do a decent impression of one yourself.

 

[Hacker Khan]

Isn’t your last paragraph pretty patronising/hypocritical?

How can you be happy your kids are getting even more of an advantage than they normally do for financial reasons yet want “the best” for the great unwashed by putting them more at risk than you (may be) willing to do with your own kids!?

For someone who constantly criticises Tories you do a decent impression of one yourself.

I am happy that my daughter is getting a good level of education at a private school and I want kids at non-private schools to get a good education as well. Hence the fact I give 100s of hours up for free to do the governance role in a non-private school. Not sure I referred to anyone as being unwashed. Or I said anywhere I am putting kids at any greater risk? Why am I putting kids at risk?

 

[NWJocko]

I am happy that my daughter is getting a good level of education at a private school and I want kids at non-private schools to get a good education as well. Hence the fact I give 100s of hours up for free to do the governance role in a non-private school. Not sure I referred to anyone as being unwashed. Or I said anywhere I am putting kids at any greater risk? Why am I putting kids at risk?

Just not at as good a level as your own children and you celebrate the fact your kids are even further ahead ??

You said yourself private school kids are getting better quality home schooling than state school kids so you’re happy to consider sending them back sooner, or “as soon as possible”. Are you clamouring for you’re private school to get you’re kids back in?

Well done on giving up time as a Governor, is that the trade off?

 

[SocketRocket]

I couldn't think of another one - I suppose I could have said 'selfish' - and that would be the best of it. His underlying point about us all eventually having to live with the risk is however valid. Not sure that now is the time to be exposing ourselves to the virus wholesale though...

Should there ever be a time to be exposing ourselves to the virus wholesale?

 

[clubchamp98]

Sixty five education staff have died from Covid According to the ONS.
This includes 26 teachers.
All these while schools have only had key workers children in.
If that’s how many die with schools almost empty I dread to think what the toll will be when the kids go back.
That’s not Highly Unlikley to me.

 

[SocketRocket]

Sixty five education staff have died from Covid According to the ONS.
This includes 26 teachers.
All these while schools have only had key workers children in.
If that’s how many die with schools almost empty I dread to think what the toll will be when the kids go back.
That’s not Highly Unlikley to me.

That's worrying.

 

[Blue in Munich]

Don't know, Bob, I think it was on either Newsnight or C4 News. But he was an expert in the field (and obviously aware of the Oxford work) but pointed out scientists have been trying for years to get a vaccine for SARS. There just isn't a scientific consensus - and I certainly prefer Prof Gilbert's assessment! But until hearing that I'd been going on the assumption that it was only a matter of time until we had a vaccine whereas now I'm thinking more about how we might just have to learn to live with it.

I see Alok Sharma today announcing a grant to the Oxford team to help them gear up for manufacturing and suggesting we might have it ready for mass vaccination in September. I think we've just got to hope for the best but be ready for the worst.

Have they Karen? There hasn't been a case reported in 16 years; given that how much effort is actually going to go into finding a vaccine to something that has possibly died out or, if it does come back will possibly have mutated rendering any vaccine ineffective?

https://www.cdc.gov/dotw/sars/index.html

 

[DanFST]

Sixty five education staff have died from Covid According to the ONS.
This includes 26 teachers.
All these while schools have only had key workers children in.
If that’s how many die with schools almost empty I dread to think what the toll will be when the kids go back.
That’s not Highly Unlikley to me.

Meaningless statistics.

It doesn't show if they have been working. (the 6 lollipop ladies have for example have definitely not been working) So doesn't show what you think it does.

Fact is the fatality rate is no different in the teaching profession to the general uk population.

 

[Foxholer]

Meaningless statistics.

It doesn't show if they have been working. (the 6 lollipop ladies have for example have definitely not been working) So doesn't show what you think it does.

Fact is the fatality rate is no different in the teaching profession to the general uk population.

H'mm! While I agree that there's a good deal of irrelevance in the figures CC quoted (65 out of 35k is almost 'noise level'), the fact that Teachers and kids are being 'thrown together', albeit with SD (though I'm dubious about how well that will work outside the classroom), will certainly increase the chance of transmission of the virus via the school setting. And, for me, the major 'risk' is not that pupils will catch it within the school, but that they will transmit it - either within or outwith the school environment (especially at home) with consequent further spread.

 

[YandaB]

ITV - "can you guarantee the R rate won't increase"...how do these morons get, and keep, their jobs?

I saw this today and was reminded of this discussion:

 

[Swinglowandslow]

H'mm! While I agree that there's a good deal of irrelevance in the figures CC quoted (65 out of 35k is almost 'noise level'), the fact that Teachers and kids are being 'thrown together', albeit with SD (though I'm dubious about how well that will work outside the classroom), will certainly increase the chance of transmission of the virus via the school setting. And, for me, the major 'risk' is not that pupils will catch it within the school, but that they will transmit it - either within or outwith the school environment (especially at home) with consequent further spread.

Exactly. Why are the proponents of return to school banging on about "kids don't give other kids the virus"?
I would suggest they do, but being a child it's likely taking no effect whatsoever. Thus, the evidence that children don't pass it on. They say!

But a child with the virus all over them and their belongings returning to Mum Dad et al will pass it on there.
And if "there" contains a vulnerable citizen, then?
Apart from the obvious result , as well, which would be Mum and Dad et al would spread it somewhat until symptoms appear in them.

 

[Hacker Khan]

Just not at as good a level as your own children and you celebrate the fact your kids are even further ahead ??

You said yourself private school kids are getting better quality home schooling than state school kids so you’re happy to consider sending them back sooner, or “as soon as possible”. Are you clamouring for you’re private school to get you’re kids back in?

Well done on giving up time as a Governor, is that the trade off?

Not sure where I started celebrating things. I said that 'And that may, or may not mean going back to school as soon as possible.' If you are going to quote me then do it in context, nowhere did I say that they should be sent back as soon as possible. Not going back may well be the best policy based on risk assessments and the particular circumstances of the school, pupils and parents.

As for clamouring for private schools to go back I stated with regards to my daughter 'And assuming I get the assurances I need I'll be happy to send her back. But I won't be pushing them to open and get kids back until they feel they are ready. 'Please do not start twisting my words and misquoting me to try and make a point.

I've tried to be as honest as possible and put a balanced perspective on this from a position of some knowledge on the background of advice being given by the government and what is going on in schools. But this subject should not be politicised. Just because the Tories have said something then if you vote Tory you should not be blindly following the advice if it is not be in the best interests of your family. Same with anything Labour comes out with if yo are a labour voter. Parents need to make their own minds up and often the head of the school will be best person to give some solid sensible advice.

 

[clubchamp98]

Meaningless statistics.

It doesn't show if they have been working. (the 6 lollipop ladies have for example have definitely not been working) So doesn't show what you think it does.

Fact is the fatality rate is no different in the teaching profession to the general uk population.

Yes stats can show anything .
So it can show that the staff could have given the virus to the kids to take home.
They didn’t because they weren’t in school .
But that will change if they go back.
They use science when it suits them but havnt proved kids can’t pass it on.

 

[bobmac]

Why cant the kids have their summer holidays now and go to school in July and August?

 

[Doon frae Troon]

I saw this today and was reminded of this discussion:
View attachment 30747

The flaw in that story is that at the start of WW2 Parliament got shot of an unpopular disorganised ineffective leader and replaced him with an effective leader who lead a united national government.