Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not a teacher but having teachers in the building without students is dumb as F.

It increases their risk of exposure from other teachers (shared bathrooms, who knows how HVAC works, etc). For freaking theater.

WTF muscle memory? When they can go back safely and teach to students in person, they won’t forget how to stand in front of a whiteboard

Unless they haven't left their house since the pandemic began, this is no more risky than their every day activities.

BS. Shared bathrooms alone make it way way higher. Have you ever used a school bathroom?

DP. I use the school bathroom virtually every time I’m at the school. School bathrooms are about the same as other public bathrooms. Have you not used a public bathroom since March?

Of course not. Many people aren’t. Have you not read all the travel forums about how to get to places with minimal or zero restroom stops. Going. Someplace within 30 min of my house why would I need to use their bathroom?

Anonymous wrote:How long will we let the teachers hold our students hostage?

Anonymous wrote:

Because of its high COL APS has 3 types of teachers:

1) young single teachers living in apartments
2) married teachers more embedded in community who have a breadwinner husband to afford to live here
3) older teachers who bought here in 80s and 90s and near retirement.

ALL of them are way more willing to quit than the LCPS teachers who often make up over half their households incomes

You are wrong. The majority of APS teachers do not live in Arlington. At my APS elementary school, 1-2 teachers per grade level live here, the rest live all over as far as Olney, Woodbridge, Ashburn, Leesburg.

Anonymous wrote:Why make them go back now when they are 1B for the vaccine and they could take the shot first and then come back more safely?

Anonymous wrote:

Because of its high COL APS has 3 types of teachers:

1) young single teachers living in apartments
2) married teachers more embedded in community who have a breadwinner husband to afford to live here
3) older teachers who bought here in 80s and 90s and near retirement.

ALL of them are way more willing to quit than the LCPS teachers who often make up over half their households incomes

You are wrong. The majority of APS teachers do not live in Arlington. At my APS elementary school, 1-2 teachers per grade level live here, the rest live all over as far as Olney, Woodbridge, Ashburn, Leesburg.

The teachers are dead set on not going back in-person this year in any way. Someone just posted to APE (which I’m a member of just to see their side, not because I fully support their positions) that she had a meeting with Libby Garvey today, who said the teachers are the biggest impediment to reopening schools. Apparently APS is concerned if they reopen, so many teachers will refuse to return that they’ll have a teacher shortage for hybrid. It sounds like this may be part of the reason for bringing the teachers back earlier, that APS can get a sense of how much of a problem this is in advance rather than face an effective mass walkout just ask students are arriving at the building.

Because of its high COL APS has 3 types of teachers:

1) young single teachers living in apartments
2) married teachers more embedded in community who have a breadwinner husband to afford to live here
3) older teachers who bought here in 80s and 90s and near retirement.

ALL of them are way more willing to quit than the LCPS teachers who often make up over half their households incomes

Anonymous wrote:Why make them go back now when they are 1B for the vaccine and they could take the shot first and then come back more safely?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not a teacher but having teachers in the building without students is dumb as F.

It increases their risk of exposure from other teachers (shared bathrooms, who knows how HVAC works, etc). For freaking theater.

WTF muscle memory? When they can go back safely and teach to students in person, they won’t forget how to stand in front of a whiteboard

Unless they haven't left their house since the pandemic began, this is no more risky than their every day activities.

BS. Shared bathrooms alone make it way way higher. Have you ever used a school bathroom?

DP. I use the school bathroom virtually every time I’m at the school. School bathrooms are about the same as other public bathrooms. Have you not used a public bathroom since March?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The teachers are dead set on not going back in-person this year in any way. Someone just posted to APE (which I’m a member of just to see their side, not because I fully support their positions) that she had a meeting with Libby Garvey today, who said the teachers are the biggest impediment to reopening schools. Apparently APS is concerned if they reopen, so many teachers will refuse to return that they’ll have a teacher shortage for hybrid. It sounds like this may be part of the reason for bringing the teachers back earlier, that APS can get a sense of how much of a problem this is in advance rather than face an effective mass walkout just ask students are arriving at the building.

I'm sure its this. APS thinks its teachers are going to quit en masse. Some people suggest that is not true given that FCPS, FCCPS, PWS, LCS, have not seen this mass resignations. This is the clearest way to find out if it is true or not.
It's also to give them time to get ready, e.g. actually get childcare if needed, actually move back to commuting distance if needed.

Don’t blame them one bit. If I were forced back at the peak of this pandemic to sit in rooms with 6-10 kids I’d strongly consider quitting. This is a big labor problem for Arlington. If you force these teachers back when conditions are like this, you will NOT HAVE ENOUGH TEACHERS. They are going to have to stay distance to keep enough teachers OR start granting permission for theme to stay home and hire aides to be in classroom while teachers teach from home. Aides are less skilled labor so APS has a better chance of finding enough.

Fortunately nurses didn’t take this approach, even though they’re at much greater risk than teachers would be.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The teachers are dead set on not going back in-person this year in any way. Someone just posted to APE (which I’m a member of just to see their side, not because I fully support their positions) that she had a meeting with Libby Garvey today, who said the teachers are the biggest impediment to reopening schools. Apparently APS is concerned if they reopen, so many teachers will refuse to return that they’ll have a teacher shortage for hybrid. It sounds like this may be part of the reason for bringing the teachers back earlier, that APS can get a sense of how much of a problem this is in advance rather than face an effective mass walkout just ask students are arriving at the building.

I'm sure its this. APS thinks its teachers are going to quit en masse. Some people suggest that is not true given that FCPS, FCCPS, PWS, LCS, have not seen this mass resignations. This is the clearest way to find out if it is true or not.
It's also to give them time to get ready, e.g. actually get childcare if needed, actually move back to commuting distance if needed.

Don’t blame them one bit. If I were forced back at the peak of this pandemic to sit in rooms with 6-10 kids I’d strongly consider quitting. This is a big labor problem for Arlington. If you force these teachers back when conditions are like this, you will NOT HAVE ENOUGH TEACHERS. They are going to have to stay distance to keep enough teachers OR start granting permission for theme to stay home and hire aides to be in classroom while teachers teach from home. Aides are less skilled labor so APS has a better chance of finding enough.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The teachers are dead set on not going back in-person this year in any way. Someone just posted to APE (which I’m a member of just to see their side, not because I fully support their positions) that she had a meeting with Libby Garvey today, who said the teachers are the biggest impediment to reopening schools. Apparently APS is concerned if they reopen, so many teachers will refuse to return that they’ll have a teacher shortage for hybrid. It sounds like this may be part of the reason for bringing the teachers back earlier, that APS can get a sense of how much of a problem this is in advance rather than face an effective mass walkout just ask students are arriving at the building.

I'm sure its this. APS thinks its teachers are going to quit en masse. Some people suggest that is not true given that FCPS, FCCPS, PWS, LCS, have not seen this mass resignations. This is the clearest way to find out if it is true or not.
It's also to give them time to get ready, e.g. actually get childcare if needed, actually move back to commuting distance if needed.

Don’t blame them one bit. If I were forced back at the peak of this pandemic to sit in rooms with 6-10 kids I’d strongly consider quitting. This is a big labor problem for Arlington. If you force these teachers back when conditions are like this, you will NOT HAVE ENOUGH TEACHERS. They are going to have to stay distance to keep enough teachers OR start granting permission for theme to stay home and hire aides to be in classroom while teachers teach from home. Aides are less skilled labor so APS has a better chance of finding enough.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not a teacher but having teachers in the building without students is dumb as F.

It increases their risk of exposure from other teachers (shared bathrooms, who knows how HVAC works, etc). For freaking theater.

WTF muscle memory? When they can go back safely and teach to students in person, they won’t forget how to stand in front of a whiteboard

Unless they haven't left their house since the pandemic began, this is no more risky than their every day activities.

BS. Shared bathrooms alone make it way way higher. Have you ever used a school bathroom?

DP. I use the school bathroom virtually every time I’m at the school. School bathrooms are about the same as other public bathrooms. Have you not used a public bathroom since March?