Should we prepare for virtual schooling starting in January?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

Great, then advocate to shut EVERYTHING down again if you are that concerned.

Just don’t solely target our kids. Don’t shut down schools again while everything else stays open.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

Great, then advocate to shut EVERYTHING down again if you are that concerned.

Just don’t solely target our kids. Don’t shut down schools again while everything else stays open.

Yes, I am advocating for more restrictions everywhere. It's unfair that children should be the first to isolate when others are out and about having the best time of their lives. At the same time, I understand that Omicron is 5 times as transmissible as Delta, and what that means in practice at school is that there will shortly be no instruction anyway, because too many teachers and students will be out. It's dishonest to pretend that schools aren't accelerators of viral spread during school lunch hours, when they're all sitting close to each other, yelling their heads off without masks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

You don’t have to feel sorry for us, I promise.

I have been back at work in person since June 2020.

I was happy to go back. I love my job and it was driving me crazy to be stuck at home. I do NOT want to go back to any needless, useless shutdowns.

My neighbor is an MCPS teachers and she will lose her sh$t if MCPS goes back to virtual. She hated every minute of it.

You are welcome to stay home and WFH if that makes you feel safe. Let the rest of us, who want to, stay in person. Don’t take my job away from me again and don’t make my neighbor teach kids on Zoom.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

Great, then advocate to shut EVERYTHING down again if you are that concerned.

Just don’t solely target our kids. Don’t shut down schools again while everything else stays open.

Yes, I am advocating for more restrictions everywhere. It's unfair that children should be the first to isolate when others are out and about having the best time of their lives. At the same time, I understand that Omicron is 5 times as transmissible as Delta, and what that means in practice at school is that there will shortly be no instruction anyway, because too many teachers and students will be out. It's dishonest to pretend that schools aren't accelerators of viral spread during school lunch hours, when they're all sitting close to each other, yelling their heads off without masks.

That’s fine. At least be consistent. Keeping our kids home while everything stays open? That’s just cruel.

[Anonymous]

If schools close, it better be after bars, strip clubs, casinos, and hookah lounges are forced to close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have 3 vaccines, 2 oral covid treatments, monoclonal antibodies. The overall rate of death before vaccines was 2%, and now with vaccines and treatments it’s expected to decrease. Things are looking up and those unvaccinated hospitalized are very unlikely to die.

Now tell us how many of those work on Omicron?

Pfizer and Moderna released data that 3 doses are equally effective at producing neutralizing antibodies against Onicron as other variants .So 2 of the 3 vaccines are effective? Is that what you are asking? South Africa discovered Onicron on November 25 and today they released information that the majority of their deaths and hospitalizations have been in unvaccinated, and that they are over the wave after 3 week. But you keep on imagining doom and gloom. Good luck to you !

Ok, is 1/3 of South Africa’s entire population planning to travel domestically and internationally in the next week? No? Because over 100 million Americans plan to. Surely that will help us get “over the wave.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If schools close, it better be after bars, strip clubs, casinos, and hookah lounges are forced to close.

Yep. Hookah bars, for sure. Schools should be the LAST to close. Lowest risk population and the most dire consequences for families and kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

All of this is true, but silly because their kids are in those packed schools and can bring covid home to them.

Have you done all those things? The same parents complaining are the same ones who are sending covid into the schools - traveling, get togethers, restaurants, shopping... its exhausting they cannot slow things down to help get through covid.

I've been in Target once, in out for what I needed in 10 minutes late at night in two years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

Great, then advocate to shut EVERYTHING down again if you are that concerned.

Just don’t solely target our kids. Don’t shut down schools again while everything else stays open.

Yes, I am advocating for more restrictions everywhere. It's unfair that children should be the first to isolate when others are out and about having the best time of their lives. At the same time, I understand that Omicron is 5 times as transmissible as Delta, and what that means in practice at school is that there will shortly be no instruction anyway, because too many teachers and students will be out. It's dishonest to pretend that schools aren't accelerators of viral spread during school lunch hours, when they're all sitting close to each other, yelling their heads off without masks.

That’s fine. At least be consistent. Keeping our kids home while everything stays open? That’s just cruel.

Why do we need toe government to shut things down to behave responsibly? Parents can choose not to travel this holiday season, not get together in large groups and behave in a manner to help keep our kids safe and choose not to. Its absurd to demand shut downs when the same people demanding schools stay open or shut downs are just as capable of self regulating and choose not to.

We sadly need a terrible outbreak where some of those folks and their kids get covid so it becomes real to them.

[Anonymous]

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/mcps-leaders-say-theyre-not-considering-remote-learning-2/

No

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel bad about the risk to teachers. My husband and I get to work from home. I would not want to be working in packed schools right now. Some of them probably have underlying conditions. We need to prioritize kids but it cannot be just all about the kids.

Well, then I hope you’re not going to Target for any last minute gift. What about the workers at Target who have been working throughout the pandemic in crowded stores?

I hope you’re not attending any restaurant holiday parties. What about all the servers who work around unmasked diners?

Why the sympathy for teachers who worked from home for over a year. And who work in schools where every single person is masked indoors all the time?

DP. You are correct that any person who faces hundreds of people daily is at high-risk right now. I feel for ALL of them - healthcare workers, grocery shoppers, store employees, teachers, etc.

You don’t have to feel sorry for us, I promise.

I have been back at work in person since June 2020.

I was happy to go back. I love my job and it was driving me crazy to be stuck at home. I do NOT want to go back to any needless, useless shutdowns.

My neighbor is an MCPS teachers and she will lose her sh$t if MCPS goes back to virtual. She hated every minute of it.

You are welcome to stay home and WFH if that makes you feel safe. Let the rest of us, who want to, stay in person. Don’t take my job away from me again and don’t make my neighbor teach kids on Zoom.

I am not making you do anything. I would prefer my kids get to go to school. But looking at London and SA, it is not looking good. Omicron spreads so rapidly that it will be impossible to contain. Even mild sickness means that many teachers and kids will be out. Health personnel are burnt out and exhausted. That is bad for all of us. We may need to have shut downs to tamp down the spread. It is silly to bury your head in the sand and say school must go on no matter what.

[Anonymous]

Yes, we should indeed prepare for virtual schooling in January.

The alternative is your kid sitting in a class not learning, because he has the teacher from the next classroom over and he's with kids from different grades, because lots of teachers and students are out with Covid.

It will come to that.

[Anonymous]

I haven't read through this whole thread but I am a special ed teacher AND a parent and let me tell you this; someone above said we can't just prioritize kids...well, yes, actually we CAN and we SHOULD.

EVERYTHING better be shut down before we ever go back to virtual for all students. I mean bars, restaurants, non-essential businesses, professional sports all of it. Otherwise we don't sacrifice our kids educations again. Omicron is going to make vaccinated people sick, but it isn't going to kill them. I know all the counter arguments. This variant is so contagious closing schools won't make a bit of difference unless EVERYTHING else is shut down EVERYWHERE and it won't be. You think Florida and Texas are going into lockdown? That's a joke. We don't put our kids through that again, the costs are too high, and they are permanent for this entire generation.