Briefing 5 - Members in primary schools

Created on: 14 Dec 2020 | Last modified: 15 Dec 2020

Within the EIS November survey, thousands of comments from teachers were collected on issues such as behaviour in the classroom, their health, and wider safety concerns about working in schools.

This is the fifth in a series of briefings, that the EIS will issue to the Scottish Government outlining the experiences of EIS members. Some comments have been redacted to ensure they do not identify individual schools or members.

Key Issues

  • 3,435 comments were left by members who identified themselves as working in a Primary School in their response to the survey (not all are included in this briefing)
  • Many of the comments received by members highlighted that they did not think their schools were clean enough. Many shared experiences of inadequate cleaning, running out of supplies, or having to clean the classrooms themselves.
  • Across all sectors, teachers highlighted that social distancing was often impossible within their classrooms. The comments below show the anxieties that those in the primary sector face when trying to keep a safe distance from pupils and other staff members.
  • Overall, those in the primary sector talked of feeling unsafe and wanting stronger mitigations, including a move to blended learning in higher protection level areas.

Primary Briefing

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