Current Affairs Coronavirus Thread - Serious stuff !!!

[scratchnsurf]

Do we know how much teaching is being done at the moment? Back in April the National Education Union advised teachers not to conduct classes over video link.

“Teachers cannot be working as though they are sat in front of a class, and children cannot be expected to be able to study full time with online resources.”

A poll conducted by Teacher Tapp found that just 2% of state schools were conducting live lessons during the lockdown.

The Government's own safeguarding guidance advised against video lessons.

 

[tsubaki]

I know teachers - they're not arsed about everyday illnesses (they work through them where most would stay off in fact), but as you say there's a world of difference between a heightened risk of catching a normal cold or norovirus or whatever and what COVID-19 currently is.

If you open schools, you may as well end the entire lockdown at the same time. Because it makes no sense to say a classroom of kids mingling and spreading the virus to homes is safe but everything else isn't.

Indeed, and that last bit is probably the point.

Combined with the lamentable failure of recruitment over contact tracing - I mean, how on earth is it even possible not to get more than enough applications for something like that in the current circumstances - and the state of the Tory papers this morning (especially the Mail and it’s call for teachers to go over the top next) this has been a very depressing day so far.

 

[peteblue]

People need to get their heads around the absolute inevitability of a second wave. Probably even a third or fourth, but the second is an absolute cert to happen.

That's not the reason schools shouldn't re-open - it's because if you are taking active measures to suppress the virus across the country then you need a consistent message for the population to adhere to rules and you need the plan to be as comprehensive as possible but also as short as possible, as people get fatigued and start to not listen unless you have an authoritarian government who would shoot you in the head if you don't.

If you open schools, you are no longer locked down. If they lift the entire lockdown, fine. It'd be a mistake and you'd hasten a massive spike in deaths, but whatever, that's the governments mistake to make. But if you pretend the lockdown is still happening and just open schools and expect everyone to carry on staying indoors or to observe social distancing, they won't - and to make matters worse, when the second spike does happen and you reintroduce lockdown after, what, 2-4 weeks of lifting it, everyone will be annoyed and less likely to listen.

The TLDR version - either end the lockdown and open schools, or keep it and don't. If you're going to ease the lockdown, there's many measures to take beforehand - open beer gardens, outdoor spaces for restaurants etc. But opening schools isn't one of those options; it's an economic decision.

Schools are already open, they didn’t close, they just had fewer pupils......

 

[tsubaki]

The Government's own safeguarding guidance advised against video lessons.

Yes but it didn’t and even if it did you are quoting it out of context and playing politics, or something.

 

[Hickson9]

I really have no idea if that last line was a wind up or not, but that whole post is exactly what I would expect to see from somebody in that position so I'll take it as read.

I appreciate the scale could be a problem at the bottom end, and there would be lots of inane things like keeping the local chippie open etc put forward. Maybe that could be farmed out, perhaps to local newspapers who could run a competition and all the dross could be weaned out. Only the best and brightest ideas would be put forward which would reduce the number being looked at by government people to maybe a hundred or so..

It's the idea that you just couldn't possibly learn anything that enrages me, and just confirms my point of view of central government departments. There's a reason why this sort of things works in private industry and given the governments performance so far in this crisis I would say you need all the help you can get.

I really do work in Whitehall.

To be clear, I am not saying there is nothing to learn from the general public. I am saying this format wouldn't work (and also will never happen so this is all just a theoretical debate).

It should be noted that different branches of Government engage with the general public as a matter of course. For example through stakeholder consultations, the results of which can change policy.

 

[Jebus_lives]

It's not great at all.

Maybe he meant 'equal access to all French people'

 

[Hickson9]

Scale shouldn’t be an issue. A sensibly organised on-line system, pre grouping similar suggestions etc etc and distributing to relevant departments/individuals should do the job.

I think you would be amazed at just what can be learnt when you break away from ‘group think’ and other ‘experts‘.

It might even help bridge the gap between those who think they know all the answers and those who have to deal with the consequences of government policy and processes....Just a suggestion mind......

The system you are suggesting would be very intensive and costly, with no obvious benefits.

Like I just said in a different post, Government engages with the general public in other ways.

 

[COYBL25]

Do we know how much teaching is being done at the moment? Back in April the National Education Union advised teachers not to conduct classes over video link.

“Teachers cannot be working as though they are sat in front of a class, and children cannot be expected to be able to study full time with online resources.”

A poll conducted by Teacher Tapp found that just 2% of state schools were conducting live lessons during the lockdown.

This was addressed by my lads school very early on, after some parents started cryarsing about the fact there should be live teaching :

1. Not all kids have a computer at home capable of viewing live feed.

2. A number of kids live in large households and it just wouldn`t be feasible for them to take part in lessons at home due to the logistics of their household.

3. How do you police lessons if the childs parents are at work / the child doesn`t log on / decides to log off mid lesson for whatever reason.

4. Child safeguarding issues, in that other adults could view the children on the live feed.

 

[peteblue]

Maybe he meant 'equal access to all French people'

I think that was the obvious conclusion......

 

[Jebus_lives]

I really do work in Whitehall.

To be clear, I am not saying there is nothing to learn from the general public. I am saying this format wouldn't work (and also will never happen so this is all just a theoretical debate).

It should be noted that different branches of Government engage with the general public as a matter of course. For example through stakeholder consultations, the results of which can change policy.

So you're saying my suggestion won't get a fair airing???!!!

I'm appalled. Would it help if I also suggested we ban same sex marriage and abortion as well my previous recommendations?

 

[tsubaki]

Transatlantic tensions over access to COVID-19 vaccines mount after Sanofi CEO says US is first in queue

French pharmaceutical company Sanofi is at the centre of a transatlantic row over access to its COVID-19 vaccines, after CEO Paul Hudson said the US would get “first access, because it was first to fund the research.”

sciencebusiness.net

There's a very ugly undercurrent of nationalism emerging throughout all of this. Very ugly.

Unfortunately, that is because of you know who.

 

[Jebus_lives]

I think that was the obvious conclusion......

I do love an obvious conclusion.

 

[COYBL25]

Really.

I think teachers are well aware that they work in an environment where they are surrounded by unhygienic, unwashed, germ infested beings on a daily basis.

Let’s not kid ourselves.

I really wish there was rep on this thread, as you`d be well into the minus 100`s by now.

 

[Barnfred 55]

Same thoughts as you.

I dont think folk will be that arsed about some tax rises, but spending cuts less so. Especially as we all know where the impact will be felt most.

Just ring fence this exceptional item, and effectively remove it from the year to year budgets for ever.

No more austerity. We've had too much already and even the Tories know that I think. It needs to be a combination of moderate tax rises and increased debt.

I can see stamp duty being passed on to the seller which as being muted before this happened anyway.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

very rarely you will die of a common cold or a bit of diarrhea

As I mentioned earlier, an email went round our local NHS trust saying that vaccinations for MMR etc. are hugely down among children at the moment, so there seems an increased risk of getting diseases that really can kill children.