Are you sending your kids to school next month?

[Kestryl]

San Francisco teacher's unions are demanding full distance learning to continue through July 2022.

Freaking nuts...

I’m sorry, is there anything out there to read on this July 2022 schedule? I found news articles that tied returning to the colored tier stuff, but they didn’t give timelines.

 

[DLgal]

I’m sorry, is there anything out there to read on this July 2022 schedule? I found news articles that tied returning to the colored tier stuff, but they didn’t give timelines.

I stand corrected. They are demanding no more than 2 days a week in person through July 2022. Note they have not yet started ANY in person school in SF.

Counties can impose more strict guidelines than the state, and individual districts can be even stricter than the county. It's a mess.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/educati...et-a-reopening-demand-two-days-a-15946060.php

 

[Colleen27]

San Francisco teacher's unions are demanding full distance learning to continue through July 2022.

Freaking nuts...

That's beyond nuts!

I’m sorry, is there anything out there to read on this July 2022 schedule? I found news articles that tied returning to the colored tier stuff, but they didn’t give timelines.

Yeah, it looks like the agreement they're proposing would apply through the end of next year, not that they want full remote that long.

Still, the proposal sounds rather unreasonable to me. I didn't see mention of a part-time schedule (the Chronicle is paywalled and I can't find that elsewhere), but they don't want any in-person learning until all teachers and staff are vaccinated, and even at that point, they want small classes of stable cohorts, PPE mandates, social distancing, improved ventilation... basically all the precautions that we (and private schools all over the country, including in SF) put in place to have the schools open in person all year long without anyone being vaccinated. You know it is extreme when Mayor Breed, who has been at the forefront of imposing stricter-than-state-mandated rules all year, has taken the view that the union is being too cautious and is suing the district to get the schools reopened.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Meanwhile my state's Board of Education "recommended this week that school districts allow middle and high school students resume full-time in-person instruction if precautions are taken." The Senate President introduced a bill today that would require schools in the state "to offer full, in-person instruction starting March 26" Don't know where the bill would go but it offers a stark contrast to the discussion regarding CA.

A notation in the news article is right now 9.4% of the state's population has been vaccinated with at least 1 dose. As of right now the anticipated number of doses next week stands to be double what has been sent to the state in the past 2 weeks.

 

[YeOswaldianSociety]

I love mom types talking about pushing back against big government and mask mandates as it relates to teaching and/or teachers. They've never taught in their lives or know what said profession involves yet they see teachers that don't want to return without a vaccine as lazy when it requires more work for them to teach from home. Don't dare question or you might get accused of trying to take away their personal 'liberties' or some other related fiction they have about living in America. It always strikes me that folks who make such bold claims simply don't know what it's like to be told no because by golly gee they live in an economic strata where this has simply never been on the table for them. What an exceptional place we live to be surrounded by so many incredibly selfish people and this last year has brought this fact to me in such an incredible way.

My children have learned from home since the beginning of the school year and may be returning to hybrid classes beginning in March. At this point it almost seems like a pointless endeavor but I've felt for all of the 'lazy teachers' that had to work from home because every single one of them that I know has spoken nothing but how much work in entails. I just haven't stopped seeing folks on comments sections and message boards the world over going on and on about how teachers need to be fired and I'm absolutely sick of it. I can see why so many stay away from this profession and a lot of it must have to do with parents being such absolute entitled cows most of the time. Not all of course but there's many that seem to know no other way to act.

 

[Colleen27]

My children have learned from home since the beginning of the school year and may be returning to hybrid classes beginning in March. At this point it almost seems like a pointless endeavor but I've felt for all of the 'lazy teachers' that had to work from home because every single one of them that I know has spoken nothing but how much work in entails. I just haven't stopped seeing folks on comments sections and message boards the world over going on and on about how teachers need to be fired and I'm absolutely sick of it. I can see why so many stay away from this profession and a lot it must have to do with parents being such absolute entitled cows most of the time. Not all of course but there's many that seem to know no other way to act.

Has anyone here said or implied that teachers wanting to remain remote are lazy? Because I haven't seen it. I think they're being overly cautious and too risk adverse - a scenario that is extremely common in our culture in general and in this moment in particular - but I don't think that they're lazy.

I feel for teachers who have to return to the classroom despite their fears. I feel for those trying to teach from home while also juggling their own kids' virtual learning. I feel for those who are happy to be back in the classroom but now have to find a way to accommodate their kids' remote learning because the district they live in has different rules from the one they teach in. But living 100% within our comfort zones is not a luxury anyone has right now. My husband and son have to go to work every day and risk bringing the virus home to us because the alternative is not having any income; not only do they not have the luxury of demanding to work from home until the virus is gone, they're at the very back of the line for vaccination. Teachers are at the front of that line and still at least some of their unions are saying even vaccination isn't enough for them to come back into the classroom.

In my state, the teachers union did a survey about returning to school. Unsurprisingly, a majority of teachers opposed any return to in-person education. A majority also acknowledged that distance learning was not working for their students. Show me another profession where you could say "I'm not able to do my job from home but that isn't a good enough reason for me to have to come into the office." and still have a job.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

I love mom types talking about pushing back against big government and mask mandates as it relates to teaching and/or teachers. They've never taught in their lives or know what said profession involves yet they see teachers that don't want to return without a vaccine lazy when it requires more work for them to teach from home. Don't dare question or you might get accused of trying to take away their personal 'liberties' or some other related fiction they have about living in America. It always strikes me that folks who make such bold claims simply don't know what it's like to be told no because by golly gee they live in an economic strata where this is simply never on the table for them. What an exceptional place we live to be surrounded by so many incredibly selfish people and this last year has brought this fact to me in such an incredible way.

My children have learned from home since the beginning of the school year and may be returning to hybrid classes beginning in March. At this point it almost seems like a pointless endeavor but I've felt for all of the 'lazy teachers' that had to work from home because every single one of them that I know has spoken nothing but how much work in entails. I just haven't stopped seeing folks on comments sections and message boards the world over going on and on about how teachers need to be fired and I'm absolutely sick of it. I can see why so many stay away from this profession and a lot it must have to do with parents being such absolute entitled cows most of the time. Not all of course but there's many that seem to know no other way to act.

The problem with your argument is that there are schools all over the country, both public and private, that are open and doing just fine. Most of the rest of us, all over the country, are working in offices, hospitals, grocery stores, etc etc, doing just fine. But for some reason, teachers (in some states) consider themselves to be a protected class. All animals are equal but some are more equal than others. As Ron Desantis has put it so well, this is a virus that 99._% of people recover from just fine. It is time to move on and stop pretending like this virus is the end of the world.

 

[amylevan]

Show me another profession where you could say "I'm not able to do my job from home but that isn't a good enough reason for me to have to come into the office." and still have a job.

This bears repeating.

I am blessed to be working from home right now. My husband, not so much. But if my productivity dropped, I would not be allowed to continue from home or I’d be looking for a new one.

 

[Olaf Myfrenzargay]

My kid‘s independent private Catholic school is open and has been open all year, They make the kids wear masks, put up makeshift plastic barriers at kids desks, (eta: installed state of the art air filtering system), now test weekly and my kid is doing great. frankly. You wouldn’t know the difference from pre COVID, but for the lack of direct interaction.

Amazing Faculty, caring administration, and yes we pay tuition for it but frankly I (and we) pay for public schools (through taxes) as well, so why can’t public schools get it together in my neck of the woods.

 

[godisney14]

I suspect rhetoric ties into this as in the messages being floated around; low confidence of safe opening parents respond to that, higher confidence of safe opening parents respond to that. I guess too if one's area has evidence of high spread within school that would also seem warning to parents. I can understand teachers being concerned about being in classes but more often than not parents generally have been wanting at least a choice. All remote however is generally speaking leading to higher failure rates.

I’m sure the rhetoric you explain about has a large role in many areas. But, I don’t believe that to be a great factor in our region. Nor do we have high spread (our daily cases in dense suburbs are below 25 per 100,000). I think it’s more because we’re in a higher than average income area, and the districts consistently rate high state- and nation-wide. Of course not everyone, but many, if not the majority of people, just have become accustomed to the way it is right now with work and school.

I stand corrected. They are demanding no more than 2 days a week in person through July 2022. Note they have not yet started ANY in person school in SF.

Counties can impose more strict guidelines than the state, and individual districts can be even stricter than the county. It's a mess.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/educati...et-a-reopening-demand-two-days-a-15946060.php

Hasn’t it always been the case that counties can impose stricter guidelines than state recommendations for pretty much everything, even non-COVID related matters? I mean that’s been the discussion of so many different aspects related to COVID on the boards.

 

[godisney14]

My kid‘s independent private Catholic school is open and has been open all year, They make the kids wear masks, put up makeshift plastic barriers at kids desks, now test weekly and my kid is doing great. frankly. You wouldn’t know the difference from pre COVID, but for the lack of direct interaction.

Amazing Faculty, caring administration, and yes we pay tuition for it but frankly I (and we) pay for public schools (through taxes) as well, so why can’t public schools get it together in my neck of the woods.

That question is relevant beyond COVID matters.

I’m not in education, so I don’t know the answer. Nor do I think anyone does. Otherwise, obviously, public and private schools would do equally well.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I’m sure the rhetoric you explain about has a large role in many areas. But, I don’t believe that to be a great factor in our region. Nor do we have high spread (our daily cases in dense suburbs are below 25 per 100,000). I think it’s more because we’re in a higher than average income area, and the districts consistently rate high state- and nation-wide. Of course not everyone, but many, if not the majority of people, just have become accustomed to the way it is right now with work and school.

That actually seems like the opposite. I live in the wealthiest county in the state with the best schools in the state located in my county and the parents consistently have been demanding in-person, they are demanding their children get a good education. They demand their kids be allowed to have fall and winter sports. They protested it, they've gone to school board meetings. They want their kids to be in-person largely. If income and rank of schools are the reason the parents want remote it sure is complete opposite of my area. Pretty much everywhere else parents are worried about the quality of education their children are getting with remote, they are worried for their children's extracurricular activities, they are worried about future sports opportunities if they are unable to be able to be played, they are worried about the mental toll, etc. ETA: when 2 of the 3 big districts return to in-person for middle and high school in March they are keeping remote as an option to appease the parents who want it and I totally agree with having that option but from all accounts it's not the preferred one like you mentioned for your area.

 

[KittyKitty]

Teachers are at the front of that line and still at least some of their unions are saying even vaccination isn't enough for them to come back into the classroom.

Not in my state, Washington. Teachers do not have priority.

 

[EACarlson]

I don't even respond to the automated messages about my kids missing a class. I'm not about to freak out about a computer generated voice telling me my kid didn't log in from his own bedroom. He/she was there, they are not truant - I've been here the whole time. Open the schools, then we can talk.

This is the way I feel. We ended up getting letters last year about how much time our 1st grader was missing due to vacations and illnesses. For the rest of his schooling I will be ignoring those letters after the Charlie Fox of a school year this year. At least he gets to go back full time starting Thursday.

 

[godisney14]

That actually seems like the opposite. I live in the wealthiest county in the state with the best schools in the state located in my county and the parents consistently have been demanding in-person, they are demanding their children get a good education. They demand their kids be allowed to have fall and winter sports. They protested it, they've gone to school board meetings. They want their kids to be in-person largely. If income and rank of schools are the reason the parents want remote it sure is complete opposite of my area. Pretty much everywhere else parents are worried about the quality of education their children are getting with remote, they are worried for their children's extracurricular activities, they are worried about future sports opportunities if they are unable to be able to be played, they are worried about the mental toll, etc. ETA: when 2 of the 3 big districts return to in-person for middle and high school in March they are keeping remote as an option to appease the parents who want it and I totally agree with having that option but from all accounts it's not the preferred one like you mentioned for your area.

Very interesting.
My region also does well in sports. We have a consistent nationally top-20 ranked boys football and girls soccer high school (my assigned high school, “Woo Woo”) teams. There’s a boys team that once in awhile cracks the top 20.

Actually, it’s the high school level where remote and hybrid curriculum were the overwhelming favorite. Then middle school, and then elementary (though still majority voted for remote or hybrid). Elementary level was just opened for hybrid last week to appease the the vocal minority population. (The number of kids in each classroom on average is single digits, maybe up to 10—and not due to physical distancing requirements). This is why I advocate for all learning options being available and equitably resourced.

It’s just what it is here I guess. The proportion of people wanting full-time, in-person work or school is smaller, and people are still productive. It’s one example of a One Size Fits All doesn’t work sometimes. Not just state by state, but region by region as well I would think.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

It’s one example of a One Size Fits All doesn’t work sometimes, I guess.

Def.

 

[kirstenb1]

So the other day, our Governor(Virginia) announced he wants kids to be back in school by March. Taking precautions etc.

Yesterday we get the phone call and email about the return to learn plan( there have been 2 previous start dates then got squashed.
My granddaughter is in Kindergarten and honestly the virtual zoom sometimes has issues.
The plan NOW is smaller kids start first 4 days a week half day then go home and do virtual for a couple classes. They will have one day of home independent learning.
Parents can decide to keep their kids virtual if they choose and classes will still go on.
The school board is having a meeting tomorrow and it should be interesting, because parents have been blowing g up the fb page.

We're in Virginia too, west of Richmond, in a rural county. Elementary has been back 4 days a week, middle and HS, 2 days a week since October. Or students can choose virtual. DD is in 9th grade, and I wanted her back in school asap. She has multiple learning disabilities, and this virtual stuff has not been the learning method that works for her.

All of Virginia needs to go back in person. I keep thinking of all the disadvantaged kids, ESL learners, etc. The poorer you are, the more this adversely impacts you. 1/3 of our county doesn't have high speed internet available to them. So kids are in parking lots on days when school is virtual. Try doing Ceramics in a parking lot!

 

[mom2rtk]

Open the schools, then we can talk.

 

[Colleen27]

Not in my state, Washington. Teachers do not have priority.

That's a shame. Have they talked about the reasoning for that at all? Basically the only people ahead of teachers in my state were healthcare workers and the elderly in communal living facilities. Right now, the vaccination effort is almost entirely focused on those 65 and up and teachers/school staff, and even in parts of the state like where I live, where the rollout is not going particularly well, a significant and growing number of teachers have had their first doses.

 

[Cheburashka]

I'm an elementary teacher with an in-person class of 21 students. A few days ago, one of my students tested positive for Covid, so now the entire class is experiencing a 14 day quarantine, so I'm now teaching virtually. This has been happening to class after class at my school. I'm frustrated because the attitude toward safety at my school & district is somewhat lax, and in my state teachers are not prioritized for vaccination.

I think that the way to get schools open nationwide is to vaccinate all (willing) teachers asap, the way they did health care workers. We are in so much risk teaching in person- we deserve protection given the nature of work we have to do. I'm all in favor of learning in person, but teachers deserve protection for doing so.