Read on Twitter
Inquiry+DfE (THREAD).
Various followers alerted me that Parliament are conducting an inquiry into covid impact on education and social services, and on DfE response.
It claims it “will scrutinise how the Department for Education is dealing with the situation.”
EXCEPT... 1/
Various followers alerted me that Parliament are conducting an inquiry into covid impact on education and social services, and on DfE response.
It claims it “will scrutinise how the Department for Education is dealing with the situation.”
EXCEPT... 1/
This would be more analogous to if Parliament had said,
“We’re now conducting a call for evidence on Russian interference.*
*Only accepting evidence for LACK of interference.”
https://committees.parliament.uk/work/202/the-impact-of-covid19-on-education-and-childrens-services/
2/
“We’re now conducting a call for evidence on Russian interference.*
*Only accepting evidence for LACK of interference.”
https://committees.parliament.uk/work/202/the-impact-of-covid19-on-education-and-childrens-services/
2/
It looks like something written in April, when schools were only open to key workers’ and vulnerable children.
The first Q is on “how schools are supported to remain open for children of critical workers.”
NEWS FLASH: ENGLISH SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN FULLY OPEN SINCE SEPTEMBER. 3/
The first Q is on “how schools are supported to remain open for children of critical workers.”
NEWS FLASH: ENGLISH SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN FULLY OPEN SINCE SEPTEMBER. 3/
Other than one Q on abstract planning for future (non-covid) national emergencies, and one Q on consequences of last school years’ exam cancellations,
all 6 other Qs are explicitly or implicitly about damage from last school year’s emergency partial school closures. 4/
all 6 other Qs are explicitly or implicitly about damage from last school year’s emergency partial school closures. 4/
I mean, were they ever planning on asking about the DfE response THIS SCHOOL YEAR? Will that be 2023’s inquiry?
Since apparently Parliament are too busy to think up any questions on this topic, I thought I’d suggest a few for them....
5/
Since apparently Parliament are too busy to think up any questions on this topic, I thought I’d suggest a few for them....
5/
1. How are school staff sufficiently protected from exposure to maintain an adequate staff supply to meet basic education, health, and safety needs of children?
When DfE threatens legal action against understaffed schools attempting to close, how do they meet H&S standards? 6/ https://twitter.com/jolyonmaugham/status/1338575773859504135
When DfE threatens legal action against understaffed schools attempting to close, how do they meet H&S standards? 6/ https://twitter.com/jolyonmaugham/status/1338575773859504135
2. What is DfE evidence for their claim that masks “could have a negative impact on teaching and their use in the classroom should be avoided”?
Are there reasons for differing from WHO & UNICEF guidance on this, and from the practice of many countries w/ masks in classrooms? 7/
Are there reasons for differing from WHO & UNICEF guidance on this, and from the practice of many countries w/ masks in classrooms? 7/
3. What IT and device support has government provided for children made to temporarily isolate due to school or family covid exposure?
What recourse are underprivileged families expected to take in the absence of such support?
https://www.bbc.com/news/education-54675620
8/
What recourse are underprivileged families expected to take in the absence of such support?
https://www.bbc.com/news/education-54675620
8/
4. How many excess students are off-roll this year from families with medically vulnerable household members forced to deregister children from the school system just to follow medical advice to shield?
And how are social & other services supporting this abandoned community? 9/ https://twitter.com/sarahdrasmussen/status/1324421603996913670
And how are social & other services supporting this abandoned community? 9/ https://twitter.com/sarahdrasmussen/status/1324421603996913670
5. If a CEV person’s child remains in school, what are the mental health & developmental impacts of the child needing to socially distance from their entire family within their own home for months on end, and the burden of personally placing their family member at such risk? 10/ https://twitter.com/sarahdrasmussen/status/1314593804633231360
6. What are the mental health impacts on the subset of children who now knowingly risk spreading covid to clinically extremely vulnerable teachers at school who have now been made to return to in-person teaching in the classroom? 11/ https://twitter.com/sarahdrasmussen/status/1333119298869604352
We have a DfE leadership that appears to care more about MESSAGING about school safety than about actually implementing measures to reduce school transmission and protect the most at-risk groups. 12/
Let’s return to this matter of Parliament insisting on collecting more evidence from emergency partial closures last spring.
In some sense this move isn’t surprising, since the DfE have a penchant for conflating evidence from then with evidence from now. 13/
In some sense this move isn’t surprising, since the DfE have a penchant for conflating evidence from then with evidence from now. 13/
Like DfE amplification of the CMO’s 3 Nov claim that ONS data did not imply teachers were at higher risk than key workers like healthcare workers.
He now claims the “data” he meant was from LAST SPRING, when HCWs had inadequate PPE and schools were closed to most children. 14/ https://twitter.com/educationgovuk/status/1323701607159099392
He now claims the “data” he meant was from LAST SPRING, when HCWs had inadequate PPE and schools were closed to most children. 14/ https://twitter.com/educationgovuk/status/1323701607159099392
Or how when DfE and science advisors published schools-related evidence this November, it was mostly on school closures, and conflated total school loss and spring emergency conditions with any outside-school learning that might occur eg for rotas or household CEV shielding. 15/
I shouldn’t be the one who needs to tell the DfE this, but
We need to do more than saying school closures are bad.
We need to support schools to make SCHOOL OPENINGS GOOD.
And that means good for everyone, even the at-risk.
16/16
We need to do more than saying school closures are bad.
We need to support schools to make SCHOOL OPENINGS GOOD.
And that means good for everyone, even the at-risk.
16/16
