AISD's (and other districts) Plans for Schools Starting August 18

[atomheartbevo 89629]

28 minutes ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

We switched to a system called Canvas.  Without getting into too many boring details, we essentially just added an additional layer of technology to a system which was already confusing to many parents.  It's unnecessary and probably cost a ton of $.

AISD is using Canvas.

[Larry T. Spider 1746]

Canvas is not user friendly for young kids but it counts clicks for proof kids are doing shit. Welcome to 2020.

[Hagbard Celine 10852]

1 hour ago, atomheartbevo said:

Crazy thing is, this was their huge moment to shine in the spotlight.  And they fumbled the ball on the 5 yard line, and the other team is busy running it back for a game-winning touchdown.

Please rate their ineptitude:

1: flatland

3: we always said it was a 5 year plan

5: basic dunning-kruger

7: chinese state party engineers

10: chernobyl bureaucrats

[Hagbard Celine 10852]

2 hours ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

We switched to a system called Canvas.  Without getting into too many boring details, we essentially just added an additional layer of technology to a system which was already confusing to many parents.  It's unnecessary and probably cost a ton of $.

Instructure, the makers of Canvas, list 7 products for K-12.  Which ones did you deploy?  Why is it useless?

https://www.instructure.com/canvas/

 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

15 minutes ago, Hagbard Celine said:

Instructure, the makers of Canvas, list 7 products for K-12.  Which ones did you deploy?  Why is it useless?

https://www.instructure.com/canvas/

Probably Blend.  That seems to be what a lot are going with.

[atomheartbevo 89629]

26 minutes ago, Hagbard Celine said:

Please rate their ineptitude:

1: flatland

3: we always said it was a 5 year plan

5: basic dunning-kruger

7: chinese state party engineers

10: chernobyl bureaucrats

7.5.  Really close to Communist Party officials.

[BrazilHorn 6586]

1 minute ago, atomheartbevo said:

Probably Blend.  That seems to be what a lot are going with.

It is Blend and it blows.

[CooterBrown 18004]

After seeing my kids use Blend and Canvas along with administrators using Constella, Living Tree, etc to communicate with parents, there’s a lot of money to be made developing actually usable platforms for education. It’s amazing how poorly designed and executed all these products are.

[atomheartbevo 89629]

22 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

After seeing my kids use Blend and Canvas along with administrators using Constella, Living Tree, etc to communicate with parents, there’s a lot of money to be made developing actually usable platforms for education. It’s amazing how poorly designed and executed all these products are.

What's amazing to me, is that larger companies had platforms/infrastructure, and the technical know-how where they could have built this infrastructure years ago.   IBM, Apple, Oracle, etc.  Shit, Apple would have given the software away for free as part of the hardware sales.

I helped my kid use Blend this spring, and I get the Living Tree, Smores, etc. notices almost every day.  15-20 years ago, I was using Lotus Notes to basically do everything all of these apps/platforms were doing, all in one package/platform, and it was cross-platform.  There were a few things we would have needed to add to get the last pieces in place (mainly a lot of multimedia work), but that was more than doable over that time span, and we had the resources.  User management/permissions were there, easy enough to put together databases to track progress, etc.

Pro-tip, Blend is much better through the app with a decent iPad.  Doing it through the web interface sucked.

Edited August 5, 2020 by atomheartbevo

[Knoxtnhorn 5971]

I'm assuming it's Blend.  Skip to the bottom for the tl;dr answer.

As it applies to my grade level and me, it's just an unnecessary layer of presentation.  We were introduced to SeeSaw as an added tool last January.  I took the initiative to add it to my repertoire to use as I was completing my DRA assessments.  FYI, DRA assessments are extremely time-consuming tools use to gauge reading levels.  They're completed one-on-one and can take up to an hour per student.   Anyway, I created individual lessons using SeeSaw to give my students a more interactive lesson than just having them read a book or complete stations for several days.  

When we left for Covid, SeeSaw was what our district used for K-2.  (3-12 used Google Classroom.)  My students were able to jump right on without having to explain or teach the system to the parents and guardians. We did EXTREMELY well compared to what I saw throughout the district.  I had about 95% completion rate for assignments.  I believe the district was closer to 50%.  

Apparently, we are still using SeeSaw to present content; however, the lessons, assessments, and grades have to go through Canvas.  Essentially, my students will log onto Canvas and immediately click a link to SeeSaw where they'll complete assignments.   I'm good with tech and can navigate most of the system; however, many, many teachers are confused.  Additionally, I'm assuming parents will need to be able to navigate Canvas at a basic level for things like grades.  Last year, everything was right there on the SeeSaw front page.

tl;dr - We're still using SeeSaw for presentation, but teachers and parents will have to be able to filter everything through Canvas.

Note: Sorry for the convoluted answer / terrible grammar.  I'm doing three things at once right now.

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

Same high school:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaafb/north-paulding-footballers-positive-for-covid-19-as-school-starts/ar-BB17wl52

Quote

The day before Paulding County went back to school in person, the principal of one of its high schools emailed parents to let them know that some football players had already been infected with the coronavirus.

Quote

"I want you to know that while preparing for the upcoming season, our football team has learned of both new positive tests and potential symptoms within the program," wrote North Paulding High School principal Gabe Carmona in an email sent on Sunday.

The email went on to ask parents to monitor their children for symptoms because the football players may have been in contact with them.

The email, as reported by WSB-TV, did not give specifics on how many were infected.

Paulding County was one of the first Atlanta-area school systems to start classes this year, with three days a week of face-to-face learning and two days a week of digital learning.

 

[Hagbard Celine 10852]

1 hour ago, CooterBrown said:

After seeing my kids use Blend and Canvas along with administrators using Constella, Living Tree, etc to communicate with parents, there’s a lot of money to be made developing actually usable platforms for education. It’s amazing how poorly designed and executed all these products are.

it's not the design, it's the delivery.

[Captainant 27638]

Friendly note for the thread: children are not completely immune from COVID, and this isn't going to just get better on its own in three months

[South Austin 52456]

10 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

Really hard to say judging from a picture, but I don’t think those kids are six feet apart.

[Guest Lobo]

Yeah, that school isn't even so much a Covid-19 risk, but rather a massive fucking fire code violation.  I'm not saying I like the code enforcement team in Austin, but what the fuck Georgia?  I'm assuming that's a passing period since people are going in multiple directions and you couldn't pack more kids in that hallway if you made a contest out of it.  That's insane even not during a pandemic.  

Sad thing is that poor kid in the grey t-shirt and navy blue mask...his dad is gonna find his mask in his backpack like it was a bag of weed and confront his son, "Where did you get this?  Who taught you how to do this stuff?"  Kid probably has to hide it at home and put it on in the school bathroom after his parents are long gone from the parking lot.  So proud of some of our states and schools to have weaponized children for political purposes.  What a wonderful chapter for our country.  

[CooterBrown 18004]

8 minutes ago, Lobo said:

So proud of some of our states and schools to have weaponized children for political purposes.  What a wonderful chapter for our country.  

It's impossible to teach kids how to exercise their freedom without some of them being collateral damage.

/derp

 

[Doc Reeves 6434]

39 minutes ago, Captainant said:

Friendly note for the thread: children are not completely immune from COVID, and this isn't going to just get better on its own in three months

This right here. 
 

I have a client who is a dr. at the Methodist here in SA, deals which this shit daily and who happens to be a pretty red Republican. He is absolutely adamant that this affects kids and from what they are seeing now looks to have long term effects. 

There was some idiot Facebook shit going back and forth and he chimes in (which he never, ever does) and said basically ‘look guys, I deal with this shit daily, if anyone in your family can avoid getting this they absolutely should.‘

[atomheartbevo 89629]

3 hours ago, Captainant said:

Friendly note for the thread: children are not completely immune from COVID, and this isn't going to just get better on its own in three months

https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/05/us/second-grader-coronavirus-first-day-of-school/index.html

Quote

A Georgia second grader tested positive for Covid-19 after attending the first day of school, the school district told CNN.

Sixes Elementary in the Cherokee County School district began in-person classes on Monday. But by Tuesday, a classroom was temporarily closed for deep cleaning and the teacher and 20 other students had been asked to quarantine for two weeks after the second grader tested positive.

Quote

Cherokee County recommends, but does not require, that children wear masks in school whenever social distancing is not possible, according to the school district's reopening plan. The district would only require students to wear masks if there was a statewide mandate in place. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has fought mayors' attempts to mandate mask use.

O/U on how long these schools remain open?

Meanwhile, friend of my wife's that is an assistant principal, has spent hours and hours walking hallways, taking all kinds of measurements, etc. so that they have routes planned for getting the kids in and out of school, to the bathroom, to recess, etc. without having them bunch up.

[atomheartbevo 89629]

https://www.kvue.com/article/news/education/schools/thrall-isd-reopens-school-buildings-august-10-one-of-first-central-texas-school-districts/269-78065b94-54cd-4af3-96c0-db74177c33ef

Quote

 In less than a week, Thrall ISD, a Central Texas school district in Williamson County, will reopen classrooms, one of the first in this area. Thrall ISD teachers are getting everything ready for students to return on Monday, Aug. 10. 

Thrall Middle School history teacher Matthew Pokorny said he's excited to see his students and trusts Thrall ISD's safety precautions. 

Quote

The school district has 750 students and three campuses – an elementary school, middle and high school. Thrall ISD Superintendent Tommy Hooker said 75% of students are coming back on campus and 25% will learn from home virtually. 

"Students attend one day in person and the next day they actually stay at home," said Hooker. "We can do our other activities. We continue to still do the playground with elementary, with caution, with social distance, with mask on. We still plan to do things like physical education, where we have very seasoned instructors to handle that."

Quote

 

 

 

I'm actually glad a Central Texas school district is opening up face-to-face on Monday.  It's going to give everybody a glimpse, even if it's on a small scale.

[4th&Five 41519]

 

[Bartles 769]

Paulding HS will be the Miami Marlins of education...lessons in what not to do

[Knoxtnhorn 5971]

@atomheartbevo

 

Yep.  Cherokee County GA is where my friend's kids go.  The story you linked is her school.

[BrazilHorn 6586]

AISD saying in person will mirror virtual in that kids sit down in class, open laptop, put in headphones and take the courses they would have taken at home. 
 

Effectively babysitting and wifi, not true in person teaching. 
 

If you don’t need to send your kid to school. Don’t. 

[ZB'Tejas 593]

AISD saying in person will mirror virtual in that kids sit down in class, open laptop, put in headphones and take the courses they would have taken at home. 
 
Effectively babysitting and wifi, not true in person teaching. 
 
If you don’t need to send your kid to school. Don’t. 

At what age is this realistic? I can’t see K kids actually doing this.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BrazilHorn 6586]

1 minute ago, ZB'Tejas said:

At what age is this realistic? I can’t see K kids actually doing this.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Middle/High. Principal’s are starting to send notes out. 
Casis said the active teacher led virtual is 90min/day. 
Middle school being told 4hrs/day. Not sure re high school. 
Just mess. 

[Red Six 131]

AISD saying in person will mirror virtual in that kids sit down in class, open laptop, put in headphones and take the courses they would have taken at home. 
 
Effectively babysitting and wifi, not true in person teaching. 
 
If you don’t need to send your kid to school. Don’t. 

I think that they are setting it up as such to communicate that message.

[atomheartbevo 89629]

5 hours ago, BrazilHorn said:

AISD saying in person will mirror virtual in that kids sit down in class, open laptop, put in headphones and take the courses they would have taken at home. 

Effectively babysitting and wifi, not true in person teaching. 

If you don’t need to send your kid to school. Don’t. 

A huge chunk of the schools on our side of town are going to have the majority of their students staying home as it is.

I could say a lot, but I'm tired and wanting to watch Umbrella Academy.  My gut says they just don't have enough teachers to run 6-8 student classrooms while teaching to the kids at home, so they'll have to teach to everybody the same way.

And I have a feeling that a lot of Karens, hell, enough to make a Covid of Karens, somehow influenced this.

[BrazilHorn 6586]

13 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

A huge chunk of the schools on our side of town are going to have the majority of their students staying home as it is.

I could say a lot, but I'm tired and wanting to watch Umbrella Academy.  My gut says they just don't have enough teachers to run 6-8 student classrooms while teaching to the kids at home, so they'll have to teach to everybody the same way.

And I have a feeling that a lot of Karens, hell, enough to make a Covid of Karens, somehow influenced this.

Some schools are out of teachers if they want to maintain social distancing in a classroom. 
More parents have indicated via survey they’re returning to school than the schools can teach and maintain distance guidelines 

Edited August 6, 2020 by BrazilHorn

[CooterBrown 18004]

Heard this from an extremely reliable source...

Abbott is ordering state agencies in Austin to move 25% of staff back to the office in 2 weeks...the reasoning is it will force a lot of Austin schools to open.  The scuttlebutt is that this was a way to show he's opening schools but in a location where it doesn't mean shit for GOP votes.  The elected GOP head of one of the major agencies basically told him to fuck off. Sounds like the wheels are falling off for Greg.

 

[hayden_horn 11362]

20 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

Heard this from an extremely reliable source...

Abbott is ordering state agencies in Austin to move 25% of staff back to the office in 2 weeks...the reasoning is it will force a lot of Austin schools to open.  The scuttlebutt is that this was a way to show he's opening schools but in a location where it doesn't mean shit for GOP votes.  The elected GOP head of one of the major agencies basically told him to fuck off. Sounds like the wheels are falling off for Greg.

 

this is utter madness. 

[hayden_horn 11362]

just got this email from aisd:

Quote

Today, the Austin ISD Board of Trustees will discuss the possibility of revising the first day of school on the current board approved calendar to Sept. 8, 2020. The proposed calendar change would be followed by four weeks of remote learning and an additional four weeks to phase in on-campus learning.

Austin ISD will offer public testimony before the board vote. If you would like to share your thoughts with the board on the proposed change, follow the instructions for providing public testimony at www.austinisd.org/board/meetings.

Need to Know: Attendance during remote instruction
It’s well-established that attendance has an effect on grades and overall student outcomes. During remote instruction families may not know how AISD is taking attendance, so we wanted to provide the following overview:

Elementary
A student engaged in any subject on the day will be marked present for attendance for the day. 
Attendance is not posted for all subjects - just Homeroom. 
Secondary
A student engaged in any subject on the day will be marked present for attendance for the day in the period that is considered the official attendance period. 
Attendance is also posted for all subjects based on student engagement in that subject.

 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

4 hours ago, BrazilHorn said:

More parents have indicated via survey they’re returning to school then the schools can teach and maintain distance guidelines 

Depends where you are at.  I know of three schools on our side of town where over 50% want to keep their kids home until this truly slows down. 

But my side of town can afford that.  Not all can't.

[HenryJames 66038]

41 minutes ago, hayden_horn said:

this is utter madness. 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

44 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

Heard this from an extremely reliable source...

Abbott is ordering state agencies in Austin to move 25% of staff back to the office in 2 weeks...the reasoning is it will force a lot of Austin schools to open.  The scuttlebutt is that this was a way to show he's opening schools but in a location where it doesn't mean shit for GOP votes.  The elected GOP head of one of the major agencies basically told him to fuck off. Sounds like the wheels are falling off for Greg.

The fact that he was out there Monday saying that schools should be able to open when they feel comfortable, implying that some deadline from TEA was not going to drive things, spoke volumes.  And that's after he's backed down a few times over the past month.  He's reading the TEA leaves.

While fucking up rural schools would drive some of those communities under (which has implications best discussed in CR), and even with November being around the corner, there's a bigger issue for him - what if he and the TEA go all hardline, the school districts challenge them in court and say "why are we sending you our tax money and then you are fucking us over and withholding it?"  What if the Governor and TEA lose?  Lest we forget, the Governor of Texas is not supposed to be a powerful position, and he and the TEA could be rolling into territory they aren't supposed to be in, and if the courts side with the districts.  Spitballing here, but this could be moving into the legislature's territory.

Hell, even if the schools lose, the fact that they would be engaging in a very damaging, very public, and very costly court battle prior to November could be enough to force Abbott and Co. to back down.

 

[BrazilHorn 6586]

23 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

Depends where you are at.  I know of three schools on our side of town where over 50% want to keep their kids home until this truly slows down. 

But my side of town can afford that.  Not all can't.

Sorry. Should edit to say can’t teach. They’ll be over capacity. 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

At least we aren't Georgia.

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/mollyhensleyclancy/georgia-school-reopening-photo-paulding-county

Quote

The Truth Behind A Viral Picture Of A Reopening School Is Worse Than It Looked

Quote

Behind a viral photo of a crowded hallway at a high school in Georgia, a potentially dire situation is brewing. Students, teachers, and parents fear the Paulding County school’s rushed reopening plans may be spiraling out of control just two days after students — who said they were told they could face expulsion for remaining home — returned to class despite reports of positive coronavirus cases among students and staff.

Quote

North Paulding High School, about an hour outside Atlanta, reopened Monday despite an outbreak among members of its high school football team, many of whom, a Facebook video shows, worked out together in a crowded indoor gym last week as part of a weightlifting fundraiser.

Quote

Within days of that workout, several North Paulding players had tested positive for the coronavirus. The school’s parents were notified just hours before the first day of class.

And multiple teachers at North Paulding say there are positive tests among school staff, including a staff member who came into contact with most teachers at the school while exhibiting symptoms last week. Teachers and staff said the school won’t confirm coronavirus infections among district employees, citing privacy reasons.

"That was exactly one week ago, so we are all waiting to see who gets sick next week,” a North Paulding teacher told BuzzFeed News of her exposure to the virus.

Quote

Despite recommendations from CDC health officials, the district has called mask-wearing a “personal choice” and said that social distancing “will not be possible to enforce” in “most cases.” While the school provided teachers with face shields and masks and encouraged staff and students to wear them, they are not required and not all teachers have chosen to use them. One North Paulding teacher resigned last month over concerns about virus safety.

Quote

Some students at North Paulding say they were forced to attend school in person because all of the slots for the district’s virtual learning option were filled. A narrow sign-up window for virtual classes meant many parents missed their opportunity to enroll their children online.

James, a North Paulding senior, said he came to school Tuesday because his mother was unable to enroll him in virtual learning. He wore a mask, but many of his classmates did not. And while some classes practiced distancing, in one, a teacher had pushed together students’ desks to allow for group work. His name has been changed in the story because of concerns about retribution from the school.

“It’s the hallway situation that has me most paranoid,” he said. “There’s a lot of people in the hallways, and you can’t do nothing about it, so it’s scary.”

Georgia.

[Red Six 131]

The fact that he was out there Monday saying that schools should be able to open when they feel comfortable, implying that some deadline from TEA was not going to drive things, spoke volumes.  And that's after he's backed down a few times over the past month.  He's reading the TEA leaves.
While fucking up rural schools would drive some of those communities under (which has implications best discussed in CR), and even with November being around the corner, there's a bigger issue for him - what if he and the TEA go all hardline, the school districts challenge them in court and say "why are we sending you our tax money and then you are fucking us over and withholding it?"  What if the Governor and TEA lose?  Lest we forget, the Governor of Texas is not supposed to be a powerful position, and he and the TEA could be rolling into territory they aren't supposed to be in, and if the courts side with the districts.  Spitballing here, but this could be moving into the legislature's territory.
Hell, even if the schools lose, the fact that they would be engaging in a very damaging, very public, and very costly court battle prior to November could be enough to force Abbott and Co. to back down.
 

And those suits would initiate in Travis County district court. Which, as we know, is not a friendly venue for Abbott and TEA.

[Wulaw Horn 19068]

4 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

At least we aren't Georgia.

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/mollyhensleyclancy/georgia-school-reopening-photo-paulding-county

Georgia.

Thing is they aren’t wrong, and they are one of the few telling the truth (social distancing isn’t going to happen/isn’t practical. 
bear as I can tel the two districts that I live near have the plan of “tell parents we are following guidelines” while actually business as usual. 
biggest question for me is- are we shutting things down with a positive test or nah...

[atomheartbevo 89629]

7 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Thing is they aren’t wrong, and they are one of the few telling the truth (social distancing isn’t going to happen/isn’t practical. 
bear as I can tel the two districts that I live near have the plan of “tell parents we are following guidelines” while actually business as usual. 
biggest question for me is- are we shutting things down with a positive test or nah...

No, the thing is, they aren't even fucking trying.

They are going to try and have our pre-k kid wear a mask, they are going to keep her and her classmates apart, they are going to set it up so that they aren't passing kids shoulder-to-shoulder in the hallways, etc.

What that is in Georgia, is an absolute shit-show, fed by people who probably look to Dr. Stella Immanuel for guidance.

 

[Hagbard Celine 10852]

ProfG Future of Education webinar starting now  (Dr. Scott Galloway, NYU)

PM me for the link

 

[Wulaw Horn 19068]

2 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

No, the thing is, they aren't even fucking trying.

They are going to try and have our pre-k kid wear a mask, they are going to keep her and her classmates apart, they are going to set it up so that they aren't passing kids shoulder-to-shoulder in the hallways, etc.

What that is in Georgia, is an absolute shit-show, fed by people who probably look to Dr. Stella Immanuel for guidance.

 

That’s what I’m telling you my internal sources say in 2 districts near me and 1 district in Missouri from people who should know (school board pres, admin, principal respectively) is that they will talk a big game for parents but nothing is going to change for them- it will be business as usual. 
I suspect that will be the case more or less everywhere, and the Georgia people are just being more honest about it. It’s also, I suspect why other areas are just shutting it down indefinitely (they know its not possible). 

[Hagbard Celine 10852]

correction: Future of *HIGHER* Education so probably not as of much interest to the k-12 problem

[atomheartbevo 89629]

Hays County pushing school start back to September 8.

https://www.kxan.com/news/local/hays/hays-cisd-updates-return-to-school-plan-will-start-year-sept-8/

Quote

The Hays Consolidated Independent School District will begin the school year Sept. 8, district officials announced Thursday.

With the delayed start, online-only classes will run until Sept. 25, then parents will have an option to send their kids to campus or stay with online classes. The form for parents to declare their choices will be live on the Hays CISD parent self-serve site Aug. 10.

Quote

At the beginning of each nine-week grading period, parents can choose either online-only or on-campus classes. Families must stick with those choices for the entire grading period, and make those choices by October 30 for the second nine weeks, January 22 for the third and April 2 for the fourth.

The school year will end June 15.

 

Edited August 6, 2020 by atomheartbevo

[atomheartbevo 89629]

So this afternoon, it was announced that a deal was reached with AISD that classified (hourly) workers won't lose out if the start-date is pushed back- they'll just be working extra hours.  Sounding more and more like they'll push the date back, which gives them time to get the technology together.

[Anastasis 23463]

Well done RRISD.

 

 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

"Executive Session".  Who knows when the public meeting will resume, but it's been like this for 35 minutes.

[BradInATX 9208]

Well done RRISD.

 

 

Pretty racist that the ginger white kid is falling asleep and the Asian valedictorian is looking all peppy and studious. Is he trying to copy her quiz?

 

[atomheartbevo 89629]

So almost a thousand people watching the livestream on Facebook.  One reporter tweeted that they have hours of public comments to go through, and have to show the public comments, and that it could be 1am before anything is decided upon.

Holding meetings this late has to be by design.  Couldn't do it earlier in the day, in time for the evening news.

[atomheartbevo 89629]

Shit just went live, now it's the public comments, but it sounds like there could be hours of them.

 

 

Edited August 7, 2020 by atomheartbevo