MCPS Officially announces schools opening as planned

[Anonymous]

Teacher here- XC clubs should have the same vaccine requirement that sports do, then rock on in person, drama and knitting clubs!

[Anonymous]

I think at this point the plan is to let it rip ….

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. I’m just happy the kids will be going back- and I’m a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. They need to be in school. Yes physical distancing isn’t happening, yes mask compliance is low, yes to all the problems. But Covid is something we have to figure out how to live with at this point- bring the focus to vaccination and testing- and take virtual/hybrid school off the table entirely.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I’m just happy the kids will be going back- and I’m a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. They need to be in school. Yes physical distancing isn’t happening, yes mask compliance is low, yes to all the problems. But Covid is something we have to figure out how to live with at this point- bring the focus to vaccination and testing- and take virtual/hybrid school off the table entirely.

I'm also a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. Totally agree!! As do most of my peers.

Another thank you!!

Another mcps teacher and parent in total agreement!!

To my fellow teachers, how do you feel about mcea pushing to pause extra curriculars? I get things like indoor basketball but there is a vaccine requirement but other clubs should be allowed to continue in person as long as the school is open. What do you think?

MCEA pushed against vaccinations mandates for staff but they want to end extracurriculars like sports where students were required to show proof of vaccinations??? Despicable.

How about pushing for mandatory vaccinations and test to stay for everyone so school and extracurriculars can continue?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I’m just happy the kids will be going back- and I’m a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. They need to be in school. Yes physical distancing isn’t happening, yes mask compliance is low, yes to all the problems. But Covid is something we have to figure out how to live with at this point- bring the focus to vaccination and testing- and take virtual/hybrid school off the table entirely.

I'm also a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. Totally agree!! As do most of my peers.

Another thank you!!

Another mcps teacher and parent in total agreement!!

To my fellow teachers, how do you feel about mcea pushing to pause extra curriculars? I get things like indoor basketball but there is a vaccine requirement but other clubs should be allowed to continue in person as long as the school is open. What do you think?

MCEA pushed against vaccinations mandates for staff but they want to end extracurriculars like sports where students were required to show proof of vaccinations??? Despicable.

How about pushing for mandatory vaccinations and test to stay for everyone so school and extracurriculars can continue?

I for one support MCEA's efforts to protect its members. This makes perfect sense. I don't know why you expect teachers to be at risk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I’m just happy the kids will be going back- and I’m a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. They need to be in school. Yes physical distancing isn’t happening, yes mask compliance is low, yes to all the problems. But Covid is something we have to figure out how to live with at this point- bring the focus to vaccination and testing- and take virtual/hybrid school off the table entirely.

I'm also a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. Totally agree!! As do most of my peers.

Another thank you!!

Another mcps teacher and parent in total agreement!!

To my fellow teachers, how do you feel about mcea pushing to pause extra curriculars? I get things like indoor basketball but there is a vaccine requirement but other clubs should be allowed to continue in person as long as the school is open. What do you think?

MCEA pushed against vaccinations mandates for staff but they want to end extracurriculars like sports where students were required to show proof of vaccinations??? Despicable.

How about pushing for mandatory vaccinations and test to stay for everyone so school and extracurriculars can continue?

I for one support MCEA's efforts to protect its members. This makes perfect sense. I don't know why you expect teachers to be at risk.

Protecting its members would be pushing for vaccine mandates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I’m just happy the kids will be going back- and I’m a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. They need to be in school. Yes physical distancing isn’t happening, yes mask compliance is low, yes to all the problems. But Covid is something we have to figure out how to live with at this point- bring the focus to vaccination and testing- and take virtual/hybrid school off the table entirely.

I'm also a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. Totally agree!! As do most of my peers.

Another thank you!!

Another mcps teacher and parent in total agreement!!

To my fellow teachers, how do you feel about mcea pushing to pause extra curriculars? I get things like indoor basketball but there is a vaccine requirement but other clubs should be allowed to continue in person as long as the school is open. What do you think?

MCEA pushed against vaccinations mandates for staff but they want to end extracurriculars like sports where students were required to show proof of vaccinations??? Despicable.

How about pushing for mandatory vaccinations and test to stay for everyone so school and extracurriculars can continue?

I for one support MCEA's efforts to protect its members. This makes perfect sense. I don't know why you expect teachers to be at risk.

Protecting its members would be pushing for vaccine mandates.

Agee! Vaccine mandates for XC would protect the teachers as well as allow the kids to have the outlet that these activities provide. Canceling them just punishes the kids.

[Anonymous]

MCPS teacher here. The thought of a repeat of 1.5 years of virtual learning is enough to make me lose my mind. Hated it! I'm still unsure how my own school will operate given the number of staff I know who are sick or have kids sick. I would have loved for MCPS to declare that they would be dispatching central office to all schools in need. The week before break all non-classroom staff were being used to cover rooms. I had a student having a tough time who absolutely destroyed my room and I had no support because admin was teaching. It would be great if central office could be in schools to at least free up our admin to do their jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody wants hybrid. Absolutely nobody. But most who want in-person would prefer hybrid over fully virtual. And most who want fully virtual would prefer hybrid over fully in-person. It's pareto optimal.

I am for hybrid as an option forever. If we can have students able to attend remotely the same classes with the same teachers that their peers are attending in-person, we will have a healthier school population and less sick days.

I am not interested in virtual because students need to be in school. However, hybrid is very flexible model to have incase of any outbreak, individual illness, even snow days or weather issues.

Schools are important for the other things that a student gains from it - peer group, socialization, exercise, meals, other services.

Hybrid/concurrent is the worst. Absolutely awful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's what they should do for this week, and perhaps most of January til cases head down.

1. On Monday-Tuesday, test every kid who is at school (none of this sending tests home). If there are tests available, repeat this every Monday-Tuesday til cases head down.

2. Have kids on an alternating schedule A-M; N-Z. Last year when they did this, they allowed special needs kids to come every day and I've no idea how this affects numbers but in principle I'd be fine with it. Could make the same accommodation for at-risk kids (based on MAP scores or something) though I suspect this wouldn't work, but in principle, a good idea. The goal would be that each classroom would be at about 60% capacity. The other half of the class would be online the other day (the way they did last year).
3. There would be some threshold (maybe school-level threshold) for going back to 100%... probably feasible by late January.
What this achieves:
-Kids are back in school 5 out of 10 days every two weeks, so the mental health and other issues cited last year would be less prominent.
-Teachers could continue to give real tests (not open-note/at home tests), though they'd need to make two versions of any tests since kids would be taking on different days. They could more easily pull out kids who need extra attention or have questions when those kids are in person.
-Social distancing (which frankly didn't exist in fall semester despite what MCPS said) would be feasible. Teachers could arrange the classroom to stay farther away from kids while teaching.
-Any infected kid would expose fewer others.
-Kids who are out of school either in quarantine or with less symptomatic covid or because of parents' fear would have a real educational option-- they'd just log in virtually every day. (Something would need to be worked out for those in-person tests, but that's doable.)

Viola.

They can’t test without consent, and only half of students have opted in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. I’m just happy the kids will be going back- and I’m a MCPS teacher and parent of MCPS kids. They need to be in school. Yes physical distancing isn’t happening, yes mask compliance is low, yes to all the problems. But Covid is something we have to figure out how to live with at this point- bring the focus to vaccination and testing- and take virtual/hybrid school off the table entirely.

How would you like hospitals to "learn to live with it?" I am sure they would love to hear your suggestions. Too bad you had such a terrible education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's what they should do for this week, and perhaps most of January til cases head down.

1. On Monday-Tuesday, test every kid who is at school (none of this sending tests home). If there are tests available, repeat this every Monday-Tuesday til cases head down.

2. Have kids on an alternating schedule A-M; N-Z. Last year when they did this, they allowed special needs kids to come every day and I've no idea how this affects numbers but in principle I'd be fine with it. Could make the same accommodation for at-risk kids (based on MAP scores or something) though I suspect this wouldn't work, but in principle, a good idea. The goal would be that each classroom would be at about 60% capacity. The other half of the class would be online the other day (the way they did last year).
3. There would be some threshold (maybe school-level threshold) for going back to 100%... probably feasible by late January.
What this achieves:
-Kids are back in school 5 out of 10 days every two weeks, so the mental health and other issues cited last year would be less prominent.
-Teachers could continue to give real tests (not open-note/at home tests), though they'd need to make two versions of any tests since kids would be taking on different days. They could more easily pull out kids who need extra attention or have questions when those kids are in person.
-Social distancing (which frankly didn't exist in fall semester despite what MCPS said) would be feasible. Teachers could arrange the classroom to stay farther away from kids while teaching.
-Any infected kid would expose fewer others.
-Kids who are out of school either in quarantine or with less symptomatic covid or because of parents' fear would have a real educational option-- they'd just log in virtually every day. (Something would need to be worked out for those in-person tests, but that's doable.)

Viola.

They can’t test without consent, and only half of students have opted in.

Only because that is what they decided. They can decide differently, given a different set of circumstances. Those who opt out do virtual school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's what they should do for this week, and perhaps most of January til cases head down.

1. On Monday-Tuesday, test every kid who is at school (none of this sending tests home). If there are tests available, repeat this every Monday-Tuesday til cases head down.

2. Have kids on an alternating schedule A-M; N-Z. Last year when they did this, they allowed special needs kids to come every day and I've no idea how this affects numbers but in principle I'd be fine with it. Could make the same accommodation for at-risk kids (based on MAP scores or something) though I suspect this wouldn't work, but in principle, a good idea. The goal would be that each classroom would be at about 60% capacity. The other half of the class would be online the other day (the way they did last year).
3. There would be some threshold (maybe school-level threshold) for going back to 100%... probably feasible by late January.
What this achieves:
-Kids are back in school 5 out of 10 days every two weeks, so the mental health and other issues cited last year would be less prominent.
-Teachers could continue to give real tests (not open-note/at home tests), though they'd need to make two versions of any tests since kids would be taking on different days. They could more easily pull out kids who need extra attention or have questions when those kids are in person.
-Social distancing (which frankly didn't exist in fall semester despite what MCPS said) would be feasible. Teachers could arrange the classroom to stay farther away from kids while teaching.
-Any infected kid would expose fewer others.
-Kids who are out of school either in quarantine or with less symptomatic covid or because of parents' fear would have a real educational option-- they'd just log in virtually every day. (Something would need to be worked out for those in-person tests, but that's doable.)

Viola.

They can’t test without consent, and only half of students have opted in.

Only because that is what they decided. They can decide differently, given a different set of circumstances. Those who opt out do virtual school.

Setting aside the legal and ethical issues of demanding a medical test to obtain a right granted by state/federal law, MCPS has neither the tests nor the staff to do what you described.

[Anonymous]

Plus, I really don’t understand what people ever thought was good about hybrid schedules where only some students are in class on a given day. You just end up with even greater mixing since kids will be going all over the place on the days they don’t go to school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's what they should do for this week, and perhaps most of January til cases head down.

1. On Monday-Tuesday, test every kid who is at school (none of this sending tests home). If there are tests available, repeat this every Monday-Tuesday til cases head down.

2. Have kids on an alternating schedule A-M; N-Z. Last year when they did this, they allowed special needs kids to come every day and I've no idea how this affects numbers but in principle I'd be fine with it. Could make the same accommodation for at-risk kids (based on MAP scores or something) though I suspect this wouldn't work, but in principle, a good idea. The goal would be that each classroom would be at about 60% capacity. The other half of the class would be online the other day (the way they did last year).
3. There would be some threshold (maybe school-level threshold) for going back to 100%... probably feasible by late January.
What this achieves:
-Kids are back in school 5 out of 10 days every two weeks, so the mental health and other issues cited last year would be less prominent.
-Teachers could continue to give real tests (not open-note/at home tests), though they'd need to make two versions of any tests since kids would be taking on different days. They could more easily pull out kids who need extra attention or have questions when those kids are in person.
-Social distancing (which frankly didn't exist in fall semester despite what MCPS said) would be feasible. Teachers could arrange the classroom to stay farther away from kids while teaching.
-Any infected kid would expose fewer others.
-Kids who are out of school either in quarantine or with less symptomatic covid or because of parents' fear would have a real educational option-- they'd just log in virtually every day. (Something would need to be worked out for those in-person tests, but that's doable.)

Viola.

They can’t test without consent, and only half of students have opted in.

Only because that is what they decided. They can decide differently, given a different set of circumstances. Those who opt out do virtual school.

Except they don’t have enough teachers willing to teach virtual school to teach half the kids in MCPS.

And hybrid is off the table too — contractually prohibited.