At 11.41 on Thursday night I received a text message from a school principal. It said: "It just doesn't stop. Checking hand sanitiser orders at 11.30 at night".
The school principal who texted me on Thursday night had had an eventful day - but nothing too out of the ordinary for a school in these times.This mother had heard in the community that a student in the school had tested positive for Covid-19. This principal had become aware of the case too but had had no contact from the HSE and no official confirmation.He began to experience symptoms of Covid-19 on Saturday.
After the principal’s phone calls, one parent went immediately to collect their child who was working that night at their part-time job in a local newsagents. "I have three other students out with Covid and the HSE has made no contact with me because they had been out of school for a number of days before they were displaying symptoms," she said."Officially we have just one confirmed case, but I know that there are four students that have tested positive. It is easy to manipulate the figures".
Discussions between the department and teacher trade unions and school management bodies will continue over the mid-term."I'm clinging on to my mental health here navigating the anxieties, anger and dismay of teachers, parents and students" another principal told me on Friday morning.
emma_okelly Emma why are teachers limping when all chilcare sector funding was stopped on March 12th yet teachers pay was still continues to be paid.
emma_okelly Seriously? Try hospital work to know exhaustion from porters to doctors to cleaners to nurses to Midwives
emma_okelly All fake news, please get your facts right. Teachers want to work, stop bashing them. We need to respect our professions to deliver in this era, everyone is trying their best.
emma_okelly It's all part of the pandemic Emma we all have to sacrifice normal life in these strange times just get on with it & stop moaning
emma_okelly A lot of teachers are this way every year, when there's no virus. The show must get on..learn those kids the good learnings.
emma_okelly The RTÉ bias narrative is getting old now.
emma_okelly Dr. Holohan CMOIreland I hope you read this article. I also hope you'll read my letter. Look at the LEA rate (979) where my son's school is. Look at the video pinned to my page. Then please reply to me why my son can't receive remote/streamed learning from his tech savvy school.
emma_okelly Should have been a two week break not one
emma_okelly After 8 weeks 🙄 and remember there was no home work to correct for first four weeks 😂
emma_okelly Great article, thank you. Teachers and principals must be truly exhausted. Teaching is hard work and must be draining in these circumstances. Most people don’t understand that online teaching is even more exhausting but definitely safer.
emma_okelly Ah poor them! Wouldn’t your Heart go out to them.
emma_okelly Norma Foley should resign
emma_okelly I'd suggest this article may be slightly over done the superlatives. How are nurse's and other front line health staff coping if the teachers are exhausted?
emma_okelly i dont understand peoples ‘if they don’t want to work they should be on PUP’ it’s not a matter of not wanting to work. it’s wanting to work in a s a f e environment. It’s headlines like this that bring out the teacher bashers from every crevice of the country.
emma_okelly Limping? Who writes this crap? Maybe ask the ICU nurse,the Dunnes check out assistant,the Tesco shelf stacker, the truck drivers, the Gardai who've been at this since March -you know back when Teachers ran home and stayed there until pulled kicking & screaming out in Sept!
emma_okelly Every work place is facing the same problem. Staff under pressure covering for work colleagues out-sick or isolating due to close contact, limited or no access to sick-pay, only 20 days holidays.
emma_okelly More mentally/ emotionally burned out from the anxiety and worry of being thrown in the deep end. My school safety procedures are of a very high standard. Teaching 30 students from diff families without adequate SD/MASKS when covid is rampant in the area is what worries me
emma_okelly Are they having a laugh... They've worked what 2 months
emma_okelly Yet poorly paid, mostly un-unionised creche workers show real leadership? If you as a teacher have an underlying illness you should be protected, the rest of ye?.....get the fuck on with it
emma_okelly I’m sure the frontline staff in hospitals are tired, student nurses not being paid with no rights but expected to do the same as a staff nurse must be very tired. 🙁
emma_okelly Exhausted Seriously 🙄. How have all the doctors/ nurses managed since March?
emma_okelly What? Says who? I'm a teacher and the above intro could be nothing further from the truth IMO. In fact I feel the opposite to all of the above. Delighted to be back, doing the best with kids regarding covid and vice versa.Had a great day of H'ween fun on Friday, all kids did too
emma_okelly Scraping the barrel for a headline. We’re all exhausted with this. Healthcare workers and frontline staff have not complained once. They’ve been working through this since March and many don’t have this week off like teachers. Save us this crap news please.
emma_okelly Please don’t state that teachers are tired emma_okelly , teachers have never complained of this. You have highlighted the safety concerns so please refrain from using the ‘tired’ statement as it is fuelling unsolicited nastiness towards the teaching profession.
emma_okelly Limping ? What f cking joke
emma_okelly Exhausted from what ? We’re they working extra hours that nobody knows about.
emma_okelly What a stupid and over exaggerated click bait tweet
emma_okelly There not exhausted
emma_okelly Thank you for highlighting what is actually happening emma_okelly
emma_okelly Teachers need to mass strike.
emma_okelly Pity she only gives a one sided analysis . unionspokeperson. Neutral independent reporting.......me holohan!!
emma_okelly Has this article been properly fact checked? Seems to be mostly hearsay.
emma_okelly Teachers and principals are front line workers. Don't pander to their protected-self built Status. They need to take responsibility not whinge .
emma_okelly This is just click bait, ignore it.
emma_okelly I would say we were exhilarated and thrilled to have made it through to Mid term relatively unscathed. Tired, yes, but it was worth it seeing our students in class, being educated, engaging with teachers, rekindling friendships and relationships.
emma_okelly No easy solution. Closing schools down again will do incalculable harm to the young. Especially the more deprived. People need to lower their contacts to compensate for keeping them open. That’s if we care about the youth and if we care about the less we’ll off.Question is Do we?
emma_okelly Great article Emma. Thank you.
emma_okelly The biggest danger to teachers is the staff room, not the classroom. Masks off (to eat lunch), probably not social distancing, guard down. Adults much more likely to transmit to each other than children. Keep away from the staff rooms and you should be fine. Essential workers!
emma_okelly How we talk about childcare workers? We were the first to open back up, not even getting half of the support that schools are getting
emma_okelly A great article Emma- like any other true story narrated in a simple and straightforward language 👏
emma_okelly Be sensible, follow guidelines and lead by example. I'm sick of teachers whingeing and whining. Schools shouldn't have ever closed. Don't see essential workers like nurses, store workers etc boohooing like this
emma_okelly We all limp exhausted towards to the last week before mid term. The only reason most teachers and staff are anyway extra tired is because of hyper busy body parents putting extra pressure on them over a virus that is no longer a threat.
emma_okelly Thank you emma_okelly for highlighting these safety issues
emma_okelly seriously? childcare workers are back since July and you can't even explain what social distance is to there age group. get a fucking grip
emma_okelly Wait a second parents wanted schools reopened as children “were missing out” teachers wanted schools reopened for the importance of mental health and education welfare of students gov were all onside so now what ? Why all the complaints ?
emma_okelly Ah come on Emma! Teachers were on full pay during 1st lockdown! They are only doing their job....a huge amount of money has been allocated by Government to support their efforts and rightly so! But to say this should threaten closure is over the top.!
emma_okelly Exhausted they work about 5 month a year after holidays
FergalBowers emma_okelly Supermarkets have never closed they have had to adapt to the ongoing situation. Schools can & should also. Whilst no one wants to get infected the majority of cases now are mild.
emma_okelly Please stop with the whole 'teachers are tired' crap. You know that just fuels the teacher bashers. I am not tired. I just want a safer work environment with actual contact tracing.
emma_okelly Now do all the rest of the essential services workers. The teachers unions can do enough whining without requiring help from RTÉ
emma_okelly One Tipp town has three schools with active cases!
emma_okelly Teachers... watch this and crack on
emma_okelly Is this a case of RTE softening us up ,kids told on Friday to take their books home just in case 🤷
emma_okelly Yes that invisible enemy that's killing hardly anyone. It's terrifying.
emma_okelly What is with the constant pressure to close the schools! Did everyone miss the part where they were shut for 6 months this year? If they close, what will have to be done to persuade teaching staff to reopen them or will that be it again for 6 months?
emma_okelly Here we go folks. Heres the softly softly catchy monkey starting for the little irish piggies. Expect your kids not to be going back to school after mid term
emma_okelly Interesting article... many issues to be addressed but which can be addressed. Transparency is needed. Our kids school seems to have come through the first term in buoyant mood, determined to make the best out of the current situation, so thank you to all the school staff!
emma_okelly Serious amount of articles being released since last friday, get the feeling that media knows something we don’t and is releasing it slowly... could be wrong
feeoc1 emma_okelly Can you drop the tired teacher narrative? It just fuels the teacher bashing brigade. Please focus on the dangerous conditions our children are put into: Packed classes No close contacts acc to HSE Non-existent test/trace No extra protections in Level 3, 4 ...or even 5 Gov:🙈🙉
emma_okelly Maybe if there wasn't so many women teaching there might not be so much whinging. Guys usually just soldier on but women tend to whine a lot more.
emma_okelly If they want more time off - put them on the Covid payment.
emma_okelly How on earth do you think hospital staff are feeling without the same breaks. no offence to teachers as they worth their weight but seriously this constant concern for teachers is really grating on nerves of those in face of it since feb
emma_okelly How about teachers volunteering for Contact Tracing ?
emma_okelly Close the schools and the next target will be airports. Never mind whatever supplies need to be flown in we can have them parachuted in. The last few days stories of mass infections in planes being promoted by Luke O’Neill and co. as we get near to the European agreement.
emma_okelly What do they need to be afraid of Emma? They have nothing to fear but fear itself, that you seem intent on perpetuating. You are a disgrace to journalism, freedom and democracy and I hope that you and your colleagues are held to account for your facilitation in this deception
emma_okelly there's no respect for teachers, never was, pious platitudes as ever
emma_okelly Exhausted.......🙄
emma_okelly Its happening in every school all over the country!!
FergalBowers emma_okelly HSE & Dept of Ed need to support schools properly. If schools close, HSE will lose frontline workers. HSE and Dept of Ed provided absolutely no support for the care & education of children of their frontline workers in the 1st lockdown. We cannot do that impossible juggle again.
emma_okelly Staff exhausted after working 7 weeks out of last 6 months? Other frontline workers might disagree
emma_okelly So glad I'm not teaching. I did it for 4 years. It was very busy. Seeing this thread makes me even happier to be away from it. For 12 years I didn't feel so happy though. I missed it. Qualified at 35. As a mature student. Had other careers before that.
FergalBowers emma_okelly Not one mention of ventilation in the classrooms to prevent viral loading by asymptomatics and pre symptomatics students. Monitoring the CO2 levels will indicate when fresh air is needed. Open windows & doors, fans and purifiers will help keep them safest.
emma_okelly Throw away your masks, see your friends & your family, open your businesses, welcome your loved ones to your home, hug grandparents, reject anti-social distancing, travel, love & live life & when they try to stop you, tell them that you're Trent Hardcastle IamTrentHardcastle
emma_okelly Exhausted? 🤡
emma_okelly It's the governments job to demoralise you when their bosses tell them it's Depression time and it's RTE's job to do what the Government asks.
emma_okelly It would be helpful if HSE/parent were obliged to notify the school if pupil tests positive...Otherwise, the managing of this in schools becomes an impossible task.
emma_okelly Exhausted?-really? Most teach for only 4 hours a day! A nurse works 12-13 hour shifts wearing full ppe! I know who is exhausted!
emma_okelly Exhausted and stressed why? There literally in the safest environment of all frontline workers I've not heard one moan from supermarket staff, truck drivers, retail staff and many other important workers. More & more ordinary people are sick listening to there constant whinge
emma_okelly Are we not still pretending Schools are safe?
emma_okelly How about you or your colleagues try write some positive and constructive articles instead of the common narrative of negative, negative, negative. Let’s work with what we have and find solutions. You might actually feel better and others too
FergalBowers emma_okelly As are doctors, nurses, nursing home staff.. but they don’t have mid terms
emma_okelly I dont understand this comment t.. limping into Mid-Term.. are you looking to generate more anxiety.. I dont believe this is the case. If the kids are coming home happy; then the school environment must be positive.. so stop this messaging..
emma_okelly Close the schools
emma_okelly Close the Schools
emma_okelly exhausted? they were off for 6 months. have 9 days off after being back for 8-9 weeks!
emma_okelly Holohan has his Level 5 a premium guest slot on the Late Late Show you think he gives a Fuck
JohnathanSRoss1 emma_okelly I would say it's the same for a lot of workplaces, extra HS policies constantly changing, staff shortage, lack of custom, trying to fit extra work due to increased paperwork, plans of action and wearing PPE even going for a natural break takes twice as long.
emma_okelly There must be a good storyline in Home and Away that they don’t want to miss after mid term.
emma_okelly Exhausted ? C’mon now - time to get a bit realistic
FergalBowers emma_okelly They must be tired alright after 8 weeks work. I wonder how health service, construction, childcare and retail workers feel? Children need an education...
emma_okelly They are not the only ones stressed and tired
emma_okelly An excellent article addressing a very serious issue. Thank you emma_okelly
emma_okelly My news predictions coming true. Jesus.
emma_okelly My son's school is half staffed with teachers being off because they're having to self isolate for 2 weeks due to suspected covid outbreak!!
emma_okelly They’ve only been back a few months come on
emma_okelly Excellent factual read - well done Emma!
emma_okelly Hospitals are spreading the virus........ Close them now
emma_okelly Schools are closing everywhere in Europe. We are a laughing stock keeping our schools opened in dangerous times like these
FergalBowers emma_okelly Wow, Emma, et al. Only took you two months, or three, since the Roadmap was published, to begin to admit that schools are not safe places. Before this, it was toeing the party line of Covid doesn't spread in schools, as per the government spin. Must not want to be on the wrong
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