Scottish education secretary John Swinney has announced that preparations would begin for the full time return of pupils in August, but what has the reaction been?
With many councils planning for a blended learning approach involving just two days a week in school and the rest of the time learning online at home, the move was described by local authority umbrella body Cosla as a “significant change”.
On social media, there was a wide gamut of responses from teachers. Some were sanguine and felt that it had been clear blended learning was always a contingency, with the clear goal to get pupils back full time, others admitted they had nearly cried when they heard the news given all the work they had put into making the part-time school model work.
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There was, however, a degree of commonality. Ultimately, many school staff seemed to agree if full-time schooling could be achieved safely, this was good news - and that it was a positive thing they now had back-up plans in place should the trend in the spread of the virus change by 11 August.
Fife primary headteacher, Jennifer Knussen, tweeted: “I’m going to put my cards on the table. This afternoon, I could have wept. My plans! The time spent planning!! On reflection, if bringing the bairns back in full time is safe, I’m up for it. If it doesn’t pan out, because of the caveats, I’ve also got plans for that.”
Nicola Fisher, a primary teacher in Glasgow and former president of the EIS teaching union, stressed that the change was not “only about moving furniture”. Planning for part-time learning had taken “weeks of work”, senior managers were “on their knees” and now with just 24 hours to go before school staff in some parts of Scotland were due to be on holiday they would have to “start again”. A “great many” teachers were feeling “angry, distressed and let down”, she said.
She also argued that a phased return would be in the interest of pupils.
“If you would want a phased return to work after being absent for 5 months but you don’t think children need the same after 5 months away from school,then you need to take a long, hard look at yourself.Smaller doesn’t mean less important,fewer emotions or no mental health impact.”
Teachers in Glasgow go off for the summer holidays today and on Friday the summer break starts in Edinburgh. Some schools have a little longer to prepare with schools in Aberdeenshire not due to break up for summer until a week on Friday.
A business studies and computing teacher said schools had had the rug pulled from under them and it was “ridiculous” to set them the task of preparing for blended learning and then change that plan with “no notice or chance for preparation”.
Another teacher, this time a faculty head of social studies based in Glasgow, said she had spent weeks “knocking [her] pan in” preparing resources but now all that effort would be wasted. However, she did add that getting pupils back full time had “always been the aspiration”, adding: “It’s time to prepare that’s the issue.”
Other teachers were looking for reassurance. The Green’s education spokesperson, Ross Greer, said that while parents worried about working and homeschooling would now be relieved, many school staff and their families would be “incredibly anxious about a return to full-time schooling without social distancing”. He called on the Scottish government to offer regular testing for all school staff.
People from minority ethnic backgrounds have been shown to be at greater risk from the virus. An Edinburgh-based BAME (black and ethnic minority) geography teacher tweeted: “I am BAME and my wife is pregnant. Can I have some advice about returning?”
