The angst and chaos of Term 1 with the outbreak and rapid spread of Covid-19 well exceed the usual anxiety in a school. Catching head lice used to be my biggest health worry working in a school. Given the circumstances in the world currently, head lice sure seems like such a superficial matter as a teacher. (You can all stop scratching your heads now....) The life of a teacher has changed rapidly and drastically over the past few weeks. We all know that kids can be icky. Their idea of hygiene differs greatly from society’s idea of hygiene. They eat bugs, pick their nose (and other parts of their body), lick the furniture, suck on pens, suck on their hair, suck on other students pens and hair, and have ZERO understanding of personal space. Although Scott Morrison thinks that, and I quote, “it’s very simple, really, teachers need to keep students apart from each other and make sure they always wash their hands and are following hygiene standards expected in a school”….well it’s actually not that simple Scott, and anyone else who thinks “business as usual” is the right decision for QLD schools right now in the midst of a global health crisis. So what has it really been like teaching during the Covid-19 pandemic?
Firstly, let me tell you a little story to paint a picture in your mind. I teach Year 6, so these kids are 10 or 11 years old. You would think that they would know how to wash their hands properly by now, wouldn’t you? You would think that they would have well polished hygiene practices as they have been living on this earth for at least 10 years. If you think this, turns out that you are very wrong….you and me both.
I had a student sneeze ALL OVER, I repeat, ALL OVER their desk last week. There was snot on their book, on all the pens and on their hands. They put their snot covered hand up and waited patiently for me to help them problem solve what to do with the snot problem. We decided to: a. Throw out their book. B. Throw out the snot covered pens. C. Wash their hands. I turned on the tap for them to wash off the initial snot (because there was SO much). Then I put some soap on their hands, and had to instruct them to rub their hands together. They then looked at me blankly and said “Do I have to add water now?”. This both humoured me, and scared me. This was the wake up call I needed. This was the moment I realised that this was going to be a tough gig, as a teacher right now in Australia.
I found myself spending the afternoon session doing an impromptu hand washing lesson with all of my 10 year olds. I had a clip board, and marked off whether they were “competent” or “incompetent”. Some had to wash their hands more than once until I was satisfied. No word of a lie. The government loves data, so I am thinking Scott would have been proud of me collected hand washing data. Much more useful than NAPLAN, but that’s an argument for another day….but side note: nobody is sad that NAPLAN is cancelled. What we are sad about is having to go to work during this time, and risking our health and the health of our families.
The curriculum has really been pushed aside this week. I taught a lesson on germs. A very successful lesson, even if I do say so myself. I think I certainly scared the kids into washing their hands more often than they usually do, and properly. We started with a tub of water, and sprinkled pepper into it. The pepper was replicating the Covid-19 virus. One of the students put a finger into the pepper filled dish, and when they pulled their finger out, showed the class that all the pepper was stuck to their finger. They had dirty hands. Basically the students learnt that if they have dirty hands and they touch a surface with the virus on it, it will stick to their dirty hands. We then had a student put their hand in soapy water, and then into the pepper water and show that their finger came out clean. This experiment has resulted in students washing their hands for a VERY long time, and VERY frequently. This made me happy and filled with a little bit of hope. Fun Fact: I also have a “door handle wiper” monitor who wipes down the door-knobs and communal spaces every hour. Lucky for me they take this job very seriously. This scenario is quite promising, maybe we can stay clean during this crisis. I feel some relief....that is until we run out of soap and wipes half way through the day, on a Tuesday….not even half way through the week yet. ”They are on back order” we are told. We can’t afford to wait 3 more weeks for these supplies to be delivered, and I can't afford to be supplying my own!
Many schools around the country have run out of soap, hand sanitiser and even toilet paper. Students aren’t allowed to bring in their own. I am not sure how the government thinks we can keep hygiene standards up to scratch, without providing us with supplies needed to do this. Teachers should not have to buy their own cleaning products or hand washing products. We also shouldn’t have to go to a workplace during a time like this, and not have adequate equipment. I have a tiny personal bottle of hand sanitiser that I go around and share with my 27 kids, a few times a day. This is only going to last another day or two maximum, and the shops are out….so then what?! Do I have to start bringing in soap from home too? The only soap I could buy yesterday cost $11.99. It is just not viable, but at the same time, I don’t want to be surrounded by 27 humans all day who have germs all over their hands and faces because we have no soap. The struggle is real.
“Singapore have not closed their schools throughout this crisis, and they have contained the spread of Covid-19 well.” Scott says. What Scott didn’t say was that every student in Singapore has their own thermometer and if a student’s temperature is slightly high they go home for at least 5 days. Teachers and staff also have proper suits and masks to wear for their own safety. In Australia there is absolutely no equipment provided to teachers, no thermometres and parents are still sending students to school when they are sick. It is like comparing oranges to apples, in my opinion, and it is just not good enough.
And don’t get me started on keeping children 1.5 metres from one another. The desks in my room are not individual desks like when I went to school, that maybe you could move away from one another and use all the space in the classroom. In a classroom in 2020 there is a lot of communal furniture, which fosters 21st century skills such as collaboration. So in my room I have big tables that fit 6 students around and circle tables that fit 4 students. Impossible to separate, and unless I want students sitting on the floor, and some outside, I can’t fit myself and 27 quite big students, in my classroom practicing social distancing. Impossible."It's quite simple really" keep replaying in my head.....Have you been to a school lately, Mr Morrison?
The students are anxious about the virus. They have been hearing mixed reports; they have access to social media and other forms of media. Some of my students have been coming in and apologising that they are putting adults lives at risk. These kids are 10. That's a lot of weight on their shoulders, and as a teacher we are expected to calm them, reassure them, keen them clean, keep them apart....with a side of maths and English. Easy peasy right?! #wrong
I think the thing that is pissing me off the most (excuse my language) is the blatant disregard for teachers in the media. My favourite headline is “As an Australian teacher right now, I feel like a sacrificial lamb”. Exactly. So we’ve heard that Covid-19 doesn’t seem to affect kids much, and sometimes they can have the virus and show no symptoms at all. This is good news. But what politicians have failed to consider, are the adults in a school. There are teachers, teacher aides, office staff, groundsmen, tuckshop and uniform shop workers (some of whom are parents), parent helpers and leadership. Do you think that we are invincible or do you actually not care? Some of these adults are older, pregnant, have underlying health issues or someone in their family does that they have to go home to each night. These kids can still be carriers of Covid-19 and can pass this on to us. What are schools going to do when all of their teachers are either sick, or in self-isolation? Schools actually need teachers to be healthy, to teach the students. My school only has 26 teacher, 9 of home called in sick last Friday. I wonder how many will be away tomorrow? Schools can't run without teachers.
There are so many alternatives. Most school in this day and age have a 1:1 device program. There are so many ways for lessons to be delivered online. Teachers can video lessons and upload them, as well as activities and assessments. Students would be able to ask question and speak with their teacher. Everyone’s health at this point should be the most important thing. Schools closing doesn't mean learning has to stop, it just means face to face contact has to stop, for everyone's benefit. I understand that critical workers still have to go to work, and put their lives on the line. I definitely am appreciative of these workers, and would be happy to go to work to keep teaching their kids. But only their kids
I understand and acknowledge some of the points around keeping schools open, however, why not take a leaf out of the UK or Norway’s book and keep school open for kids of critical workers and vulnerable children?! So many people are arguing that if schools closed, these kids would be out running a muck in public. If they had decent parents they wouldn’t be. Their parents would be making them stay home and practice social distancing like they are supposed to. If parents can’t watch them because they can’t stay home, then they can still go to school and be supervised. When Queensland is in lockdown, students could still be learning from home...if they give us enough warning to actually prepare remote learning that is.
Anyway, I just really needed to type out my thoughts as I sit here anxiously, ready to go to work tomorrow where it is impossible to practice social distancing. Meanwhile those who can be will be at home, doing their part to stop the spread of Covid-19, or if they do need to go out I’m sure they will have more success staying 1.5 metres away from other members of society than teachers will in a school…..I hope that after the Cabinet meeting tonight, QLD teachers will feel safer and more valued, and that the right decisions will be made with everyone’s best interests at heart. #whatatimetobeateacher #covid19