APS hurts children again by canceling Extracurriculars until January 14th

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Maybe your pet law isn’t as popular with the general parent population as it is in your echo chamber.

Get ready for a form of it to be enshrined into law permanently with R governor, R House of Delegates and a state senate effectively controlled by Rs on school returning to normal. Plus, there will be a strong push for it to be extended to extracurriculars now too as a result of Arlington’s actions.

A majority of APS families at all times last year wanted kids in school. I can only imagine how overwhelmingly popular that would be now at APS if they resurveyed families. That’s in bright blue Arlington too. You can only imagine how popular that is statewide.

52% is just barely majority. And doesn’t include families who completely pulled their kids to homeschool.

Are you the school choice lobbyist intentionally promoting division for your job?

I think you’re misreading the room. I generally want schools open but right now wish we could go virtual for two weeks to ride out this wave. I see a lot of other parents who feel the same way.

Agree.

52% at the height of the pandemic, with little research and no vaccines opted to return in person. And you now think that means post-vaccine with tons of research of how COVID is a cold for kids, after so many APS kids got COVID too and now how mild it is first hand, and how people know COVID is never going away, that a majority now supports shutting down schools?!? And extracurriculars too?!?

Haha - you all live in a tiny, tiny closed schooler, COVID doom echo chamber. Even the AEM crowd is overwhelmingly for schools staying open and extracurriculars not being canceled.

Not everyone is fixated on just having one approach. Many believe that we need to change our approach as the situation changes. There was a point when many parents (almost half) opted for virtual. As vaccines became available and numbers dropped they wanted in-person.

Most parents aren’t rigid. They can adapt as needed.

[Anonymous]

With so many staff (and kids) sick, it seems like APS schools are going to have to go remote in the near future. If schools do it soon, there is at least enough uninflected staff to keep lessons going, for the most part. If we wait to go remote until we get everyone in the same building again and Omicron numbers really take off, we may run out if teachers to run the remote lessons, and many many more kids and families will have gotten sick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With so many staff (and kids) sick, it seems like APS schools are going to have to go remote in the near future. If schools do it soon, there is at least enough uninflected staff to keep lessons going, for the most part. If we wait to go remote until we get everyone in the same building again and Omicron numbers really take off, we may run out if teachers to run the remote lessons, and many many more kids and families will have gotten sick.

Elementary families (esp the K-2 crowd) don’t care about “keeping lessons going” because virtual learning is useless for this age group. I’d rather watch take the gamble on trying to keep schools open. If they close due to staffing issues then I will have to ask for unpaid leave once my last few days are used up. But no matter what, we won’t be logging our kids onto virtual learning. We may try to trade off play dates with other families so we can work at least some of the time or will just use it as an excuse to travel to family. So far I know of zero elementary families with the stomach for virtual learning again. So it’s either school open and in-person or school is closed. In which case I’d rather schools do everything they can to stay open and hope the elementary teachers aren’t made to bother with virtual plans.

[Anonymous]

Not everyone is fixated on just having one approach. Many believe that we need to change our approach as the situation changes. There was a point when many parents (almost half) opted for virtual. As vaccines became available and numbers dropped they wanted in-person.

Most parents aren’t rigid. They can adapt as needed.

Not true in DCUMland....not seeing much evidence of adaptation among the entitled folks who post here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Not everyone is fixated on just having one approach. Many believe that we need to change our approach as the situation changes. There was a point when many parents (almost half) opted for virtual. As vaccines became available and numbers dropped they wanted in-person.

Most parents aren’t rigid. They can adapt as needed.

Not true in DCUMland....not seeing much evidence of adaptation among the entitled folks who post here.

Except for you, of course. You post but are not entitled.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With so many staff (and kids) sick, it seems like APS schools are going to have to go remote in the near future. If schools do it soon, there is at least enough uninflected staff to keep lessons going, for the most part. If we wait to go remote until we get everyone in the same building again and Omicron numbers really take off, we may run out if teachers to run the remote lessons, and many many more kids and families will have gotten sick.

Elementary families (esp the K-2 crowd) don’t care about “keeping lessons going” because virtual learning is useless for this age group. I’d rather watch take the gamble on trying to keep schools open. If they close due to staffing issues then I will have to ask for unpaid leave once my last few days are used up. But no matter what, we won’t be logging our kids onto virtual learning. We may try to trade off play dates with other families so we can work at least some of the time or will just use it as an excuse to travel to family. So far I know of zero elementary families with the stomach for virtual learning again. So it’s either school open and in-person or school is closed. In which case I’d rather schools do everything they can to stay open and hope the elementary teachers aren’t made to bother with virtual plans.

Maybe that's reasonable. But it seems like high schools and middle schools where kids are more equipped to survive on virtual learning should go remote before they lose the bare minimum number of teachers needed to keep classes going. If the calculation is virtual school vs. classes in total disarray because teachers are out and lessons aren't planned (leading possibly to closed school), then virtual seems like a better choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With so many staff (and kids) sick, it seems like APS schools are going to have to go remote in the near future. If schools do it soon, there is at least enough uninflected staff to keep lessons going, for the most part. If we wait to go remote until we get everyone in the same building again and Omicron numbers really take off, we may run out if teachers to run the remote lessons, and many many more kids and families will have gotten sick.

Elementary families (esp the K-2 crowd) don’t care about “keeping lessons going” because virtual learning is useless for this age group. I’d rather watch take the gamble on trying to keep schools open. If they close due to staffing issues then I will have to ask for unpaid leave once my last few days are used up. But no matter what, we won’t be logging our kids onto virtual learning. We may try to trade off play dates with other families so we can work at least some of the time or will just use it as an excuse to travel to family. So far I know of zero elementary families with the stomach for virtual learning again. So it’s either school open and in-person or school is closed. In which case I’d rather schools do everything they can to stay open and hope the elementary teachers aren’t made to bother with virtual plans.

Maybe that's reasonable. But it seems like high schools and middle schools where kids are more equipped to survive on virtual learning should go remote before they lose the bare minimum number of teachers needed to keep classes going. If the calculation is virtual school vs. classes in total disarray because teachers are out and lessons aren't planned (leading possibly to closed school), then virtual seems like a better choice.

I don’t disagree with you. But last year the elementary and pre-k families got treated as if our situation was exactly the same as the middle and HS families. I remember people bringing up solutions such as using MS and HS buildings to space out younger kids so they could at least be in-person. And many of us pushed for prorogue to go to the youngest learners to at least go back 4-5 days instead of just 2 days. But APS was a hard no on thinking outside the box at all. Because apparently Duran cannot come up with any sort of differentiation in planning based on age group/educational needs. So if we’re all forced to be treated the same, then I’m grateful for SB1303 and that the little kids can’t get preemptively screwed out of a real eduction yet again. After losing nearly a year of real in-person learning I’m not willing to sacrifice anymore days out to school unless the staffing absolutely collapses. If it does, then meh, I’m not in a worse position than had we closed to start with.

So if the MS and HS parents want to close ahead of time, I hope you will at least not push this on all of us.

[Anonymous]

Even some of the athletes are kind of saying APS should close schools too.

YHS Senior Varsity basketball player:

"I think taking away athletics and extracurricular activities won’t do anything. If they think sports is spreading COVID, then how about being in school? I would understand more why they are doing this more if they would pause athletics and in-person school."

https://sungazette.news/athletes-react-to-arlington-sports-put-on-pause/?fbclid=IwAR0j4HIUBEUfqVdX7X0VuDI5HC9zm-Btb-pO7r9jFifEO5pmuVv_GcdicGc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even some of the athletes are kind of saying APS should close schools too.

YHS Senior Varsity basketball player:

"I think taking away athletics and extracurricular activities won’t do anything. If they think sports is spreading COVID, then how about being in school? I would understand more why they are doing this more if they would pause athletics and in-person school."

https://sungazette.news/athletes-react-to-arlington-sports-put-on-pause/?fbclid=IwAR0j4HIUBEUfqVdX7X0VuDI5HC9zm-Btb-pO7r9jFifEO5pmuVv_GcdicGc

Haha. He’s absolutely not saying that. Don’t hide behind our athletes for your closed school agenda.

[Anonymous]

Fairfax already closed school for tomorrow. APS probably will too. So that makes it really just 8 days without athletics. Gasp, the tragedy for these kids! Should we start a GoFund Me to buy them all a cookie?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Fairfax already closed school for tomorrow. APS probably will too. So that makes it really just 8 days without athletics. Gasp, the tragedy for these kids! Should we start a GoFund Me to buy them all a cookie?

Maybe non-participation trophies?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Fairfax already closed school for tomorrow. APS probably will too. So that makes it really just 8 days without athletics. Gasp, the tragedy for these kids! Should we start a GoFund Me to buy them all a cookie?

Maybe non-participation trophies?

Ha! You win DCUM today.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Fairfax already closed school for tomorrow. APS probably will too. So that makes it really just 8 days without athletics. Gasp, the tragedy for these kids! Should we start a GoFund Me to buy them all a cookie?

Maybe non-participation trophies?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Even some of the athletes are kind of saying APS should close schools too.

YHS Senior Varsity basketball player:

"I think taking away athletics and extracurricular activities won’t do anything. If they think sports is spreading COVID, then how about being in school? I would understand more why they are doing this more if they would pause athletics and in-person school."

https://sungazette.news/athletes-react-to-arlington-sports-put-on-pause/?fbclid=IwAR0j4HIUBEUfqVdX7X0VuDI5HC9zm-Btb-pO7r9jFifEO5pmuVv_GcdicGc

Haha. He’s absolutely not saying that. Don’t hide behind our athletes for your closed school agenda.

Actually a "she" not a "he." Girls play sports too, you know.

Sucks for APE when even the poor kids they recruit for their media campaigns don't spout their parents' agenda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Even some of the athletes are kind of saying APS should close schools too.

YHS Senior Varsity basketball player:

"I think taking away athletics and extracurricular activities won’t do anything. If they think sports is spreading COVID, then how about being in school? I would understand more why they are doing this more if they would pause athletics and in-person school."

https://sungazette.news/athletes-react-to-arlington-sports-put-on-pause/?fbclid=IwAR0j4HIUBEUfqVdX7X0VuDI5HC9zm-Btb-pO7r9jFifEO5pmuVv_GcdicGc

Haha. He’s absolutely not saying that. Don’t hide behind our athletes for your closed school agenda.

Actually a "she" not a "he." Girls play sports too, you know.

Sucks for APE when even the poor kids they recruit for their media campaigns don't spout their parents' agenda.

Way to misleadingly edit her statement: “I think a better option would be to let us play and limit the number of fans, or something,”