Should we prepare for virtual schooling starting in January?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Even that is better than virtual learning. Sitting in a class with other kids in person IS learning. There is expressive language, there is receptive language, there is pragmatic language skills, social skills, social reciprocity, a hidden social agenda, many non-verbal social cues, I could go on and on and on and on. This is something a lot of people outside education don't understand about children and haven't been able to witness the problems being away from a classroom for so long has caused this fall.

I'm saying this from the vantage point of a special ed teacher who has seen what all the time on virtual learning did to kids when they came back into the classroom this fall. Also, I am the parent of two teens struggling with their mental health. Also, I believe kids will be learning academic content in classrooms.
Ok, so now you are saying you just want someone else watching your kids. I’m with you but let’s be honest about it. Having kids home all the time is hard on parents. School is child care even if we want to pretend otherwise

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Even that is better than virtual learning. Sitting in a class with other kids in person IS learning. There is expressive language, there is receptive language, there is pragmatic language skills, social skills, social reciprocity, a hidden social agenda, many non-verbal social cues, I could go on and on and on and on. This is something a lot of people outside education don't understand about children and haven't been able to witness the problems being away from a classroom for so long has caused this fall.

I'm saying this from the vantage point of a special ed teacher who has seen what all the time on virtual learning did to kids when they came back into the classroom this fall. Also, I am the parent of two teens struggling with their mental health. Also, I believe kids will be learning academic content in classrooms.
Ok, so now you are saying you just want someone else watching your kids. I’m with you but let’s be honest about it. Having kids home all the time is hard on parents. School is child care even if we want to pretend otherwise

School is child care for you. It is not for all of us. What are you. Doing to treat your kids mental health? Instead of posting about it, help them. School alone will not fix it.

Some of us are doing just fine with our kids home. Just because some refuse or cannot make it work does not mean we all cannot.

Mcps is not shutting down till the state says so. They have been clear. It does not matter how many teachers get sick and teach. Parents who feel it’s safe need to step up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hoarding cash in case I have to move back to private. But I don’t think they will - MoCo says they will be DL only if the state orders it, and Hogan wants to be president so he won’t.

Now that my kids are vaccinated, I even expect fewer quarantines than fall. More absent kids but just 1-2 who are actually (mildly) ill.

If that were true, how do you explain universities switching to virtual where 99% students are vaccinated? That’s what doesn’t make sense to me.

Haven't they just done that for the last few days of December? Everyone was leaving for Break in a few days and they didn't want to send everyone home on transportation, etc. with positive COVID cases. That's different than going virtual for second semester.

Harvard just said they will be online in January. This is after universities have even mandated booster shots. High schools have not even mandated the vaccine. We are done for.

This is ridiculous on Harvard's part. These kids are not at risk, and the institutions need to suck it up and let the virus pass through so they can all move on.

[Anonymous]

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

[Anonymous]

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

They already said they will not close except if the state shuts them down. If you are worried, you are on your own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hoarding cash in case I have to move back to private. But I don’t think they will - MoCo says they will be DL only if the state orders it, and Hogan wants to be president so he won’t.

Now that my kids are vaccinated, I even expect fewer quarantines than fall. More absent kids but just 1-2 who are actually (mildly) ill.

If that were true, how do you explain universities switching to virtual where 99% students are vaccinated? That’s what doesn’t make sense to me.

Haven't they just done that for the last few days of December? Everyone was leaving for Break in a few days and they didn't want to send everyone home on transportation, etc. with positive COVID cases. That's different than going virtual for second semester.

Harvard just said they will be online in January. This is after universities have even mandated booster shots. High schools have not even mandated the vaccine. We are done for.

This is ridiculous on Harvard's part. These kids are not at risk, and the institutions need to suck it up and let the virus pass through so they can all move on.

Wow, just wow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Even that is better than virtual learning. Sitting in a class with other kids in person IS learning. There is expressive language, there is receptive language, there is pragmatic language skills, social skills, social reciprocity, a hidden social agenda, many non-verbal social cues, I could go on and on and on and on. This is something a lot of people outside education don't understand about children and haven't been able to witness the problems being away from a classroom for so long has caused this fall.

I'm saying this from the vantage point of a special ed teacher who has seen what all the time on virtual learning did to kids when they came back into the classroom this fall. Also, I am the parent of two teens struggling with their mental health. Also, I believe kids will be learning academic content in classrooms.
Ok, so now you are saying you just want someone else watching your kids. I’m with you but let’s be honest about it. Having kids home all the time is hard on parents. School is child care even if we want to pretend otherwise

Half the students in K-12 are able to stay home by themselves: middle and high schoolers. You seem to be fixated on the younger set, which do pose childcare issues. The older kids need INSTRUCTION, for goodness' sakes, not more discussion on their mental health! They need math and writing and history and science and language practice. They need academic continuity and structure. I have a child with special needs, I know all about the language/social/non-verbal cues that a PP talks about, but for goodness sake's we want learning already! So if Omicron makes it such that schools cannot continue in-person instruction due to staff shortages, as I expect it will, I'd rather they switch to virtual when that time comes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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

They already said they will not close except if the state shuts them down. If you are worried, you are on your own.

Again for the people in the back, this message is CYA (Cover Your A$$). MCPS does not want to be the target of parent pitchforks. It is signaling: "when schools close, please remember that we has no say in the matter, hmm-kay?".

You need to be a little smart and understand the intent behind such a message.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hoarding cash in case I have to move back to private. But I don’t think they will - MoCo says they will be DL only if the state orders it, and Hogan wants to be president so he won’t.

Now that my kids are vaccinated, I even expect fewer quarantines than fall. More absent kids but just 1-2 who are actually (mildly) ill.

If that were true, how do you explain universities switching to virtual where 99% students are vaccinated? That’s what doesn’t make sense to me.

Haven't they just done that for the last few days of December? Everyone was leaving for Break in a few days and they didn't want to send everyone home on transportation, etc. with positive COVID cases. That's different than going virtual for second semester.

Harvard just said they will be online in January. This is after universities have even mandated booster shots. High schools have not even mandated the vaccine. We are done for.

This is ridiculous on Harvard's part. These kids are not at risk, and the institutions need to suck it up and let the virus pass through so they can all move on.

What Harvard doesn't want, above all else, is for its name to be attached to a health disaster, like a hospital saturation headline, or the death of any of its illustrious but elderly brains, whom it poaches from universities and research institutions around the world with funds and prestige.
"Harvard kills off Nobel Prize winner" or "Harvard outbreak saturates local hospitals" is Harvard's worse nightmare. Harvard has the reputation it has by not making such mistakes. Not making such mistakes takes a lot of foresight and care, and from that perspective, it considers that caution is the better part of valor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Even that is better than virtual learning. Sitting in a class with other kids in person IS learning. There is expressive language, there is receptive language, there is pragmatic language skills, social skills, social reciprocity, a hidden social agenda, many non-verbal social cues, I could go on and on and on and on. This is something a lot of people outside education don't understand about children and haven't been able to witness the problems being away from a classroom for so long has caused this fall.

I'm saying this from the vantage point of a special ed teacher who has seen what all the time on virtual learning did to kids when they came back into the classroom this fall. Also, I am the parent of two teens struggling with their mental health. Also, I believe kids will be learning academic content in classrooms.
Ok, so now you are saying you just want someone else watching your kids. I’m with you but let’s be honest about it. Having kids home all the time is hard on parents. School is child care even if we want to pretend otherwise

Half the students in K-12 are able to stay home by themselves: middle and high schoolers. You seem to be fixated on the younger set, which do pose childcare issues. The older kids need INSTRUCTION, for goodness' sakes, not more discussion on their mental health! They need math and writing and history and science and language practice. They need academic continuity and structure. I have a child with special needs, I know all about the language/social/non-verbal cues that a PP talks about, but for goodness sake's we want learning already! So if Omicron makes it such that schools cannot continue in-person instruction due to staff shortages, as I expect it will, I'd rather they switch to virtual when that time comes.

It would be nice if mcps offered a plan to parents but that’s not going to happen. This is only going to get worse before it gets better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Even that is better than virtual learning. Sitting in a class with other kids in person IS learning. There is expressive language, there is receptive language, there is pragmatic language skills, social skills, social reciprocity, a hidden social agenda, many non-verbal social cues, I could go on and on and on and on. This is something a lot of people outside education don't understand about children and haven't been able to witness the problems being away from a classroom for so long has caused this fall.

I'm saying this from the vantage point of a special ed teacher who has seen what all the time on virtual learning did to kids when they came back into the classroom this fall. Also, I am the parent of two teens struggling with their mental health. Also, I believe kids will be learning academic content in classrooms.
Ok, so now you are saying you just want someone else watching your kids. I’m with you but let’s be honest about it. Having kids home all the time is hard on parents. School is child care even if we want to pretend otherwise

Half the students in K-12 are able to stay home by themselves: middle and high schoolers. You seem to be fixated on the younger set, which do pose childcare issues. The older kids need INSTRUCTION, for goodness' sakes, not more discussion on their mental health! They need math and writing and history and science and language practice. They need academic continuity and structure. I have a child with special needs, I know all about the language/social/non-verbal cues that a PP talks about, but for goodness sake's we want learning already! So if Omicron makes it such that schools cannot continue in-person instruction due to staff shortages, as I expect it will, I'd rather they switch to virtual when that time comes.

It would be nice if mcps offered a plan to parents but that’s not going to happen. This is only going to get worse before it gets better.

The plan is to keep schools running because Montgomery County's vaccination rate will protect us. What is unclear about that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PG County going virtual is a problem. Many MCPS teachers live in PG county. What will they do for childcare. There will be a domino effect

I thought school wasn't child care? Isn't that what the MCEA posters kept saying last year?

Aww, it's so cute how you thought that was a gotcha. Bless your heart.

So other than any low income single mom teachers with no options, that means those teachers won't be coming to class to teach your precious, precious bebes.

There is an emergency meeting tomorrow (BOE) on a contracting/procurement bid. It’s a closed session. $100 bucks it’s for childcare for MCPs teachers who live in pg county. Sorry MCEA you are going to work in January.

LOL that you think there is a contract out there to be entered into for childcare on this scale with a four-day turnaround. Pass some of what you're smoking over here, it seems like more fun than living in reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Even that is better than virtual learning. Sitting in a class with other kids in person IS learning. There is expressive language, there is receptive language, there is pragmatic language skills, social skills, social reciprocity, a hidden social agenda, many non-verbal social cues, I could go on and on and on and on. This is something a lot of people outside education don't understand about children and haven't been able to witness the problems being away from a classroom for so long has caused this fall.

I'm saying this from the vantage point of a special ed teacher who has seen what all the time on virtual learning did to kids when they came back into the classroom this fall. Also, I am the parent of two teens struggling with their mental health. Also, I believe kids will be learning academic content in classrooms.
Ok, so now you are saying you just want someone else watching your kids. I’m with you but let’s be honest about it. Having kids home all the time is hard on parents. School is child care even if we want to pretend otherwise

Half the students in K-12 are able to stay home by themselves: middle and high schoolers. You seem to be fixated on the younger set, which do pose childcare issues. The older kids need INSTRUCTION, for goodness' sakes, not more discussion on their mental health! They need math and writing and history and science and language practice. They need academic continuity and structure. I have a child with special needs, I know all about the language/social/non-verbal cues that a PP talks about, but for goodness sake's we want learning already! So if Omicron makes it such that schools cannot continue in-person instruction due to staff shortages, as I expect it will, I'd rather they switch to virtual when that time comes.

It would be nice if mcps offered a plan to parents but that’s not going to happen. This is only going to get worse before it gets better.

The plan is to keep schools running because Montgomery County's vaccination rate will protect us. What is unclear about that?

Are you not understanding that many of the cases are from vaccinated so exclusively relying on vaccines is a huge mistake. The surges in mcps are from vaccinated. Very few are not vaccinated in mcps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PG County going virtual is a problem. Many MCPS teachers live in PG county. What will they do for childcare. There will be a domino effect

I thought school wasn't child care? Isn't that what the MCEA posters kept saying last year?

Aww, it's so cute how you thought that was a gotcha. Bless your heart.

So other than any low income single mom teachers with no options, that means those teachers won't be coming to class to teach your precious, precious bebes.

There is an emergency meeting tomorrow (BOE) on a contracting/procurement bid. It’s a closed session. $100 bucks it’s for childcare for MCPs teachers who live in pg county. Sorry MCEA you are going to work in January.

LOL that you think there is a contract out there to be entered into for childcare on this scale with a four-day turnaround. Pass some of what you're smoking over here, it seems like more fun than living in reality.

The county has two different child care programs for income eligible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hoarding cash in case I have to move back to private. But I don’t think they will - MoCo says they will be DL only if the state orders it, and Hogan wants to be president so he won’t.

Now that my kids are vaccinated, I even expect fewer quarantines than fall. More absent kids but just 1-2 who are actually (mildly) ill.

If that were true, how do you explain universities switching to virtual where 99% students are vaccinated? That’s what doesn’t make sense to me.

Haven't they just done that for the last few days of December? Everyone was leaving for Break in a few days and they didn't want to send everyone home on transportation, etc. with positive COVID cases. That's different than going virtual for second semester.

Harvard just said they will be online in January. This is after universities have even mandated booster shots. High schools have not even mandated the vaccine. We are done for.

This is ridiculous on Harvard's part. These kids are not at risk, and the institutions need to suck it up and let the virus pass through so they can all move on.

Oh please. They're basically going virtual for two weeks after winter break, which is sensible. If all schools did that, the virus wouldn't have the opportunity to spread as quickly and as widely, then maybe we can all function reasonably well at that point.