TEACHERS- what reasonable accommodations would you like for IN PERSON school?

[Anonymous]

All students should only be allowed in the class after they have had the seasonal flu vaccine at least two weeks before attending in-person class.

UV lights in the school HVAC system.

Air purifiers in the classrooms and perhaps UV lights in the classroom too.

Cans of lysol for getting each classroom lysoled at the end of the day.

(All of these are in addition to everything else that has been listed in this thread).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First of all, don't start by suggesting parents come in and clean. That would multiply the Covid risk for any other adults working in the building. The whole premise that reopening schools is somehow safe is that children don't spread the disease, adults do. No adult volunteers will be entering any buildings for quite a while.

1. We would need parents to provide all staff with as much PPE as necessary, across the entire school system, not just to the schools that can afford it.
2. Obtain canopies so classes can be held outside as much as possible.
3. A signed pledge that no sick kids would ever be sent to school, and any sick child would be picked up immediately, tested for Covid, and quarantined for 2 weeks with no attempt to send the child back to school sooner. Same goes if any student's immediate family members become ill.
4. Teach your child how to wear a mask and make sure they can wear one for the duration of a school day without fuss. Do not send your child to school if you can't get them to wear a mask for hours on end.
5. Teachers have been told that we cannot discipline children who won't wear masks, just encourage them. Parents must discipline them, and keep them home if they will not listen to the teacher.
6. For God's sake, teach your child to cover coughs and sneezes, even with a mask on. A mask reduces, but does not eliminate airborne droplets. Same goes for nose picking.

And even with all of this, I'm more afraid of catching something from a coworker than I am from a child. Most schools bring anywhere from 50-150 adults together on a daily basis. Many teachers travel from school to school. We all use the same 4-5 bathrooms, and the same 1-3 copy machines. Teaching is a collaborative profession, and we come together to plan, share resources, and provide services to our students. A school won't function with everyone working in isolated pods.

The main thing we really need is something no parent can give us: a vaccine.

Well said.

[Anonymous]

What about school buses? Should we ask parents to drop and pick up their children? I shudder to think what transportation will look like in our poor middle school with upwards of 1200 students.

[Anonymous]

Cancel the specials?

We have a music program at school. What about the music instruments?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For me, it's not about school accommodations. It's about whether it's safe under general restrictions. I had planned to opt for in person for my own kids, but at this point, we're not close to that being safe.

-everyone in masks. Consequences for not keeping them on.
-social distancing strongly encouraged, but not "required at all times." For example, spread kids out, 2 kids at a table instead of 4. If we need to keep them 6 feet apart at all times, we cannot safely open because we cannot do that. I measured my classroom and I can have 4-6 students using those guidelines. Certainly not 15, the limit that was suggested, which is my current class anyway.
-PPE and cleaning supplies guaranteed (not reliant on PTA)

I have no problem wiping down my classroom myself; I do that regularly anyway, but I need to be assured that the supplies are going to be provided. If MCPS cant provide them because they're too in demand, then we're not in a place where we can safely open school buildings. I dont like that any more than any other parent, but it's where we are.

Yes. Let’s not rely on donations. Donations are great but can you imagine your surgeon, nurse, or dentist relying on donations?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How about lunch? Our middle school is so huge that we need 3 lunch periods in which the kids are packed into the cafeteria like sardines!!

- Will kids be allowed to eat in their classrooms or outdoors if they are not eating cafeteria food?

- What about schools that are 50% FARMS and get breakfast, lunch and dinner at schools?


How could this be handled?

[Anonymous]

Are we a poor country? Yes, we are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about school buses? Should we ask parents to drop and pick up their children? I shudder to think what transportation will look like in our poor middle school with upwards of 1200 students.

I can’t see how drop off and pickup would work without some pretty serious staggering. It’s was overcrowded pre-COVID.

[Anonymous]

How do we overcome years of underfunding and overcrowding in a few months? People in MOCO complain about their taxes but they are quite low compared to many parts of the country. We are in a “get what you pay for” scenario.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Cancel the specials?

We have a music program at school. What about the music instruments?

Op here- i am actually a proponent of cancelling specials although I'm sure I'll get yelled at. Remember the choir in Washington state where most people were affected?

And the band with kids spitting everywherem (yes I was a band geek). I think with in person school being a risks in itself - it should be core subjects.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about school buses? Should we ask parents to drop and pick up their children? I shudder to think what transportation will look like in our poor middle school with upwards of 1200 students.

Alot of the independents are cancelling bus service. I would vote for canceling this with staggered dropoff

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How about lunch? Our middle school is so huge that we need 3 lunch periods in which the kids are packed into the cafeteria like sardines!!

- Will kids be allowed to eat in their classrooms or outdoors if they are not eating cafeteria food?

- What about schools that are 50% FARMS and get breakfast, lunch and dinner at schools?


How could this be handled?

Sorry was not trying to figure out every problem- just trying to get a list of accommodations for teachers that would help their transition to send to the BOE.

But hybrid should help the above situation some as its partial kids- the first step would likely be hybrid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For me, it's not about school accommodations. It's about whether it's safe under general restrictions. I had planned to opt for in person for my own kids, but at this point, we're not close to that being safe.

-everyone in masks. Consequences for not keeping them on.
-social distancing strongly encouraged, but not "required at all times." For example, spread kids out, 2 kids at a table instead of 4. If we need to keep them 6 feet apart at all times, we cannot safely open because we cannot do that. I measured my classroom and I can have 4-6 students using those guidelines. Certainly not 15, the limit that was suggested, which is my current class anyway.
-PPE and cleaning supplies guaranteed (not reliant on PTA)

I have no problem wiping down my classroom myself; I do that regularly anyway, but I need to be assured that the supplies are going to be provided. If MCPS cant provide them because they're too in demand, then we're not in a place where we can safely open school buildings. I dont like that any more than any other parent, but it's where we are.

Op here i agree- am a proponent of opening but would not send my kids with the plan that they had. It was not safe IMO

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First of all, don't start by suggesting parents come in and clean. That would multiply the Covid risk for any other adults working in the building. The whole premise that reopening schools is somehow safe is that children don't spread the disease, adults do. No adult volunteers will be entering any buildings for quite a while.

1. We would need parents to provide all staff with as much PPE as necessary, across the entire school system, not just to the schools that can afford it.
2. Obtain canopies so classes can be held outside as much as possible.
3. A signed pledge that no sick kids would ever be sent to school, and any sick child would be picked up immediately, tested for Covid, and quarantined for 2 weeks with no attempt to send the child back to school sooner. Same goes if any student's immediate family members become ill.
4. Teach your child how to wear a mask and make sure they can wear one for the duration of a school day without fuss. Do not send your child to school if you can't get them to wear a mask for hours on end.
5. Teachers have been told that we cannot discipline children who won't wear masks, just encourage them. Parents must discipline them, and keep them home if they will not listen to the teacher.
6. For God's sake, teach your child to cover coughs and sneezes, even with a mask on. A mask reduces, but does not eliminate airborne droplets. Same goes for nose picking.

And even with all of this, I'm more afraid of catching something from a coworker than I am from a child. Most schools bring anywhere from 50-150 adults together on a daily basis. Many teachers travel from school to school. We all use the same 4-5 bathrooms, and the same 1-3 copy machines. Teaching is a collaborative profession, and we come together to plan, share resources, and provide services to our students. A school won't function with everyone working in isolated pods.

The main thing we really need is something no parent can give us: a vaccine.

You want PPE? What do you mean? Are you performing aerosolized generating procedures on students?

[Anonymous]

I laugh a bit at these comments. I must be the only teacher in MCPS who has infectious disease research experience. I did HIV drug testing 20 years ago for NIH processing and testing blood samples. Doesn't make me an epidemiologist though. Anways, I was ok with hybrid, until it became clear they wouldnt enforce mask use. That was jarring to hear. It's a pandemic and they wont require the best tool we have.