So, they are gonna send the kiddies back to school in the fall

[boston bean]

Then these little kiddies will go home to their parents. Their parents will go to work, see grandma, go to the stores.

And then what? We gonna have a bunch of orphans.

I think it is unrealistic to reopen schools until we have the vaccine and all school age children mandated to receive it if it is safe for them.

[themaguffin]

1. "Fall" for my kid's district is the first week of August.

[Laelth]

23. Precisely.

There’s very little time to make this decision. There’s very little time to prepare to implement whatever decision is made. I do not envy the people tasked with figuring out what to do under the present circumstances.

-Laelth

[JCMach1]

2. My son will do the online option

[SoonerPride]

3. You will also see a lot of dead teachers.

But fuck them, right?

They should be happy to make about $10 an hour taking care of and teaching 25 to 30 screaming kids for 8 hours a day.

And if they get a deadly virus, well, that's the price of freedom!









Insanity.

[Tipperary]

10. Teachers make $10 an hour?

[SoonerPride]

12. When my husband was an elementary school teacher

That's about what his salary ended up being including all the hours he worked nights and weekends and taking out what he spent on snacks and supplies for the class and his kids.

Yeah, it was about $10 an hour.

He quit teaching 3 years ago.

[ProfessorGAC]

19. Wow! That's Low!

Since I retired, I sub 7-12, science & math.
Depending on district I make $14 to $20 per hour, and I'm just a sub.
Different states, I suppose.

[SoonerPride]

21. At the time Oklahoma was 50th in the nation in teacher pay

It was so bad many teachers moved to Texas to get a $15,000 or more raise.

To our credit the voters passed a bill to increase teacher's pay by $5000 a year by taxing oil royalties. So it is somewhat better now. But still not great.

Oklahoma is not exactly the most progressive place.

[ProfessorGAC]

24. Sure Sounds That Way

There's a tiny school district south of me. First year out of college pays $36,000 & class sizes are 12 to 18.
Even on a 2,080 hour year that $17.50/hour.
For someone 21 years old. Not great, but way better than what you describe.
At bigger districts, high experience folks with a masters are $75,000 & up.
Much(!) different here.

[frazzled]

20. I don't think so

In my school district starting salary is $56,665; starting with a master's degree is $60,590; highest possible salary is $108,242 (this is pay plus pension contributions).

That's high compared to other large cities, but I think that $10/hr is unlikely for most all places.

The midcareer salary for CPS teachers with 10 years of experience and a master’s degree is $82,630, considerably higher than in suburban unit districts such as Aurora-based Indian Prairie, which pays $67,329, and Plainfield District 202, which pays $55,833. Adjusted for cost of living, CPS teachers in this category earn roughly $10,000 more than teachers in New York, almost $20,000 more than teachers in Los Angeles and around $30,000 more than teachers in Miami, according to the National Council on Teacher Quality data.
The earning advantage in Chicago diminishes as the district’s teachers age. The maximum CPS teacher salary of $101,161, which doesn’t include pension contributions, is eclipsed in places like Elmwood Park ($154,353) and at Oak Lawn Community High School ($150,606). Still, CPS tops the charts among large urban districts, slightly edging out New York and Los Angeles when cost of living is factored in.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-cps-strike-teacher-pay-comparison-20191011-pixhzru5angsfamk7altrysxr4-story.html

[Dustlawyer]

15. I have kids who are teachers. They think the schools should be planning for online

classes because there is a lot to do to do it right and make sure all students have access. There is no way kid should return in the Fall in Texas. This is insanity!

I lay this all at the feet of our campaign finance system which gives big donors control over our politicians and the media which has politicized our pandemic response. When we win this Fall we need to address these two root causes of most of our problems. We will never get the change we need or deprogrammed the ignorant fools stuck in RW media until we do!

[Iwasthere]

4. Its apparent ability to mutate makes a vaccine near useless

A treatment, far more effective solution, for the next few years anyway.

[PSPS]

7. Actually, all the mutations seen so far do not preclude an effective vaccine

[Phoenix61]

14. There's no indication that statement is true.

Lots of viruses mutate but the vaccine still works.

[leftieNanner]

5. Went for a walk with a friend who used to run a day care center

She told me that several of "her" moms were going to band together and do a collective home school with a limited number of children. They will set group guidelines about exposure and behaviors to keep all of the families safe.

Interesting solution.

Along with every other government funded situation, our school districts are going to be in bad shape.

[Claustrum]

6. I think it's a complex and difficult decision

Without school or day care, a lot of the low-income family (both parents that needs to go to work to provide for the family) would not have the child care option. They are also likely the jobs that are not "work from home" ready as well.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

27. It's not complex: Stay home or spread the disease

Schools are incubators for all kinds of infectious diseases even during normal times. Opening schools now will just ensure that covid-19 is spread more efficiently throughout communities -- the case load, ICU load, and deaths will skyrocket.

Using schools as daycare centers so "the low-income family" can go back to work will simply complete the cobweb of disease transmission paths within a community.

[Claustrum]

29. I am not saying we should open school like before COVID

just like we shouldn't open the economy like before COVID. But we should come up with an alternative that we can have some help to the lower-income family as well, rather than simply shut it all down and shift the responsibilities to the parents. Our choices shouldn't be just open everything fully or shutting everything fully.

Instead of requiring everyone to go to school, maybe we can have a smaller size (6-10 child) outdoor classroom for these lower-income family that's hosted at schools. That could help them out with meals for the kids during the daytime. Also, having wifi and computer for these students. Giving them a qualified teacher to guide them through the online learning and making sure they are on track with their learning.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

30. Schools are not tools to relieve economic stress induced by GOP policies.

[SheltieLover]

8. Ridiculous!

🤬

[Laelth]

9. This is a tough one.

I can’t see a clear, best-scenario answer.



I do not envy the people who have to make this decision.

-Laelth

[sarisataka]

11. The American Academy of Pediatrics thinks they should

Academic, mental and physical benefits of in-person school outweigh virus risks, pediatrics group says

(CNN)As states grapple with how to safely start the upcoming school year, the American Academy of Pediatrics is pushing for students to be physically present in classrooms rather than continue in remote learning for the sake of their well-being.

The group, which represents and guides pediatricians across the country, updated its back-to-school recommendations to say evidence shows the academic, mental and physical benefits of in-person learning outweigh the risks from the coronavirus.

"The AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school," the group said on its website.

"The importance of in-person learning is well-documented, and there is already evidence of the negative impacts on children because of school closures in the spring of 2020. Lengthy time away from school and associated interruption of supportive services often results in social isolation, making it difficult for schools to identify and address important learning deficits as well as child and adolescent physical or sexual abuse, substance use, depression, and suicidal ideation."

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/30/us/aap-kids-physically-in-school-wellness-trnd/index.html

[boston bean]

18. Won't be good for the kids if they lose a parent.

[sarisataka]

32. I have a daughter in HS

And a son in middle/ elementary school. We will not find out for sure until July 27th what the state will decide for the school year.

The staff at both would prefer at least a hybrid plan so the kids are in school part of the time. The 100% at home experience showed the top students could keep up, average students slipped in performance and those who normally struggled plummeting. The schools want to have plans in place as to how they can best serve the students while keeping everyone safe.

My wife works in administration at the school our son attends. She often has to deal with the children parents sent to school even though they are sick. She is in an at risk category so would probably about wear a hazmat suit.

[Ms. Toad]

13. It depends.

Different places are handling it differently.

[Hamer555]

16. I work at a university in the midwest...

So, we are planning on opening like normal. classes are supposed to be able to be regular or remote. They have installed a lot of plexiglass shields. They have reduced the ratio of students in housing to bathrooms available. There are hand sanitizer stations everywhere. And masks will be required when social distancing isn't possible.

I just have a really bad feeling. A lot of kids coming from out of town and out of state. Athletic teams traveling. College students being college students. Many faculty of older age, thus higher risk. etc.

I am hoping for the best. Our county has not been hit hard. I just hope it doesn't take off now that we are starting to reopen things, and then start schools back up.

Not a lot of announcements for K-12 in my area yet. I am assuming they will be back to normal when they start up.

[Phoenix61]

17. I've worked with kids that spent an hour

on a packed bus to get to school. Even if no children got sick if they get it then spread it to everyone at home how is that helpful? What a bunch of maroons.

[mokawanis]

22. Two days a week at school, three days at home online

That's what the schools my grandchildren go to are thinking of doing. Makes me very nervous, though I admit I don't have any good alternatives.

[ProfessorGAC]

28. Here's What I Hear

I work in 9 districts as a sub.
The last thing I heard that was a strong "maybe" (if there is such a thing) was:
A third of the kids M&W
A third on T&Th.
A third on F.
The M/W kids move to T/Th, the T/T kids move to Friday, and Friday kids move to M/W in the next week.
And so on.
Then the kids are there 5 days every 3 weeks, with the other 10 days on line.
But, the state board of ed then announced a recommendation that they go full blown open.
So, it's not settled.
Our positivity rate was only 2.7% yesterday, (CDC says anything under 12 is acceptable & under 5 is excellent), but this is with school out since March 13.
Very much up in the air.

[marie999]

25. I see posts that the kids will infect their parents and grandparents.

Kids are dying from Covid-19 too. Maybe not as many as adults, but what are the long term prognoses for their lungs and other organs? I will home school my great-grandson we are raising.

[haele]

26. The grandkid's school is thinking of splitting classes up alternate days.

Zoom school projected to the classroom PC for the kids who have the alternative work at home day, That way the kids are in school on a 3/2 biweekly schedule and social distancing can still be maintained. No contact sports or choir practice. Lunch is staggered.

Of course, they're a Montessori School (K-6) and can manage their class sizes better and still somehow get the extra classroom helpers to help the teacher manage two classes going on at the same time.
And all the kids have laptops and internet.

We're still a bit nervous about this; I've got shipyard lung damage and spouse has a compromised immune system.

Haele

[TheFarseer]

31. Waiting 4 years for a vaccine is insanity

We’re going to have several years of uneducated children. They do not learn online nearly as well. The largest district in my city is going to do half go to school 2.5 days and the rest go the other 2.5 days. I can tell you right now at the first case, they are going to panic and go to all online. Do I have the answer? No. We had 5 months to stop Covid and we totally wasted that time.