Anonymous wrote:I'll just say that my HS kid is already telling me that kids their age are talking about how to use the form to get their schools to close down. So MCPS might want to find a better system to verify information quickly.

And I'll just say that I hate wild conspiracy theories and conjecture about what seems like it could be possible (if you're dumb teen or a sociopath).

Everyone could have all of their mail stolen every single day. I mean, in theory! If it's not locked up!

Everyone with a recently deceased parent could commit voter fraud!

Etc.

But it almost never happens, even though we can easily imagine how "easy" it would be.

Pray tell, how would this work, PP?

Walk me through it.

Tell me about how it's actually happened or could happen on a significant scale and it's not just being bandied about by random teens your teen has supposedly heard of discussing it, probably.

This system could work if they would make *just* a few changes:
1) mandatory staff testing, weekly, on site.
2) mandatory student testing before every return from break, on site.
3) mandatory vaccination + boosting for all eligible to attend in-person; otherwise you go to VA
4) cut asymptomatic quarantine to 5 days. Zero quarantine for exposed vaccinated individuals.
5) N95/KN95/KN94 only masks in schools.

https://mocoshow.com/blog/list-of-mcps-schools-sorted-by-green-yellow-and-red-categories-covid-cases/?fbclid=IwAR0HVVlEPWQ0bvEsMyLiokc8VNqYngLG9XRoLRmtkPhQIaw6OZWCr49yJYQ

Here’s the data by school….

Morons,

We don't have the tests.

We. Do. Not. Have the Tests. Right. Now. In a week, we might. But right now, people can't get quick tests and they can't get testing appointments. You are asking people to rely on a system that doesn't exist, and you're outraged because you think it will work.

So, schools open tomorrow, a bunch of people send their kids in, no one tests, infection spreads, in a week when there are more tests... There will be more kids to test. More hospitals full. And around us are states where it will be even worse.

This isn't a conspiracy to keep schools closed. Who thinks like that?

They have been telling us this wave would be coming in the winter and here we are with no tests, not enough treatment, not enough workers and nary a plan. Total failure on every level of government from fed to state to local to the school boards

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you look at the dashboard some of the schools going virtual have a similar number of cases to schools that are open.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/coronavirus/dashboard/index.aspx

This is a joke. We are relying on imperfect data (parent self-report). Parents who are unable to secure home tests or get tested aren't able to report + cases. Many parents purposely will not report to avoid school quarantine. What a mess.

This is why we need mandatory weekly testing.

+1 People have been asking for at the very least, opt-out, since August 2021!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is complete BS. Everyone will be red and in virtual until Spring. This is a way to be open and not be open at the same time. Congrats to everyone who pressed for virtual. This sucks big time. MCPS is a joke. Education has become a joke. Everyone knows that the green schools will be red in a matter of days.

Yep, the virtual crowd won. MCPS manufactured a system to backdoor into virtual.

I don't see it that way. If anything, it will discourage people from reporting so we will have lower estimates to keep schools open

I don't know what to think honestly. On the one hand, I am very angry and am tempted to view this as a backdoor way to close schools while they say they are keeping them open. On the other hand, I like to think MCPS has gotten the message that schools need to be open and will realize in a couple of weeks this system is flawed and figure a way to pivot out of it. Arbitrary metrics for closing make no sense as they do not take into account changing information and the fact that this variant is no worse for children than other variants.

This is where you are incorrect. There are more hospitalizations with omicron in pediatric populations. As a hospitalist, I do want things to be different, but that is what is happening on the ground.

Not true. You're experience "on the ground" does not reflect the data.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/28/health/omicron-kids-hospitalizations.html

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you look at the dashboard some of the schools going virtual have a similar number of cases to schools that are open.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/coronavirus/dashboard/index.aspx

This is a joke. We are relying on imperfect data (parent self-report). Parents who are unable to secure home tests or get tested aren't able to report + cases. Many parents purposely will not report to avoid school quarantine. What a mess.

This is why we need mandatory weekly testing.

What did MCPS do with the money it got from the Biden administration to be used to keep schools open and safe?

Got us through most of the first semester.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you look at the dashboard some of the schools going virtual have a similar number of cases to schools that are open.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/coronavirus/dashboard/index.aspx

This is a joke. We are relying on imperfect data (parent self-report). Parents who are unable to secure home tests or get tested aren't able to report + cases. Many parents purposely will not report to avoid school quarantine. What a mess.

This is why we need mandatory weekly testing.

What did MCPS do with the money it got from the Biden administration to be used to keep schools open and safe?

Good question. But Biden's denial of risk within schools is rage worthy

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you look at the dashboard some of the schools going virtual have a similar number of cases to schools that are open.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/coronavirus/dashboard/index.aspx

This is a joke. We are relying on imperfect data (parent self-report). Parents who are unable to secure home tests or get tested aren't able to report + cases. Many parents purposely will not report to avoid school quarantine. What a mess.

This is why we need mandatory weekly testing.

What did MCPS do with the money it got from the Biden administration to be used to keep schools open and safe?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you look at the dashboard some of the schools going virtual have a similar number of cases to schools that are open.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/coronavirus/dashboard/index.aspx

This is a joke. We are relying on imperfect data (parent self-report). Parents who are unable to secure home tests or get tested aren't able to report + cases. Many parents purposely will not report to avoid school quarantine. What a mess.

This is why we need mandatory weekly testing.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is complete BS. Everyone will be red and in virtual until Spring. This is a way to be open and not be open at the same time. Congrats to everyone who pressed for virtual. This sucks big time. MCPS is a joke. Education has become a joke. Everyone knows that the green schools will be red in a matter of days.

Yep, the virtual crowd won. MCPS manufactured a system to backdoor into virtual.

I don't see it that way. If anything, it will discourage people from reporting so we will have lower estimates to keep schools open

I don't know what to think honestly. On the one hand, I am very angry and am tempted to view this as a backdoor way to close schools while they say they are keeping them open. On the other hand, I like to think MCPS has gotten the message that schools need to be open and will realize in a couple of weeks this system is flawed and figure a way to pivot out of it. Arbitrary metrics for closing make no sense as they do not take into account changing information and the fact that this variant is no worse for children than other variants.

This is where you are incorrect. There are more hospitalizations with omicron in pediatric populations. As a hospitalist, I do want things to be different, but that is what is happening on the ground.

I'll just say that my HS kid is already telling me that kids their age are talking about how to use the form to get their schools to close down. So MCPS might want to find a better system to verify information quickly.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is complete BS. Everyone will be red and in virtual until Spring. This is a way to be open and not be open at the same time. Congrats to everyone who pressed for virtual. This sucks big time. MCPS is a joke. Education has become a joke. Everyone knows that the green schools will be red in a matter of days.

Yep, the virtual crowd won. MCPS manufactured a system to backdoor into virtual.

Anyone who wanted virtual has been in virtual all year. This is a public health issue. Maybe if those who wanted in person to remain would have thought about their behavior over the last few weeks we wouldn't be having the spread we are.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought they said there had to be a minimum of 10 cases? One only had 9 and was still sent to virtual

It's also discouraging to hear them announce the initial plan that says if a school hits the 5% metric, it would only be assessed for closure and not automatically trigger closure.

But I bet if we asked to see the receipts on all 11 of those assessments, MCPS would be left empty-handed. That was another lie from MCPS

I thought this was going to be based on verifiable results. They set up a system inviting fraudulent reporting.

Good point. Poorly planned and executed from multiple different perspectives

This is "worst in nation" stuff. They've set up a system whereby a small percentage of parents can keep a school held hostage on a day-by-day basis. How can anybody plan anything given these dynamics?

Are you suggesting that some parents will report COVID positive cases even if they are not true? Or report multiple fraudulent cases under various user accounts? In an attempt to switch that school to virtual?

I would hope they wouldn't do something so nefarious. I would also hope that MCPS would have the basic safeguards in place to prevent such a thing. I admittedly have not looked at the user form, but it feels like some user information should be captured to prevent duplicate entries?

I'm saying 5% is an awfully low bar to hit when you have no controls in place on reporting. At least health care-administered PCR tests are controlled. More than a few of those schools only need 1-2 cases to flip to red. Any parent in the school could just open up the form and say a Binax test popped.

5% os not a low bar to hit, particularly at the ES level. 5% w/ teachers and staff could mean multiple classes without a teacher. And given the lack of subs, what do you think those schools days would look like for kids and staff?