Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think a big part of the complaints is that teaching attracts a certain personality type--someone who loves human interaction and thrives on relationships but is comfortable doing essentially the same thing for their entire career. Teachers inherently aren't risk takers and haven't sought out a career where they are expected to make big leaps in their skills, but more of a slow evolution as they acquire new methods via continuing learning.

Those of us in corporate America are routinely told to adapt or make way for the next generation. We're expected to take on new positions and learn on the job. We have significant career risk, not job security with a union and a pension. Those in many essential fields, e.g., healthcare or law enforcement, proactively sought out fast paced fields where they would have to adapt on the fly and take on risk.

The best example I have is that our corporation rolled out Microsoft Teams the day we shut down--Friday, March 13--with zero advanced warning. By Monday, every single person was using Teams with very few snags. It was seamless. By contrast, APS also rolled out Microsoft Teams in March. In mid-April I was still getting messages from teachers about needing training courses and how hard it is to use. They still had issues signing on and finding the mute button. My first grader was giving her teacher instruction on how to share her screen well into May. (No comment on teaching--purely her ability to use basic software.)

Teacher's complaints are largely that they are unreasonably being asked to do something they haven't been trained to do and to take on risk that they fundamentally aren't used to taking. Those of us in other fields find it ridiculous as we are asked to do these types of things every day, including during this pandemic.

How do you explain the concerns of career changers like myself, my DH, and many of my teacher friends. My DH was a Marine!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is forcing teachers to go back to work. They are at will employees just like everyone else.

So you are too scared to come back? Don't go back. Of course that means you don't get paid. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

I don't know why people keep assuming that when teachers say they won't return that they assume it's a paid leave. They are talking about quitting.

No they are not talking about quitting. They are talking about pushing the district into DL for years until they feel comfortable.

They aren’t just talking. They are starting to quit.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is forcing teachers to go back to work. They are at will employees just like everyone else.

So you are too scared to come back? Don't go back. Of course that means you don't get paid. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

Really, public-school teachers in Maryland are at-will employees?

Do you think that if a teacher refuses to go back someone is going to go to their house and drag them to school anyway?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is forcing teachers to go back to work. They are at will employees just like everyone else.

So you are too scared to come back? Don't go back. Of course that means you don't get paid. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

I don't know why people keep assuming that when teachers say they won't return that they assume it's a paid leave. They are talking about quitting.

No they are not talking about quitting. They are talking about pushing the district into DL for years until they feel comfortable.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is forcing teachers to go back to work. They are at will employees just like everyone else.

So you are too scared to come back? Don't go back. Of course that means you don't get paid. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

Really, public-school teachers in Maryland are at-will employees?

Anonymous wrote:I think a big part of the complaints is that teaching attracts a certain personality type--someone who loves human interaction and thrives on relationships but is comfortable doing essentially the same thing for their entire career. Teachers inherently aren't risk takers and haven't sought out a career where they are expected to make big leaps in their skills, but more of a slow evolution as they acquire new methods via continuing learning.

Those of us in corporate America are routinely told to adapt or make way for the next generation. We're expected to take on new positions and learn on the job. We have significant career risk, not job security with a union and a pension. Those in many essential fields, e.g., healthcare or law enforcement, proactively sought out fast paced fields where they would have to adapt on the fly and take on risk.

The best example I have is that our corporation rolled out Microsoft Teams the day we shut down--Friday, March 13--with zero advanced warning. By Monday, every single person was using Teams with very few snags. It was seamless. By contrast, APS also rolled out Microsoft Teams in March. In mid-April I was still getting messages from teachers about needing training courses and how hard it is to use. They still had issues signing on and finding the mute button. My first grader was giving her teacher instruction on how to share her screen well into May. (No comment on teaching--purely her ability to use basic software.)

Teacher's complaints are largely that they are unreasonably being asked to do something they haven't been trained to do and to take on risk that they fundamentally aren't used to taking. Those of us in other fields find it ridiculous as we are asked to do these types of things every day, including during this pandemic.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m sick and tired of parents saying that schools should be the only institutions to open up at full capacity without any infection control protocols in place. Parents aren’t special. If you can’t care for your children, then you should surrender them.
See how that works both ways?

Nobody said anything about them doing back without any infection control protocols. The discourse I am hearing as that pretty much nothing will be acceptable to teachers no matter what the protocols are. They want 100% DL or nothing.

There have been numerous articles showing data that kids not only don't spread it to each other but don't spread it to adults.

Districts are all putting loopholes in the language about precautions so they can shrug innocently when the first day of school rolls around and there’s almost nothing in place. I expect to receive a “cute” cloth masks with a cheesy teaching theme print, a single large bottle of sanitizer, and class rosters of 30-35 students, plus my advisory and home room above 35 students.

If only there were something you could do, using materials you already have anyway, if you considered the employer-provided masks to be inadequate.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is forcing teachers to go back to work. They are at will employees just like everyone else.

So you are too scared to come back? Don't go back. Of course that means you don't get paid. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

I don't know why people keep assuming that when teachers say they won't return that they assume it's a paid leave. They are talking about quitting.

Anonymous wrote:I think a big part of the complaints is that teaching attracts a certain personality type--someone who loves human interaction and thrives on relationships but is comfortable doing essentially the same thing for their entire career. Teachers inherently aren't risk takers and haven't sought out a career where they are expected to make big leaps in their skills, but more of a slow evolution as they acquire new methods via continuing learning.

Those of us in corporate America are routinely told to adapt or make way for the next generation. We're expected to take on new positions and learn on the job. We have significant career risk, not job security with a union and a pension. Those in many essential fields, e.g., healthcare or law enforcement, proactively sought out fast paced fields where they would have to adapt on the fly and take on risk.

The best example I have is that our corporation rolled out Microsoft Teams the day we shut down--Friday, March 13--with zero advanced warning. By Monday, every single person was using Teams with very few snags. It was seamless. By contrast, APS also rolled out Microsoft Teams in March. In mid-April I was still getting messages from teachers about needing training courses and how hard it is to use. They still had issues signing on and finding the mute button. My first grader was giving her teacher instruction on how to share her screen well into May. (No comment on teaching--purely her ability to use basic software.)

Teacher's complaints are largely that they are unreasonably being asked to do something they haven't been trained to do and to take on risk that they fundamentally aren't used to taking. Those of us in other fields find it ridiculous as we are asked to do these types of things every day, including during this pandemic.

Anonymous wrote:I think a big part of the complaints is that teaching attracts a certain personality type--someone who loves human interaction and thrives on relationships but is comfortable doing essentially the same thing for their entire career. Teachers inherently aren't risk takers and haven't sought out a career where they are expected to make big leaps in their skills, but more of a slow evolution as they acquire new methods via continuing learning.

Those of us in corporate America are routinely told to adapt or make way for the next generation. We're expected to take on new positions and learn on the job. We have significant career risk, not job security with a union and a pension. Those in many essential fields, e.g., healthcare or law enforcement, proactively sought out fast paced fields where they would have to adapt on the fly and take on risk.

The best example I have is that our corporation rolled out Microsoft Teams the day we shut down--Friday, March 13--with zero advanced warning. By Monday, every single person was using Teams with very few snags. It was seamless. By contrast, APS also rolled out Microsoft Teams in March. In mid-April I was still getting messages from teachers about needing training courses and how hard it is to use. They still had issues signing on and finding the mute button. My first grader was giving her teacher instruction on how to share her screen well into May. (No comment on teaching--purely her ability to use basic software.)

Teacher's complaints are largely that they are unreasonably being asked to do something they haven't been trained to do and to take on risk that they fundamentally aren't used to taking. Those of us in other fields find it ridiculous as we are asked to do these types of things every day, including during this pandemic.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is forcing teachers to go back to work. They are at will employees just like everyone else.

So you are too scared to come back? Don't go back. Of course that means you don't get paid. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

I don't know why people keep assuming that when teachers say they won't return that they assume it's a paid leave. They are talking about quitting.

Anonymous wrote:I think a big part of the complaints is that teaching attracts a certain personality type--someone who loves human interaction and thrives on relationships but is comfortable doing essentially the same thing for their entire career. Teachers inherently aren't risk takers and haven't sought out a career where they are expected to make big leaps in their skills, but more of a slow evolution as they acquire new methods via continuing learning.

Those of us in corporate America are routinely told to adapt or make way for the next generation. We're expected to take on new positions and learn on the job. We have significant career risk, not job security with a union and a pension. Those in many essential fields, e.g., healthcare or law enforcement, proactively sought out fast paced fields where they would have to adapt on the fly and take on risk.

The best example I have is that our corporation rolled out Microsoft Teams the day we shut down--Friday, March 13--with zero advanced warning. By Monday, every single person was using Teams with very few snags. It was seamless. By contrast, APS also rolled out Microsoft Teams in March. In mid-April I was still getting messages from teachers about needing training courses and how hard it is to use. They still had issues signing on and finding the mute button. My first grader was giving her teacher instruction on how to share her screen well into May. (No comment on teaching--purely her ability to use basic software.)

Teacher's complaints are largely that they are unreasonably being asked to do something they haven't been trained to do and to take on risk that they fundamentally aren't used to taking. Those of us in other fields find it ridiculous as we are asked to do these types of things every day, including during this pandemic.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What if teachers don’t already own washable cloth masks? I don’t. I have a couple boxes of N95 that we share as a family of four. We reuse the masks until they get gross, but the truth is that we sheltered in place largely. Those masks would go much faster with daily use.

Oh good grief. I am sure that you will be able to figure something out. Wear the masks provided by the school. Buy your family some cloth masks, which you will need anyway. Reuse your gross N95 masks. I don't care. Just don't insist that schools must stay closed because masks are an insuperable obstacle.

+1. Is the PP going to SIP forever? Once she and her family start going out into the world again, which they'll eventually have to (unless they would rather keep paying others to take the risk of visiting a grocery store for them), they'll need masks like they need clothing.