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

[Anonymous]

I am completely against doing school in-person while this pandemic is rolling on and on and on. Adults can't behave responsibly. How can we expect children to? And MoCo schools are so overcrowded that even dividing the student population up, there will be so many kids in school and in classrooms.

For example, take a 5th grade class. With a class of 28 students, the kids will be physically close with each other. It doesn't magically create more room or more teachers if the 4th graders aren't there that day.

Until there is a vaccine or this virus is somehow under control, schools should not reopen. It's incredibly dangerous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am completely against doing school in-person while this pandemic is rolling on and on and on. [/b]Adults can't behave responsibly. How can we expect children to?[b] And MoCo schools are so overcrowded that even dividing the student population up, there will be so many kids in school and in classrooms.

For example, take a 5th grade class. With a class of 28 students, the kids will be physically close with each other. It doesn't magically create more room or more teachers if the 4th graders aren't there that day.

Until there is a vaccine or this virus is somehow under control, schools should not reopen. It's incredibly dangerous.

This includes parent behavior. Pre-COVID, there have always been parents who send their sick children to school. They know they have a fever, but give them a fever reducer and send them to school. Once the medicine wears off, the fever spikes and you can easily see the child is sick. Send the child to the health room for a temperature check and low and behold, the child has a high fever. The typical story from the child is that they had a fever before school, but the parent said they couldn’t stay home, so parent gives them a fever reducer and sends them to school. Parents who have always done this will not change their behavior. It becomes more dangerous with COVID. If school resumes in person, temperature checks upon arrival won’t necessarily identify potentially sick children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want my child to go back to school too. However, I understand, just like stores, workspaces, etc. the maximum capacity will be 50%. Therefore, to make that work, every child will not be able to go back to school full time in MoCo. Either MCPS prioritizes some kids, e.g., ES, ESOL, FARM, etc. or all kids will have to go in person a few days a week, as NoVA public schools are proposing.

I don't understand how some people on this board think that all kids will go back fulltime in the fall based on the limitations in this county, e.g., space, existing overcrowding, bus schedules, etc.

They are only at 50% capacity for phase 2, it changes in phase 3 to allow more. Northern Virginia is going to phase 3 July 1st and moco should follow soon after. And that's just the beginning of July-still plenty of time before school.

That doesn't change the capacity for schools going into phase 3. Read the VA school guidelines. That is why NoVa is limiting in person education to 2 or max 3 days. Schools in the DMV area are too crowded and have space limits that put maximum capacity at approx. 50%.

I was replying to the comparison to restaurants and other businesses because the post was implying that was a guideline just in general. It's a guideline specifically for phase 2 and will change. And my point remains-if numbers continue to go down in our area and we keep moving through phases it would be completely ridiculous for schools to remain so restricted when it's an essential service.

I hope that you are correct but you are assuming that as the numbers go down this is evidence that the virus disappeared or no longer active in our area. It's a risk I would take but it doesn't seem like our public health officials agree and seem to act on the side of caution hence NoVa public schools' decision to limit in person instruction for the fall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

No, but 200 students and 5 adults pass through there 8 am to 3 pm. Sometimes, there’s a dog —permitted under ADA. It’s dirty, hot, and crowded.

Serious question. Which classroom do you teach in that has 200 kids, 5 adults, a service dog, and no windows?

The art and music teachers in elementary schools have 5 or so classes of students in and out of their classrooms each school day. Whether the rooms have windows that open vary from schools to school. A Middle or High School teacher would have 5 or more class rooms of students pass through their classroom during a day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am completely against doing school in-person while this pandemic is rolling on and on and on. [/b]Adults can't behave responsibly. How can we expect children to?[b] And MoCo schools are so overcrowded that even dividing the student population up, there will be so many kids in school and in classrooms.

For example, take a 5th grade class. With a class of 28 students, the kids will be physically close with each other. It doesn't magically create more room or more teachers if the 4th graders aren't there that day.

Until there is a vaccine or this virus is somehow under control, schools should not reopen. It's incredibly dangerous.

This includes parent behavior. Pre-COVID, there have always been parents who send their sick children to school. They know they have a fever, but give them a fever reducer and send them to school. Once the medicine wears off, the fever spikes and you can easily see the child is sick. Send the child to the health room for a temperature check and low and behold, the child has a high fever. The typical story from the child is that they had a fever before school, but the parent said they couldn’t stay home, so parent gives them a fever reducer and sends them to school. Parents who have always done this will not change their behavior. It becomes more dangerous with COVID. If school resumes in person, temperature checks upon arrival won’t necessarily identify potentially sick children.

So many people are so ignorant that they believe this is acceptable behavior. When the nurse calls the parents they tell her to just continue dosing the child with Tylenol. Which we are not permitted to do! And which doesn’t prevent their child from spreading whatever illness they have to others. Just incredible stupidity and selfishness. This won’t fly during a pandemic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Each one of us contributes to making this a civilized discussion. Let’s take care not to put words into other people’s mouths or tell them they are everything wrong with America. We need to find solutions, not bicker.

You mean we shouldn't tell others that they are "crazy" and "ridiculous" for thinking that schools should be a higher priority than commercial businesses such as hair salons and bars?

Yes, I think we should all quit calling one another crazy and ridiculous, period. Right here, you are putting words in people’s mouths. No one is saying they think bars and hair salons are a higher priority than education. What they and state officials are saying is that it is possible to limit the number of people in a bar or a salon in a way it is completely not possible to do in a school under normal conditions. Please don’t assume other people’s priorities or thoughts are so deficient.

I did not put words in her mouth. The PP I was referring to said: "You are crazy to think that everyone's primary focus should be minimizing spread so that schools can open. You do know that not everyone has a child or cares about this issue? Some people are more concerned about losing their jobs, caring for elderly family members, their own cancer diagnosis, losing their home, etc. It isn't the governments job to focus on your primary interests at the expense of all others. Ridiculous for you to expect that."

While she has a point that people's livelihoods are also valid concerns (and getting kids back to school would seem to be a prerequisite for allowing parents to resume their jobs), she literally said that schools should not be a higher priority for the government/society than commercial businesses. There was nothing in her statement about the practicability of occupancy limits in hair salons vs. schools. Other posters have made that argument, she didn't in this post. Her post clearly implied that kids are not to the benefit of everyone in a society and that their interests can therefore legitimately be ignored by the childless, and that childcare should be the sole responsibility of their individual parents. This is a uniquely American mindset, which is also evident in the fact that we don't have subsidized childcare or maternity leave like other developed countries. I struggle to imagine as many people making this argument in Germany (where I grew up).

That said, I disagree with the poster who argued that we should keep everything closed to maximize the chances that schools can open. That seems impractical. But schools should certainly not be the only thing that stays closed, AND we should be willing to take increased risks in order to operate them fully, i.e. drop social distancing requirements sooner than in the commercial context because they are not compatible with school operations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am completely against doing school in-person while this pandemic is rolling on and on and on. Adults can't behave responsibly. How can we expect children to? And MoCo schools are so overcrowded that even dividing the student population up, there will be so many kids in school and in classrooms.

For example, take a 5th grade class. With a class of 28 students, the kids will be physically close with each other. It doesn't magically create more room or more teachers if the 4th graders aren't there that day.

Until there is a vaccine or this virus is somehow under control, schools should not reopen. It's incredibly dangerous.

You do realize that this might mean no school for years, or maybe never at all. Are you okay with that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am completely against doing school in-person while this pandemic is rolling on and on and on. [/b]Adults can't behave responsibly. How can we expect children to?[b] And MoCo schools are so overcrowded that even dividing the student population up, there will be so many kids in school and in classrooms.

For example, take a 5th grade class. With a class of 28 students, the kids will be physically close with each other. It doesn't magically create more room or more teachers if the 4th graders aren't there that day.

Until there is a vaccine or this virus is somehow under control, schools should not reopen. It's incredibly dangerous.

This includes parent behavior. Pre-COVID, there have always been parents who send their sick children to school. They know they have a fever, but give them a fever reducer and send them to school. Once the medicine wears off, the fever spikes and you can easily see the child is sick. Send the child to the health room for a temperature check and low and behold, the child has a high fever. The typical story from the child is that they had a fever before school, but the parent said they couldn’t stay home, so parent gives them a fever reducer and sends them to school. Parents who have always done this will not change their behavior. It becomes more dangerous with COVID. If school resumes in person, temperature checks upon arrival won’t necessarily identify potentially sick children.

So many people are so ignorant that they believe this is acceptable behavior. When the nurse calls the parents they tell her to just continue dosing the child with Tylenol. Which we are not permitted to do! And which doesn’t prevent their child from spreading whatever illness they have to others. Just incredible stupidity and selfishness. This won’t fly during a pandemic.

Nurse cannot just keep giving Tylenol, they usually just give water let kid rest or they go home! Parent often cannot or refuse to pick up kids and also if kid won't go to nurse what you gonna do drage tehm out of the room! Are teachers gonna do check before kids enter classroom?

[Anonymous]

Make it a child endangerment charge to send you feverish child to school. You sent your kid and other students in the building were endangered. If we can open CPS cases on so called free-range kids playing at the neighborhood park two blocks from home, we can hold parents accountable for Tylenol and dump in the time of COVID.

Before you start making assumptions, my children weren’t free range. I just think it’s a BS reason to investigate parents over.

[Anonymous]

MCPS should focus on making the online learning experience stronger. They should put all the focus on that. Sending the kids back for two days a week is just not responsible while the pandemic is spreading. Once more is known about the virus or a vaccine is available, then go back to full time in the building school. Sending the students back and expecting them to wear masks and social distance is irresponsible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS should focus on making the online learning experience stronger. They should put all the focus on that. Sending the kids back for two days a week is just not responsible while the pandemic is spreading. Once more is known about the virus or a vaccine is available, then go back to full time in the building school. Sending the students back and expecting them to wear masks and social distance is irresponsible.

Yeah, but a lot of time was wasted trying to appease the Open ‘Er Up crowd. That’s weeks, if not months, that could have been spent training teachers on both tech and online pedagogy, centrally developing materials where needed, negotiating contracts with textbook and tech companies...

How do you do all that now without actually delaying the start of school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MCPS should focus on making the online learning experience stronger. They should put all the focus on that. Sending the kids back for two days a week is just not responsible while the pandemic is spreading. Once more is known about the virus or a vaccine is available, then go back to full time in the building school. Sending the students back and expecting them to wear masks and social distance is irresponsible.

Yeah, but a lot of time was wasted trying to appease the Open ‘Er Up crowd. That’s weeks, if not months, that could have been spent training teachers on both tech and online pedagogy, centrally developing materials where needed, negotiating contracts with textbook and tech companies...

How do you do all that now without actually delaying the start of school?

The "Open ‘Er Up crowd", as you so dismissively call those people, know that online learning, no matter how well-planned, does not work for most children, especially younger ones. Nor does it solve the childcare problem of the people who don't have time to homeschool those young kids, and don't have the funds to hire tutors and nannies. Yes, I know, you think school isn't childcare, but that is a position not based in the reality of even this society. So resources would be much better invested in figuring out how to get at least those younger kids back into school quickly. Especially since they appear not to contribute to the spread of this virus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS should focus on making the online learning experience stronger. They should put all the focus on that. Sending the kids back for two days a week is just not responsible while the pandemic is spreading. Once more is known about the virus or a vaccine is available, then go back to full time in the building school. Sending the students back and expecting them to wear masks and social distance is irresponsible.

I'm hopeful that educators will learn a lot about DL from this and it will get a lot better - hopefully to the point that it will work well for most and then every child can have access to a true quality education that isn't limited by affluence or zip code. That would be a huge win. Big problems often create amazing solutions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Each one of us contributes to making this a civilized discussion. Let’s take care not to put words into other people’s mouths or tell them they are everything wrong with America. We need to find solutions, not bicker.

You mean we shouldn't tell others that they are "crazy" and "ridiculous" for thinking that schools should be a higher priority than commercial businesses such as hair salons and bars?

Where do you think the tax revenues that support schools comes from? Not from closed businesses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make it a child endangerment charge to send you feverish child to school. You sent your kid and other students in the building were endangered. If we can open CPS cases on so called free-range kids playing at the neighborhood park two blocks from home, we can hold parents accountable for Tylenol and dump in the time of COVID.

Before you start making assumptions, my children weren’t free range. I just think it’s a BS reason to investigate parents over.

I’m totally on board with this as a teacher. Guarantee that there are no sick children coming to school and half of my worries disappear. But they would never.