Allegedly there are several options for the fall none of which include being back full time?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^^*don't worry about medical bills?

Yes, even people on Medicaid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There sure are a lot of people on here who think they know better than county leaders, doctors, public health experts, school administrators, and teachers. I don’t know what the right answer is, but neither do you.

I know that kids need to go to school.

And I know that a child's right to an education does not supersede the rights of teachers, custodians, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, and instructional aides to a safe working environment. We want school back in session too. But meaningful protocols to mitigate the spread of the virus need to be in place. Unfortunately, if a school is overcrowded they will have to reduce density by establishing different cohorts of students who physically attend school on different days. There is no other way around it-we can't build and staff new schools to accommodate all the students.

Why not?

I’m hoping that you bolder the wrong area of that post and really don’t mean that you think children have more right to be in a building than adults have a right to live.

DP. Society benefits more from kids being in school than from kids not being in school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have been patiently reading this debate on multiple treads by now. I have a question that I hope someone can give a meaningful answer. It seems some teachers would like to go back to school in the new academic year, but some teachers would first like to see some protocols in place because they say otherwise it is not safe for them. On the other hand, the vast majority of parents (even when one of the parents stay at home) want schools to open for all students. Now these parents are willing to send their kids to schools that some teachers argue not safe. Every night, the kids come back home from school. So if they pose a risk to teachers, shouldn't they pose a risk to their parents as well? Why do the parents think the risk is manageable, but some teachers think otherwise? Also since being a teacher is not a virtue people are born with, instead people become teachers after they are born, would those teachers change their mind on this issue if they were not teachers?

If you talk to lower income parents of color and I do since they are my neighbors and the parents of many of my students, they are worried about their kids bring coronavirus home. They just aren’t on DCUM to chime in on these posts.

I'd think for lower income families it's even more critical that kids go to school. Otherwise parents would have difficulty going to work. Also those kids would have very little out of school enrichment opportunities.

I get that you THINK that, but I’m telling you what people are saying to me. They are scared. Scared their kids will get “mildly” ill and they will miss work. Scared that they themselves will get ill and miss work. They are worried about doctors’ bills and hospital fees that they can’t afford. Scared that household member already in bad health will die. Some sublease housing illegally and are afraid that they might be kicked out if they or their kids get ill with COVID. It’s important to actually ask lower income people what they think rather than assuming you know what is best for them.

That makes no sense because they will already be missing work for distance learning on the days their kids won't be at school based on the plan. Also, if they are that low income they would be on Medicaid-not worrying about medical bills. I call BS on these "neighbors" telling you this.

You are assuming that people are staying home with healthy kids. That’s not universally the case even in non-low income households. There are a lot of 12 year olds watching younger siblings. Or 8 year olds home alone because they could run to a neighbor if an emergency came up. Toss a COVID diagnosis into that and it’s a different situation. I’d be glad to keep an ear out for a healthy child in a neighboring home. I would not want that child to run over if infected with COVID.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There sure are a lot of people on here who think they know better than county leaders, doctors, public health experts, school administrators, and teachers. I don’t know what the right answer is, but neither do you.

I know that kids need to go to school.

And I know that a child's right to an education does not supersede the rights of teachers, custodians, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, and instructional aides to a safe working environment. We want school back in session too. But meaningful protocols to mitigate the spread of the virus need to be in place. Unfortunately, if a school is overcrowded they will have to reduce density by establishing different cohorts of students who physically attend school on different days. There is no other way around it-we can't build and staff new schools to accommodate all the students.

Why not?

I’m hoping that you bolder the wrong area of that post and really don’t mean that you think children have more right to be in a building than adults have a right to live.

DP. Society benefits more from kids being in school than from kids not being in school.

The majority of students do not need to physically sit in a specific building 30 hours a week to learn. That’s been proven by other countries all over the world.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There sure are a lot of people on here who think they know better than county leaders, doctors, public health experts, school administrators, and teachers. I don’t know what the right answer is, but neither do you.

I know that kids need to go to school.

And I know that a child's right to an education does not supersede the rights of teachers, custodians, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, and instructional aides to a safe working environment. We want school back in session too. But meaningful protocols to mitigate the spread of the virus need to be in place. Unfortunately, if a school is overcrowded they will have to reduce density by establishing different cohorts of students who physically attend school on different days. There is no other way around it-we can't build and staff new schools to accommodate all the students.

Why not?

I’m hoping that you bolder the wrong area of that post and really don’t mean that you think children have more right to be in a building than adults have a right to live.

DP. Society benefits more from kids being in school than from kids not being in school.

The majority of students do not need to physically sit in a specific building 30 hours a week to learn. That’s been proven by other countries all over the world.

Please elaborate and corroborate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a vaccine by the end of the year. It will work, but for how long, no one knows. In the meantime, schools will be on line until scientists know more. If there is a chance for a working vaccine, school systems in this area would be nuts to open up completely. If it turns out there is no hope for a efficacious vaccine, that’s when the scenario changes. But until that happens, people need to be patient. There are too many people at risk of dying. Yes, it is inconvenient, but it is a necessary evil.

There is no reason to believe that a vaccine will be available to the general public in early 2021. We really don't know when we'll get a vaccine. I think we need to move forward assuming that a vaccine is not imminent.

Not only that, it will takes months if not a year to vaccinate 330 million people. That's a massive undertaking.

[Anonymous]

Im sorry for saying this but some of you all are so dumb. Low income people don't want their kids in school so they don't get sick? Low income people don't have medical bills because they are on Medicaid?

Some of you should take a deep look at yourself and take time to learn. You embody exactly why we are at 2 wks of protests that have spanned every state and over 13 countries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

The majority of students do not need to physically sit in a specific building 30 hours a week to learn. That’s been proven by other countries all over the world.

Specific examples, please.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a vaccine by the end of the year. It will work, but for how long, no one knows. In the meantime, schools will be on line until scientists know more. If there is a chance for a working vaccine, school systems in this area would be nuts to open up completely. If it turns out there is no hope for a efficacious vaccine, that’s when the scenario changes. But until that happens, people need to be patient. There are too many people at risk of dying. Yes, it is inconvenient, but it is a necessary evil.

There is no reason to believe that a vaccine will be available to the general public in early 2021. We really don't know when we'll get a vaccine. I think we need to move forward assuming that a vaccine is not imminent.

+1. You would be nuts to suggest that schools stay closed until there is a vaccine. Schools should be priority. Not the last place to open. PRIORITY.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a vaccine by the end of the year. It will work, but for how long, no one knows. In the meantime, schools will be on line until scientists know more. If there is a chance for a working vaccine, school systems in this area would be nuts to open up completely. If it turns out there is no hope for a efficacious vaccine, that’s when the scenario changes. But until that happens, people need to be patient. There are too many people at risk of dying. Yes, it is inconvenient, but it is a necessary evil.

There is no reason to believe that a vaccine will be available to the general public in early 2021. We really don't know when we'll get a vaccine. I think we need to move forward assuming that a vaccine is not imminent.

+1. You would be nuts to suggest that schools stay closed until there is a vaccine. Schools should be priority. Not the last place to open. PRIORITY.

I don’t need a vaccine. I just need PPE, soap in the bathrooms, and classrooms that accommodate 6 foot distancing. I do not believe MCPS will be able to provide any of those things. At least not consistently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a vaccine by the end of the year. It will work, but for how long, no one knows. In the meantime, schools will be on line until scientists know more. If there is a chance for a working vaccine, school systems in this area would be nuts to open up completely. If it turns out there is no hope for a efficacious vaccine, that’s when the scenario changes. But until that happens, people need to be patient. There are too many people at risk of dying. Yes, it is inconvenient, but it is a necessary evil.

There is no reason to believe that a vaccine will be available to the general public in early 2021. We really don't know when we'll get a vaccine. I think we need to move forward assuming that a vaccine is not imminent.

+1. You would be nuts to suggest that schools stay closed until there is a vaccine. Schools should be priority. Not the last place to open. PRIORITY.

I don’t need a vaccine. I just need PPE, soap in the bathrooms, and classrooms that accommodate 6 foot distancing. I do not believe MCPS will be able to provide any of those things. At least not consistently.

I think you are right the 6 foot rule will be impossible to implement in schools. So if you insist on it, you do need to wait for a vaccine. Which is insane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a vaccine by the end of the year. It will work, but for how long, no one knows. In the meantime, schools will be on line until scientists know more. If there is a chance for a working vaccine, school systems in this area would be nuts to open up completely. If it turns out there is no hope for a efficacious vaccine, that’s when the scenario changes. But until that happens, people need to be patient. There are too many people at risk of dying. Yes, it is inconvenient, but it is a necessary evil.

There is no reason to believe that a vaccine will be available to the general public in early 2021. We really don't know when we'll get a vaccine. I think we need to move forward assuming that a vaccine is not imminent.

+1. You would be nuts to suggest that schools stay closed until there is a vaccine. Schools should be priority. Not the last place to open. PRIORITY.

I don’t need a vaccine. I just need PPE, soap in the bathrooms, and classrooms that accommodate 6 foot distancing. I do not believe MCPS will be able to provide any of those things. At least not consistently.

I believe by all means adults in school buildings should protect themselves, especially if they are high risk. For kids, we know by now that the risk is less than flu. There is also growing evidence that kids are not significant spreaders. All this would make it easier to create a safe school environment I believe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There will be a vaccine by the end of the year. It will work, but for how long, no one knows. In the meantime, schools will be on line until scientists know more. If there is a chance for a working vaccine, school systems in this area would be nuts to open up completely. If it turns out there is no hope for a efficacious vaccine, that’s when the scenario changes. But until that happens, people need to be patient. There are too many people at risk of dying. Yes, it is inconvenient, but it is a necessary evil.

There is no reason to believe that a vaccine will be available to the general public in early 2021. We really don't know when we'll get a vaccine. I think we need to move forward assuming that a vaccine is not imminent.

+1. You would be nuts to suggest that schools stay closed until there is a vaccine. Schools should be priority. Not the last place to open. PRIORITY.

I don’t need a vaccine. I just need PPE, soap in the bathrooms, and classrooms that accommodate 6 foot distancing. I do not believe MCPS will be able to provide any of those things. At least not consistently.

I think you are right the 6 foot rule will be impossible to implement in schools. So if you insist on it, you do need to wait for a vaccine. Which is insane.

+1. I think teachers who want to wear a mask should be provided one. Certainly lots of soap available and refilled regular, as well as hand sanitizer, for teachers, administrators, staff, and kids. But it is not reasonable to maintain social distancing while a teacher. And those who don't want to teach anymore or can't should transition to different jobs, whether within MCPS or elsewhere. This means that there would necessarily be many new teachers, but that is better than distance learning for all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Im sorry for saying this but some of you all are so dumb. Low income people don't want their kids in school so they don't get sick? Low income people don't have medical bills because they are on Medicaid?

Some of you should take a deep look at yourself and take time to learn. You embody exactly why we are at 2 wks of protests that have spanned every state and over 13 countries.

Do you know how Medicaid works? Because I work in healthcare and they pay nothing. So no, they don't worry about medical bills. I'm not saying their life is easy by any means but medical bills are not one of their worries.

[Anonymous]

Stop with “soap is enough”. The virus is airborne. It is a respiratory illness. All the soap in the world isn’t going to keep anyone safe and you know it! That’s why we’re all wearing masks in stores, on public transit, and around other people in general. Schools are not magically safe because you want them to open.