WaPo: How D.C. and its teachers, with shifting plans and demands, failed to reopen schools

[Anonymous]

Wow. As a parent whose child is not thriving in virtual first grade, this is demoralizing. Hard to say who looks worse in this piece. Bumbling leadership and base selfishness at every turn.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/washington-dc-failed-school-reopening/2021/01/02/af6d6b56-2532-11eb-952e-0c475972cfc0_story.html

[Anonymous]

It was stunning to see the saga laid out in one piece. Total clusterf$&@k.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, equal blame to everyone making decisions. They should all go.

We were so close to stage three at the end of the summer. All of it political theater and power struggles. The mayor should have forced teachers back then.

[Anonymous]

I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

I kind of agree... but in terms of sheer incompetence the mayor takes the cake. At least WTU competently screwed over children. The mayor just stumbled into it.

[Anonymous]

Wish they had managed to show the inside story from Central Office. Based on people I know who work there, that has been a cluster all year as well. People scrambling, doing tons of work that ends up being useless, changing things last minute, only a select few people making decisions, etc.

This has been a nightmare all around.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

Oh shut up. Teachers are too underpaid for this, even in DC. Quit with the 100k BS, the average is 60k. 20 years to get to 100k is NOTHING.

Boo hoo nurses have been working in person, ok what does that have to do with teachers specifically. What do hospitals and schools have in common besides corrupt leaders, unfair pay for the backbones (nurses, teachers)?

And wow only 39% of teachers did the sick out and you all were acting like it was 80-90%. In case you suck at math 39% isn't even half. The mayor KNEW what would happen if she didn't include the WTU in the beginning.

I am a preschool teacher who went back and then got covid, I survived (likely because I am 24 and healthy) and I'm not going back without a vaccine.
4 years of pay freezes, a classroom whose lights won't turn off, broken heater and air conditioner, broken toilet, no pull ups, etc. but woooooow we have an HVAC. FU. Fix our schools!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

Oh shut up. Teachers are too underpaid for this, even in DC. Quit with the 100k BS, the average is 60k. 20 years to get to 100k is NOTHING.

Boo hoo nurses have been working in person, ok what does that have to do with teachers specifically. What do hospitals and schools have in common besides corrupt leaders, unfair pay for the backbones (nurses, teachers)?

And wow only 39% of teachers did the sick out and you all were acting like it was 80-90%. In case you suck at math 39% isn't even half. The mayor KNEW what would happen if she didn't include the WTU in the beginning.

I am a preschool teacher who went back and then got covid, I survived (likely because I am 24 and healthy) and I'm not going back without a vaccine.
4 years of pay freezes, a classroom whose lights won't turn off, broken heater and air conditioner, broken toilet, no pull ups, etc. but woooooow we have an HVAC. FU. Fix our schools!

you’re a dcps teacher and got covid how? in a cares classroom?

[Anonymous]

Should have added in the lede “and a cohort of privileged parents exacerbated the situation by emboldening the union’s intransigence from the safety of their UMC pods and WFH flex jobs.”

[Anonymous]

Disgusting. Disgusted with the teachers. No civic duty.

[Anonymous]

That article goes FAR too easy on the unions and their concerted efforts to deny and distort the science and reject public health recommendations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

Oh shut up. Teachers are too underpaid for this, even in DC. Quit with the 100k BS, the average is 60k. 20 years to get to 100k is NOTHING.

Boo hoo nurses have been working in person, ok what does that have to do with teachers specifically. What do hospitals and schools have in common besides corrupt leaders, unfair pay for the backbones (nurses, teachers)?

And wow only 39% of teachers did the sick out and you all were acting like it was 80-90%. In case you suck at math 39% isn't even half. The mayor KNEW what would happen if she didn't include the WTU in the beginning.

I am a preschool teacher who went back and then got covid, I survived (likely because I am 24 and healthy) and I'm not going back without a vaccine.
4 years of pay freezes, a classroom whose lights won't turn off, broken heater and air conditioner, broken toilet, no pull ups, etc. but woooooow we have an HVAC. FU. Fix our schools!

you’re a dcps teacher and got covid how? in a cares classroom?

I assume it was the school, unlike some I really didn't go out, unless it was a nature walk so I could spend some time with my daughter in the afternoons.
But the school could not share anything, all I know is there was another positive (because the positive staff member told me) and our classrooms were shut down. Now they have 0 staff members willing to return.

If I have to return I will take the other job I was offered or be a SAHM. People were so right, being a teacher is such a thankless job and being a 'public enemy' just makes it too stressful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Disgusting. Disgusted with the teachers. No civic duty.

Blame the union leadership, we have all be left in the dark and the signed MOA was the "best MOA ever" even as some of us objected. We (teachers) have been used as a pawn and have been screwed. The union leadership is to blame, every single one of them need to go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

Oh shut up. Teachers are too underpaid for this, even in DC. Quit with the 100k BS, the average is 60k. 20 years to get to 100k is NOTHING.

Boo hoo nurses have been working in person, ok what does that have to do with teachers specifically. What do hospitals and schools have in common besides corrupt leaders, unfair pay for the backbones (nurses, teachers)?

And wow only 39% of teachers did the sick out and you all were acting like it was 80-90%. In case you suck at math 39% isn't even half. The mayor KNEW what would happen if she didn't include the WTU in the beginning.

I am a preschool teacher who went back and then got covid, I survived (likely because I am 24 and healthy) and I'm not going back without a vaccine.
4 years of pay freezes, a classroom whose lights won't turn off, broken heater and air conditioner, broken toilet, no pull ups, etc. but woooooow we have an HVAC. FU. Fix our schools!

39% is a low number but remember only elementary teachers were slated to return for Term 2. I''m sure that middle and high school teachers who weren't at risk to return in person didn't care and reported to virtual work.
A better percentage would be how many elementary teachers took the mental health day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean... This really lays the blame about 75% with the Union. The Mayor miscalculated politically and failed to engage enough with interested parties and to sell the plan... But the WTU really seems to have operated in bad faith throughout. Wow.

Oh shut up. Teachers are too underpaid for this, even in DC. Quit with the 100k BS, the average is 60k. 20 years to get to 100k is NOTHING.

Boo hoo nurses have been working in person, ok what does that have to do with teachers specifically. What do hospitals and schools have in common besides corrupt leaders, unfair pay for the backbones (nurses, teachers)?

And wow only 39% of teachers did the sick out and you all were acting like it was 80-90%. In case you suck at math 39% isn't even half. The mayor KNEW what would happen if she didn't include the WTU in the beginning.

I am a preschool teacher who went back and then got covid, I survived (likely because I am 24 and healthy) and I'm not going back without a vaccine.
4 years of pay freezes, a classroom whose lights won't turn off, broken heater and air conditioner, broken toilet, no pull ups, etc. but woooooow we have an HVAC. FU. Fix our schools!

you’re a dcps teacher and got covid how? in a cares classroom?

I assume it was the school, unlike some I really didn't go out, unless it was a nature walk so I could spend some time with my daughter in the afternoons.
But the school could not share anything, all I know is there was another positive (because the positive staff member told me) and our classrooms were shut down. Now they have 0 staff members willing to return.

If I have to return I will take the other job I was offered or be a SAHM. People were so right, being a teacher is such a thankless job and being a 'public enemy' just makes it too stressful.

So you were in the cares classroom?