APS - Elementary school -who is opting for virtual in 2021/22

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both sides are now trashing Dr Duran and Syphax on AEM. That's a great way to gain influence and trust in the decision making process! Good job team!

I've watched both parent groups beg Dr Duran and the school board for private meetings at school board meetings. Yelling at them, demanding their recall or resignation and calling them incompetent makes these decision-makers want to speak to these groups daily I'm sure.

Duran and the SB could have/should have respectfully engaged and communicated with the community and taken into consideration everyone's feelings on RTS.. Instead, he sat on his hands and remained silent and refused to communicate aside of emails and topics during SB meetings that were not addressing concerns of many people.. So yes, people are angry and resolved to negativity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic.

I have to think these folks probably consume their Covid science and news from doomist, clickbait headlines.

they assume that there is a huge percentage of asymptomatic cases in children. Despite the lack of any supporting evidence they believe that these asymptomatic cases are in fact further spreading COVID and will cause serious consequences for children in the future. It is interesting that their mantra is 'follow the science' b/c science does not lead you to these conclusions.....

[Anonymous]

Current results on the AEM does this change your mind poll:
No - 160
Yes - 5
Confused - 14

I think it's pretty clear the people freaking out are in a distinct minority.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic. I don’t understand this thinking, given that Arlington and the wider DMV area has extremely high uptake of the vaccine. Kids 12+ will be able to get it very soon. Younger kids will be masked, and for them covid is (extremely) rarely a danger anyway. The adults in the community who want to be will be fully vaccinated by the fall. Do these people think that we should just not take steps to get back to normal? Are we all supposed to pretend that covid has worse outcomes for kids than flu and strep?

But but but! If it’s not safe for 100%, no one can go! They want distance learning to be an option but now complain that the DL offered is “separate and unequal”. You can’t have it both ways. Their arguments strike me very much like “if I can’t have exactly what I want, no one else can either”. Honestly by fall we should be at a place where the only people impacted are going to be medically fragile kids or kids with very medically fragile household members.

There have always been kids with cancer treatments or similar immune issues. What did those kids do normally during cold and flu season? By fall this should be no different. Pre-pandemic these asthmatic kids or kids with immune compromised parents went to school and were exposed to cold, flu, norovirus and the like. Have these parents always been this anxious and now they finally have an audience? Has Covid awakened something that will never go back in the bottle now that remote learning is an option on the table?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic. I don’t understand this thinking, given that Arlington and the wider DMV area has extremely high uptake of the vaccine. Kids 12+ will be able to get it very soon. Younger kids will be masked, and for them covid is (extremely) rarely a danger anyway. The adults in the community who want to be will be fully vaccinated by the fall. Do these people think that we should just not take steps to get back to normal? Are we all supposed to pretend that covid has worse outcomes for kids than flu and strep?

Exactly.

+2

We have to try to get back to normal. And there are many people suggesting on AEM to use all that office space and community centers for kids. Besides those not being ideal learning environments, where do they expect to get the staff to teach in all these extra locations? If class sizes have to be reduced so students can spread out, there will need to be more teachers. There's already a teacher shortage to begin with, so who's going to fill that gap. And then if they hire people who aren't qualified, AEM will have a field day with that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic. I don’t understand this thinking, given that Arlington and the wider DMV area has extremely high uptake of the vaccine. Kids 12+ will be able to get it very soon. Younger kids will be masked, and for them covid is (extremely) rarely a danger anyway. The adults in the community who want to be will be fully vaccinated by the fall. Do these people think that we should just not take steps to get back to normal? Are we all supposed to pretend that covid has worse outcomes for kids than flu and strep?

But but but! If it’s not safe for 100%, no one can go! They want distance learning to be an option but now complain that the DL offered is “separate and unequal”. You can’t have it both ways. Their arguments strike me very much like “if I can’t have exactly what I want, no one else can either”. Honestly by fall we should be at a place where the only people impacted are going to be medically fragile kids or kids with very medically fragile household members.

There have always been kids with cancer treatments or similar immune issues. What did those kids do normally during cold and flu season? By fall this should be no different. Pre-pandemic these asthmatic kids or kids with immune compromised parents went to school and were exposed to cold, flu, norovirus and the like. Have these parents always been this anxious and now they finally have an audience? Has Covid awakened something that will never go back in the bottle now that remote learning is an option on the table?

Eh, I'll excited to send my kids off in the fall and I think this plan is fine actually (and I'm glad Duran announced it now rather than later). I don't think you guys really want to have a Mad Max Thunderdome over who has behaved worse in this argument, but if you do let me know because I will take those odds and will strap a blind guitarist to my Doof Wagon and head over.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

I saw that thread. It devolved into APE vs SR ridiculousness.

I’m confident that we can safely open five days a week in the fall, with whatever mitigation measures needed by then. Interestingly, it’s the high schoolers who we don’t have to worry about next year. Hopefully enough of them will be vaxxed by then. Hoping that ms and es kids will start getting shots sooner rather than later.

The hysteria on both sides will hopefully have a summer to simmer down.

Ironically, the fact that lower ed won't be vaccinated by the fall, but, will be in person only supports the notion that they might as well go forward with additional days now. There will not be a substantive material change in their status or risk exposure between now and then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both sides are now trashing Dr Duran and Syphax on AEM. That's a great way to gain influence and trust in the decision making process! Good job team!

I've watched both parent groups beg Dr Duran and the school board for private meetings at school board meetings. Yelling at them, demanding their recall or resignation and calling them incompetent makes these decision-makers want to speak to these groups daily I'm sure.

Duran and the SB could have/should have respectfully engaged and communicated with the community and taken into consideration everyone's feelings on RTS.. Instead, he sat on his hands and remained silent and refused to communicate aside of emails and topics during SB meetings that were not addressing concerns of many people.. So yes, people are angry and resolved to negativity.

But of course, not everyone agreed on what to do for RTS. Duran and the SB has to balance two disparate sides, their employees and their own team. There could be arguments about transparency in the process, but under the circumstances, nothing he would have done would have pleased everyone. I think both sides won some battles and lost some.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

I saw that thread. It devolved into APE vs SR ridiculousness.

I’m confident that we can safely open five days a week in the fall, with whatever mitigation measures needed by then. Interestingly, it’s the high schoolers who we don’t have to worry about next year. Hopefully enough of them will be vaxxed by then. Hoping that ms and es kids will start getting shots sooner rather than later.

The hysteria on both sides will hopefully have a summer to simmer down.

Ironically, the fact that lower ed won't be vaccinated by the fall, but, will be in person only supports the notion that they might as well go forward with additional days now. There will not be a substantive material change in their status or risk exposure between now and then.

I don't agree with this at all. It completely ignores all the concerns from the latina community we have heard already. And transmission rates should be lower in the fall than they are right now AND more parents and the families that kids live with should be fully vaxed by then, making the possiblity that kids bringing it home to them won't actually kill their families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

I saw that thread. It devolved into APE vs SR ridiculousness.

I’m confident that we can safely open five days a week in the fall, with whatever mitigation measures needed by then. Interestingly, it’s the high schoolers who we don’t have to worry about next year. Hopefully enough of them will be vaxxed by then. Hoping that ms and es kids will start getting shots sooner rather than later.

The hysteria on both sides will hopefully have a summer to simmer down.

Ironically, the fact that lower ed won't be vaccinated by the fall, but, will be in person only supports the notion that they might as well go forward with additional days now. There will not be a substantive material change in their status or risk exposure between now and then.

I don't agree with this at all. It completely ignores all the concerns from the latina community we have heard already. And transmission rates should be lower in the fall than they are right now AND more parents and the families that kids live with should be fully vaxed by then, making the possiblity that kids bringing it home to them won't actually kill their families.

Enough with the propping up one demographic to try and make a point.

1. No one is saying to take away virtual, but, add additional days now for lower ed of whom many desperately want/need it.
2. I know Latino families in APS who desperately want additional days and would instantly move to 5 days because it is hard for them to juggle all of the demands of work and childcare with hybrid and virtual has not worked well for their children.

So, chupa en eso.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

I saw that thread. It devolved into APE vs SR ridiculousness.

I’m confident that we can safely open five days a week in the fall, with whatever mitigation measures needed by then. Interestingly, it’s the high schoolers who we don’t have to worry about next year. Hopefully enough of them will be vaxxed by then. Hoping that ms and es kids will start getting shots sooner rather than later.

The hysteria on both sides will hopefully have a summer to simmer down.

Ironically, the fact that lower ed won't be vaccinated by the fall, but, will be in person only supports the notion that they might as well go forward with additional days now. There will not be a substantive material change in their status or risk exposure between now and then.

I'm actually okay with staying the course this year. There's been too many changes since hybrid opened. There are still many adults here who still aren't vaccinated too. That will all change by the Fall.

I think if you're not APE or SR, most people are okay with hybrid as it is. My kids are happy so I'm happy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow, ventilation lady is completely flipping her shit on AEM.

I’m cackling. It’s too little too late for this year, but I’m enjoying the reaction.

I had to go read. SIGH.

She's not wrong. But she's missing the ONE HUGE KEY piece of data that will be different in the fall: incredibly low community spread.

You can't keep schools on the covid protocol for another year. We need people to get vaccinated, and we need routine testing, and we need schools openly NORMALLY 5 days a week. Lock down cases as soon as they prop up.

Most high schoolers and many middle schoolers will be vaccinated before the fall. The younger children don't spread it at nearly the same rate.

Mask up, add some air purifiers to the crowded rooms and let's get back to school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic.

I have to think these folks probably consume their Covid science and news from doomist, clickbait headlines.

they assume that there is a huge percentage of asymptomatic cases in children. Despite the lack of any supporting evidence they believe that these asymptomatic cases are in fact further spreading COVID and will cause serious consequences for children in the future. It is interesting that their mantra is 'follow the science' b/c science does not lead you to these conclusions.....

Yes, yes it does. There are actual studies showing how many asymptomatic cases are being missed in kids.

You can stay in Covid denial if you want to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm not even sure what they're advocating for anymore. If there's so much demand that 3 feet isn't viable anymore in in person education, wtf is APS supposed to do? I don't want my child in an office building, sorry. Or outside all day long.

Interestingly, a lot of people trashed one of the SB candidates a few weeks ago for playing around with this very idea - what happens if we can't fit everyone back even at 3ft. They mocked her drawings, which I don't think were mean to be totally done to scale but to point out potential problems. There's a 40-something page DCUM thread entitled Shifts in the Fall? based on exactly that, her contemplating what options exist if it becomes impossible to get every single child in a classroom 5 days per week all at the same time. Duran's message shows that APS staff are similarly thinking about options.

There are plenty, notably the APE crowd and their candidate, who continue to say 5 days per week as in the old days starting immediately. They're already screaming objections that the idea even needs to be considered. Maybe it will end up being unnecessary, but that's what contingency planning is for. We know APS did a horrible job last spring, and just possibly they are trying to do a better job under Duran this spring in preparation for fall.

I saw that thread. It devolved into APE vs SR ridiculousness.

I’m confident that we can safely open five days a week in the fall, with whatever mitigation measures needed by then. Interestingly, it’s the high schoolers who we don’t have to worry about next year. Hopefully enough of them will be vaxxed by then. Hoping that ms and es kids will start getting shots sooner rather than later.

The hysteria on both sides will hopefully have a summer to simmer down.

Ironically, the fact that lower ed won't be vaccinated by the fall, but, will be in person only supports the notion that they might as well go forward with additional days now. There will not be a substantive material change in their status or risk exposure between now and then.

I'm actually okay with staying the course this year. There's been too many changes since hybrid opened. There are still many adults here who still aren't vaccinated too. That will all change by the Fall.

I think if you're not APE or SR, most people are okay with hybrid as it is. My kids are happy so I'm happy.

SR is good with hybrid this year. Many many people in SR have their kids in hybrid.

APE are the ones who are calling for change RIGHT NOW.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There some people on AEM who seem to think that getting kids back in schools in the fall with no plans for distancing is wildly reckless and will lead to a resurgence of the pandemic.

I have to think these folks probably consume their Covid science and news from doomist, clickbait headlines.

they assume that there is a huge percentage of asymptomatic cases in children. Despite the lack of any supporting evidence they believe that these asymptomatic cases are in fact further spreading COVID and will cause serious consequences for children in the future. It is interesting that their mantra is 'follow the science' b/c science does not lead you to these conclusions.....

Yes, yes it does. There are actual studies showing how many asymptomatic cases are being missed in kids.

You can stay in Covid denial if you want to.

no no you are the one who is missing the point. There are studies that show asymptomatic cases in children. There are NO studies that show that these asymptomatic cases matter one whit. 1. they don't impact the kids who have it. 2. they don't spread it.