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

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

I'm sure if someone did a poll of all the retail workers, warehouse workers, waitresses and whatever other job you'd find a percentage of them refusing to go back to work.

I don't think teachers are any different in that regard. Some teachers are willing to go back to work. Others aren't. The big difference is that teachers have unions to protect them. People without unions just have to quit or find something else to do.

I put medical workers in a separate category. Risk of deadly infection has always been part and parcel of their line of work, and it's natural for them to accept it. It's like people signing up to be cops. They accept that there are potentially deadly health risks to being a cop.

Most people who signed up to be teachers never expected to be on the front lines of a pandemic. I'm not surprised that many of them are balking.

NP. I don't know what the rules are in the US, but it's now clear to me why in Germany, a country with otherwise strong unions (and where teachers also have a union), forbids teachers, and public employees in general, to go on strike. Teaching is considered a public service that needs to be rendered no matter what. The service cannot be held hostage because that would harm the general public, which is not a direct party to the negotiations.

US has a completely different history with teaching/education. It’s historically very undervalued in the US, which has led to enormous problems. There is a reason unions developed. The historical context is also part of why you see these very strong reactions here. Teachers’ reactions can’t be decontextualized; they are defensive because of decades and decades of issues in their profession and generally being attacked. It’s quite different in other countries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

I'm sure if someone did a poll of all the retail workers, warehouse workers, waitresses and whatever other job you'd find a percentage of them refusing to go back to work.

I don't think teachers are any different in that regard. Some teachers are willing to go back to work. Others aren't. The big difference is that teachers have unions to protect them. People without unions just have to quit or find something else to do.

I put medical workers in a separate category. Risk of deadly infection has always been part and parcel of their line of work, and it's natural for them to accept it. It's like people signing up to be cops. They accept that there are potentially deadly health risks to being a cop.

Most people who signed up to be teachers never expected to be on the front lines of a pandemic. I'm not surprised that many of them are balking.

NP. I don't know what the rules are in the US, but it's now clear to me why in Germany, a country with otherwise strong unions (and where teachers also have a union), forbids teachers, and public employees in general, to go on strike. Teaching is considered a public service that needs to be rendered no matter what. The service cannot be held hostage because that would harm the general public, which is not a direct party to the negotiations.

US has a completely different history with teaching/education. It’s historically very undervalued in the US, which has led to enormous problems. There is a reason unions developed. The historical context is also part of why you see these very strong reactions here. Teachers’ reactions can’t be decontextualized; they are defensive because of decades and decades of issues in their profession and generally being attacked. It’s quite different in other countries.

This. Also keep in mind that busting teachers’ unions is often a first step in busting the others. That’s why it is so important to other unions to watch what happens to teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

[Anonymous]

We’re really speaking different languages here. I live with an elderly person who I don’t want to die, so I do not want to go back in person in the fall. I will quit if necessary. I don’t see how this has anything to do with you “picking up the slack.” It’s not about you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

DP. No, parenting does not require a willingness to homeschool, which doesn't work for most parents or kids. That's why we have public schools. Yes, I expect teachers to do their jobs, not primarily for my sake but for my kids' sake, for whom DL is a pale substitute to actual school. Unless, of course, the teachers are actually at high risk, in which case they should be offered the option to teach DL to those kids who are also high-risk, or whose parents have other reasons not to send them back. Or they should get retirement incentives, career change support, etc. But to expect that they should keep receiving the same benefits while parents serve as their substitutes or assistants is just entitled. It was fine for a few months while everyone was dumbfounded by an unexpected pandemic, but it is not fine for potentially another year or years. What on earth is wrong with you people thinking we could keep kids out of school for this long?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

Sure, if teachers are willing to take a pay cut and divert that lost salary to increase resources to reach the truly vulnerable kids in this scenario. Increase mental health resources, crisis teams, technology access for kids who don’t have it, etc. Also, some kids who can’t go back to school WILL die, just not of COVID.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’re really speaking different languages here. I live with an elderly person who I don’t want to die, so I do not want to go back in person in the fall. I will quit if necessary. I don’t see how this has anything to do with you “picking up the slack.” It’s not about you.

You have every right to quit, and it might a sensible decision for you. If you quit, we don't have to pick up the slack, and it isn't about us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

DP. No, parenting does not require a willingness to homeschool, which doesn't work for most parents or kids. That's why we have public schools. Yes, I expect teachers to do their jobs, not primarily for my sake but for my kids' sake, for whom DL is a pale substitute to actual school. Unless, of course, the teachers are actually at high risk, in which case they should be offered the option to teach DL to those kids who are also high-risk, or whose parents have other reasons not to send them back. Or they should get retirement incentives, career change support, etc. But to expect that they should keep receiving the same benefits while parents serve as their substitutes or assistants is just entitled. It was fine for a few months while everyone was dumbfounded by an unexpected pandemic, but it is not fine for potentially another year or years. What on earth is wrong with you people thinking we could keep kids out of school for this long?

I don’t think anything on earth is wrong with them. There is no country on earth with case numbers like ours that is reopening its schools. This is not just some crazy idea that DCUM moms had.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

DP. No, parenting does not require a willingness to homeschool, which doesn't work for most parents or kids. That's why we have public schools. Yes, I expect teachers to do their jobs, not primarily for my sake but for my kids' sake, for whom DL is a pale substitute to actual school. Unless, of course, the teachers are actually at high risk, in which case they should be offered the option to teach DL to those kids who are also high-risk, or whose parents have other reasons not to send them back. Or they should get retirement incentives, career change support, etc. But to expect that they should keep receiving the same benefits while parents serve as their substitutes or assistants is just entitled. It was fine for a few months while everyone was dumbfounded by an unexpected pandemic, but it is not fine for potentially another year or years. What on earth is wrong with you people thinking we could keep kids out of school for this long?

I don’t think anything on earth is wrong with them. There is no country on earth with case numbers like ours that is reopening its schools. This is not just some crazy idea that DCUM moms had.

Other countries are not only looking at their case numbers, they are also looking at the mounting evidence that closing schools has minimal effect on stemming the spread. And that young kids, at least, are not spreaders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

DP. No, parenting does not require a willingness to homeschool, which doesn't work for most parents or kids. That's why we have public schools. Yes, I expect teachers to do their jobs, not primarily for my sake but for my kids' sake, for whom DL is a pale substitute to actual school. Unless, of course, the teachers are actually at high risk, in which case they should be offered the option to teach DL to those kids who are also high-risk, or whose parents have other reasons not to send them back. Or they should get retirement incentives, career change support, etc. But to expect that they should keep receiving the same benefits while parents serve as their substitutes or assistants is just entitled. It was fine for a few months while everyone was dumbfounded by an unexpected pandemic, but it is not fine for potentially another year or years. What on earth is wrong with you people thinking we could keep kids out of school for this long?

I don’t think anything on earth is wrong with them. There is no country on earth with case numbers like ours that is reopening its schools. This is not just some crazy idea that DCUM moms had.

That's easy to claim when there is no direct comparison. You have no idea what they would do. I strongly doubt that any other developed country, certainly not European ones, would seriously consider keeping kids out of school for a whole year or more. Only in the US is there a mindset where a) education doesn't matter enough, and b) there is no strong value placed on public services, and everybody can just be left to fend for themselves. See your lack of subsidized childcare, maternity leave, health insurance, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

DP. No, parenting does not require a willingness to homeschool, which doesn't work for most parents or kids. That's why we have public schools. Yes, I expect teachers to do their jobs, not primarily for my sake but for my kids' sake, for whom DL is a pale substitute to actual school. Unless, of course, the teachers are actually at high risk, in which case they should be offered the option to teach DL to those kids who are also high-risk, or whose parents have other reasons not to send them back. Or they should get retirement incentives, career change support, etc. But to expect that they should keep receiving the same benefits while parents serve as their substitutes or assistants is just entitled. It was fine for a few months while everyone was dumbfounded by an unexpected pandemic, but it is not fine for potentially another year or years. What on earth is wrong with you people thinking we could keep kids out of school for this long?

I don’t think anything on earth is wrong with them. There is no country on earth with case numbers like ours that is reopening its schools. This is not just some crazy idea that DCUM moms had.

You need to look at the stats by state/region, not the country overall. Our bad numbers are not been driven by Md/the DC areas, where the numbers are improving and the curve is flattened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

No that’s not what I meant. It actually has nothing to do with parenting, but rather performing the full duties of a particular job.

During this shutdown, or whatever we want to call it, I’ve had to continue to fulfill my full job responsibilities. Yes it’s been done from home, but I haven’t been able to “call it in”. I didn’t have one hour of office hour a day, the only time my customers could reach me. While I’m sure teachers put in more than that, with lesson planning (for what is was), meetings with other school staff, grade or subject leads, etc, this didn’t translate to educational instruction to my kids.

If the school systems could assure us that distance learning would be *much* improved and close to “real” school, I could be singing a different tune. But a continuation of the distance learning my kids had the last months of the school year? The thought of that continuing is what has so many of us upset.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes teachers are just like doctors what with all the respect, support and money they get from society. Everyone wants someone else to make the sacrifice for them, but god forbid Larla has to be sad and her parents have to sacrifice for her.

I'd say teachers get more respect and money than supermarket workers. And yet the latter are doing their jobs despite some risk.

Retail workers, home health care aides, other medical workers who aren't doctors, bus drivers, delivery people, construction workers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, food manufacturing workers, building services workers, mail carriers...

And it's not about Larla's sadness, or at least not only about Larla's sadness (though mental health is also a public-health factor, just like covid). It's about Larla's education.

So you think that teachers should be treated like delivery people, truck drivers, or warehouse workers? None of those jobs require prolonged exposure to other people in a small enclosed space, day after day. None of those jobs require them to literally touch other people's bodily fluids, except home health aides. They also don't require any formal education at all. I'm sorry, I didn't work my way through undergrad and graduate school to be fold sweaters or stock shelves in a supermarket. Forgive all our student loans and just throw us in the building with the kids and I'll keep them alive, then. They can watch movies, color, whatever they want. Either I'm a babysitter or I'm an educator. I'm not both.

DP (and the one who said that other essential workers haven’t complained this way):

-There are many, many essential workers who absolutely are in small enclosed spaces with *other adults* (aka the ones most likely to spread COVID) all day
-Stop looking down on people who have less education than you
-You can’t teach people while providing care? Really? Inherent in the job of teaching children, especially young ones, is providing oversight. Is the issue that you think you’re better than a “babysitter”?
-I really hope you can develop more appreciation for the emotional work of teaching. Part of the reason I respect (some) teachers so highly is because they get how important their role is. They don’t haughtily describe themselves as “educators” only and ignore the very real emotional care they provide to children

And I only respect some parents. Some of them just can’t be bothered to do any work at all with their children (the majority of my class) and are angry that they’ve lost their free full time care. I don’t think they’re doing their job supporting the emotional or educational needs of their children, which is an enormous personal failure on their part. We absolutely will not be pushed back to the classroom under unsafe conditions. We’ve worked hard for our rights and we aren’t going to sacrifice them to make your life easier.
You assume that you can tell me that you don’t respect me, and then turn around and say that I don’t value other people’s work. You don’t see the irony there? Good luck treating teachers like they owe you a place to deposit your child 5 days a week during a pandemic. They don’t.

Not a teacher and I totally agree. I think the same people on here and on FB who bitch and moan about schools JUST HAVE to be open have the financial privilege and job security to keep their kids home but they just don't want bothered.

Seems pretty entitled on the part of a teacher to expect the parents to do a good part of their job, which is what it amounts to when you deal with young elementary students. The "virtual" teacher is pretty much useless, and what I am doing is homeschooling. And frankly, that's what I'll likely do if we have DL.

Yup, I’m expected to continue to perform all of my duties and responsibilities while working at home. I can’t tell someone else to pick up the slack.

That's what parenting is. You want a teacher to risk their life or the life of their family member so you can get your work done? What on earth is wrong with you people? Also keep in mind that teenagers are more like adults in their ability to catch and spread the illness so all the high school teachers are dealing with a different situation. Can't we just band together, do our best and thank our lucky effing stars that kids dont' seem to be dying of this?

DP. No, parenting does not require a willingness to homeschool, which doesn't work for most parents or kids. That's why we have public schools. Yes, I expect teachers to do their jobs, not primarily for my sake but for my kids' sake, for whom DL is a pale substitute to actual school. Unless, of course, the teachers are actually at high risk, in which case they should be offered the option to teach DL to those kids who are also high-risk, or whose parents have other reasons not to send them back. Or they should get retirement incentives, career change support, etc. But to expect that they should keep receiving the same benefits while parents serve as their substitutes or assistants is just entitled. It was fine for a few months while everyone was dumbfounded by an unexpected pandemic, but it is not fine for potentially another year or years. What on earth is wrong with you people thinking we could keep kids out of school for this long?

I don’t think anything on earth is wrong with them. There is no country on earth with case numbers like ours that is reopening its schools. This is not just some crazy idea that DCUM moms had.

You need to look at the stats by state/region, not the country overall. Our bad numbers are not been driven by Md/the DC areas, where

the numbers are improving and the curve is flattened.

Nope, not anymore and going to get much worse over the coming months.

[Anonymous]

Maybe it will get worse in the coming months, which is why stats are constantly monitored But right now the numbers are getting better here and curve has flattened. Not crushed, but flattened. Hospitals have the capacity to treat patients who come in.

Data for MoCo available here: https://montgomerycountymd.gov/covid19/data/