PETITION: MCPS Board of Eduction - Keep Schools Open for In-Person Learning!

[Anonymous]

https://chng.it/vqFGRX8zvX

[Anonymous]

Is this an MCPS-specific petition or a general “reopen schools” one?

[Anonymous]

lol

[Anonymous]

"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

They don't care. It's all about maintaining the delusion that virtual is sufficient and that only COVID-denying Bethesda moms want in-person learning. That they must be white also goes without saying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

I think the more realistic take is that people of all socio economic classes and races and locations want virtual and the same goes for in-person. Given that there are solid reasons for both, there should be options, at a minimum, excusing students who choose to remain at home and providing the something short of hybrid (streaming without interaction, permission to follow along in Canvas with unexcused absences, etc...).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

Yeah, actually, see-- not all of them do, but here's what I know.

Working class parents* outside of Bethesda are sending their kids to school right now, sometimes even with suspected COVID or a close contact, because they have those working class jobs that don't let them just take off. If they were to keep their kids home, they would be truant (which has greater consequences to them than UMC Bethesda parents), they would have no supervision, and they wouldn't be in school-- they'd be home, likely alone or with an older sibling, with no structure.

If school were virtual for everyone, it would be virtual for everyone, which means parents could organize with a few others in their communities to trade off childcare duties, the kids would at least potentially have the structure of virtual school, they wouldn't miss classes and they wouldn't be flagged for truancy.

It's one reason most of "those" parents chose virtual in the spring, and this is largely what they did.

And lol at "supervise their kids during virtual learning." Yes, they should have someone there, and preferably keeping the youngest at least occasionally on-task with a reminder or 5. But I suspect your definition of "supervise" is a lot more involved, which certainly would be a high bar to clear!


*Many, not all! I'm sure there are WC non-Bethesdans who greatly prefer in-person. They seem to be in the minority, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:ttps://www.change.org/p/mcps-board-of-education-w...eed-virtual-learning-right-now

Signed!

[Anonymous]

Might be best to leave this decision up to public health experts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

I think the more realistic take is that people of all socio economic classes and races and locations want virtual and the same goes for in-person. Given that there are solid reasons for both, there should be options, at a minimum, excusing students who choose to remain at home and providing the something short of hybrid (streaming without interaction, permission to follow along in Canvas with unexcused absences, etc...).

NP, I think you're right about the perspectives of people by socio-economic group, but the conversation is still frustratingly driven by people accusing other people's opinions as being because of "privilege." I've changed my position on COVID a bit(I was more supportive of virtual last year and now I'm not), but no matter where I've landed people are convinced it's because I'm a white Bethesda mom (only one of those things is true, I am white). I'm very open to flexibility right now and letting parents choose what's right for them, but I wish we could all just admit that there's not a "right" choice for the sake of equity or whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

I think the more realistic take is that people of all socio economic classes and races and locations want virtual and the same goes for in-person. Given that there are solid reasons for both, there should be options, at a minimum, excusing students who choose to remain at home and providing the something short of hybrid (streaming without interaction, permission to follow along in Canvas with unexcused absences, etc...).

NP, I think you're right about the perspectives of people by socio-economic group, but the conversation is still frustratingly driven by people accusing other people's opinions as being because of "privilege." I've changed my position on COVID a bit(I was more supportive of virtual last year and now I'm not), but no matter where I've landed people are convinced it's because I'm a white Bethesda mom (only one of those things is true, I am white). I'm very open to flexibility right now and letting parents choose what's right for them, but I wish we could all just admit that there's not a "right" choice for the sake of equity or whatever.

Yeah. As someone who would likely choose to stay home if given a reasonable choice, I like how we can agree to disagree on that and share the perspective that this is a tough issue with complex factors and there should more thought given to how families choose to or need to protect themselves (from COVID, mental health issues, learning loss, permanently, temporarily, whatever).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Might be best to leave this decision up to public health experts.

And experts in education and child development.

Guess what? They all agree that in-person learning should be prioritized. So... yeah. No need to petition, unless you want to show your support. I'd rather email leadership directly to thank them for putting kids first, for a change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Please sign this petition to keep doing what we are doing! I am an upper middle class Bethesda mom! Do the thing I say that you are already doing NOW!"

Do you think the working middle class parents outside of Bethesda have the means to supervise their kids during virtual learning?

Yeah, actually, see-- not all of them do, but here's what I know.

Working class parents* outside of Bethesda are sending their kids to school right now, sometimes even with suspected COVID or a close contact, because they have those working class jobs that don't let them just take off. If they were to keep their kids home, they would be truant (which has greater consequences to them than UMC Bethesda parents), they would have no supervision, and they wouldn't be in school-- they'd be home, likely alone or with an older sibling, with no structure.

If school were virtual for everyone, it would be virtual for everyone, which means parents could organize with a few others in their communities to trade off childcare duties, the kids would at least potentially have the structure of virtual school, they wouldn't miss classes and they wouldn't be flagged for truancy.

It's one reason most of "those" parents chose virtual in the spring, and this is largely what they did.

And lol at "supervise their kids during virtual learning." Yes, they should have someone there, and preferably keeping the youngest at least occasionally on-task with a reminder or 5. But I suspect your definition of "supervise" is a lot more involved, which certainly would be a high bar to clear!


*Many, not all! I'm sure there are WC non-Bethesdans who greatly prefer in-person. They seem to be in the minority, though.

A lot of parents relied on their older kids to help the younger ones which caused the older ones to miss out on their instruction.

I grew up lower income, and this is what usually happens in families without means -- the older kids end up picking up the slack.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Might be best to leave this decision up to public health experts.

With evidence that COVID-19 is becoming a milder infection in most children, and at a time when all
adults and youth in K-12 settings have been offered vaccination, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
(CHOP) and PolicyLab at CHOP support in-person education, even in times of significant community
transmission, and propose new guidance that reduces excessive burden to school staff and families.

https://policylab.chop.edu/sites/default/files/pdf/publications/PolicyLab-Guidance-In-person-Education-K-12%20Educational-Settings-January-2022.pdf