Running thread of the disaster that is the new school year

[Gardner Barnes 1562]

On 9/23/2020 at 6:33 PM, Hefeweizen said:

If they mandate kids back we’re home schooling.  The remote model is working just fine for us in Eanes at WHS.  My kids said the losers are definitely suffering though.  Kind of a rough assessment but that’s teenagers for you.

 

And let me qualify a real asshole statement- if there are special needs, they absolutely should be in school in person.  If they want to be there, they should be able to go back.  But if they mandate a return, fuck that noise.

I can assure you that they will not mandate a return unless the TEA threatens funding.  My wife wrote a lot of the current protocols and procedures and frequently meets with Leonard and Arnett.  I’m glad to hear remote is working for y’all.  Some families are not as accepting of it and are a challenge to deal with. 

[Brisketexan 105085]

The boy is back at in-person school today for the first time -- he goes to private school, and they had the hybrid option for a while, but he opted out.  They supposedly opened it up more starting this week, and based on how school at home was affecting his mental health and focus, we thought it best for him to try in-person.  Still waiting on the full report, but early messages from him were that he was not super thrilled -- very low attendance, lunch was strictly distanced, no real chance to socialize with anyone (and none of his friends were back in-person yet).  So, we're going to see how it goes for the week, and then make a call.  Sigh.

[tbone_ 14113]

At least it’s a change of scenery.

[utee94 15810]

My 7th grade daughter is still doing online for another 4 weeks, but this week they're bringing ALL kids back for PE, so she went in today for the first time since last March.  And she absolutely loved it, she was so thrilled to get to see and interact with other kids.

[Brisketexan 105085]

31 minutes ago, tbone_ said:

At least it’s a change of scenery.

That was some of our thinking -- it gets you up and moving, out of the house, in bright hallways, even outdoors some, during the day.  And his schedule is such that, if at school, he has enough "off" periods where he can usually get his homework done during the schoolday.  So, make the day about school.  Come home, and if you want a snack and a nap, go for it.  In the evening, want to get online with your pals and game, go for it.

We'll see how a few days of that routine work out.

[Superhero 8828]

My 3rd grade daughter goes to school for 2.5 hours each day, then we pick her up and she does independent study in the afternoon.

Yesterday, she said she wanted to go to school full time because "I don't like being at home with mommy. I want daddy instead."  🤘   

 

Poor girl, she's shy and doesn't make friends easily. Now none of her friends are going to the same AM session as her, so she probably doesn't really talk to anyone at school. I can't wait for them to back to school full time (if Covid allows it).

[Rougarou 594]

Kumons and Mathnasiums are booming. Should have invested in one 6 months ago

Edited October 6, 2020 by Rougarou

[EE2B 1565]

My kids preschool had a teacher test positive today. In the note that they sent out, they stated that they are not quarantining any of the kids/classes because they are all wearing masks now so no threat of exposure. This could be a complete and utter shit show.

Liberty Eylau quarantined four classes of elementary school kids after two employees tested positive.

[Brisketexan 105085]

The boy is back at in-person school today for the first time -- he goes to private school, and they had the hybrid option for a while, but he opted out.  They supposedly opened it up more starting this week, and based on how school at home was affecting his mental health and focus, we thought it best for him to try in-person.  Still waiting on the full report, but early messages from him were that he was not super thrilled -- very low attendance, lunch was strictly distanced, no real chance to socialize with anyone (and none of his friends were back in-person yet).  So, we're going to see how it goes for the week, and then make a call.  Sigh.

Yeah, his end of day report wasn’t any stronger. His first class was a 90 min class...teacher had maybe 40 mins of material, then dismissed the Zoom kids, while he and the other in person kids had to just hang out in the classroom.

Gonna keep trying, though.

[GRHorn 105]

11 hours ago, EE2B said:

My kids preschool had a teacher test positive today. In the note that they sent out, they stated that they are not quarantining any of the kids/classes because they are all wearing masks now so no threat of exposure. This could be a complete and utter shit show.

Liberty Eylau quarantined four classes of elementary school kids after two employees tested positive.

For the 1000th time, it’s looking more and more like kids (especially preschool!) are not very active vectors for transmission of the virus. They also seem to very rarely even get sick from Covid. Your kid will be fine. 
 

Only anecdotal, but our school district with about 18,000 kids in person and idk how many staff has had probably 30-40 cumulative cases between all campuses. Current active cases-13.  The rewards of opening in person schools far outweigh the risks. 
 

What they’re doing in places like Washington DC is criminal. 

[GRHorn 105]

I know this thread deals mostly with high school and below but these are wild numbers for colleges. 
 

 

[Gardner Barnes 1562]

For the 1000th time, it’s looking more and more like kids (especially preschool!) are not very active vectors for transmission of the virus. They also seem to very rarely even get sick from Covid. Your kid will be fine. 
 
Only anecdotal, but our school district with about 18,000 kids in person and idk how many staff has had probably 30-40 cumulative cases between all campuses. Current active cases-13.  The rewards of opening in person schools far outweigh the risks. 
 
What they’re doing in places like Washington DC is criminal. 

It’s anecdotal but there are easy ways around reporting of covid. I am aware of multiple families (especially athletes) being told to not take a covid test. Additionally, for those kids sent home with symptoms to a mandatory 10 day; reporting of test results in voluntary and no documentation of a negative test is required.

There is lots of lying at the high school level. Thankfully very few of these kids actually get really ill.

[BradInATX 9208]

27 minutes ago, GRHorn said:

For the 1000th time, it’s looking more and more like kids (especially preschool!) are not very active vectors for transmission of the virus. They also seem to very rarely even get sick from Covid. Your kid will be fine. 
 

Only anecdotal, but our school district with about 18,000 kids in person and idk how many staff has had probably 30-40 cumulative cases between all campuses. Current active cases-13.  The rewards of opening in person schools far outweigh the risks. 
 

What they’re doing in places like Washington DC is criminal. 

Been following data and research on young kids and day cares for awhile. You are correct. Little kids don't get it frequently, show symptoms even less frequently, and spread it even more less frequently. My anecdotal: our kid has been back at day care for months now as have a bunch of our friends' kids, and despite a few of the schools some of the other kids are at having a teacher pop positive, not a single kid or family has gotten it. 

I'm at the point where I am not at all concerned about picking it up from day care.

Edited October 6, 2020 by BradInATX

[CooterBrown 18004]

School had been going smoothly for my 8th grader at Lamar until today.  To keep in-person numbers down, each teacher is randomly assigned kids...that don't even take their class. They're in there for babysitting.

In her 8th grade science class, in person, there are two 6th graders.  They're constantly running around the classroom and the teacher is yelling at them. At one point, one asked to go to the shitter and the teacher said go ahead. He replied he didn't know where it was and the teacher needed to walk him there.  They didn't have in person orientation for 6th graders so they don't know where anything is.

[Your Mom 4805]

31 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

School had been going smoothly for my 8th grader at Lamar until today.  To keep in-person numbers down, each teacher is randomly assigned kids...that don't even take their class. They're in there for babysitting.

In her 8th grade science class, in person, there are two 6th graders.  They're constantly running around the classroom and the teacher is yelling at them. At one point, one asked to go to the shitter and the teacher said go ahead. He replied he didn't know where it was and the teacher needed to walk him there.  They didn't have in person orientation for 6th graders so they don't know where anything is.

I am in favor of 100% in-person school for everybody right now. But that bullshit right there is why I’m still keeping my kids home. The system they have set up in AISD for in-person school is completely fucking worthless right now.  There is a 100% chance that my boys will get more out of the zoom class if they’re watching them while laying on their bed at home.  

Edited October 6, 2020 by Your Mom

[EE2B 1565]

For the 1000th time, it’s looking more and more like kids (especially preschool!) are not very active vectors for transmission of the virus. They also seem to very rarely even get sick from Covid. Your kid will be fine. 
 
Only anecdotal, but our school district with about 18,000 kids in person and idk how many staff has had probably 30-40 cumulative cases between all campuses. Current active cases-13.  The rewards of opening in person schools far outweigh the risks. 
 
What they’re doing in places like Washington DC is criminal. 

My kid is not in school right now, so I know she is good. My concern is the next “man” up mentality of the school administration. You have a teacher test positive that has been around the kids and instead of quarantining everyone, you quarantine the teacher and slide another teacher in her place. All because they believe 3 & 4 year olds are wearing their masks and washing their hands.

[MNLonghornFUKM 8817]

Been following data and research on young kids and day cares for awhile. You are correct. Little kids don't get it frequently, show symptoms even less frequently, and spread it even more less frequently. My anecdotal: our kid has been back at day care for months now as have a bunch of our friends' kids, and despite a few of the schools some of the other kids are at having a teacher pop positive, not a single kid or family has gotten it. 
I'm at the point where I am not at all concerned about picking it up from day care.

Same. We’re at 5 days a week preschool, 3 hrs a day, no masks, and there hasn’t been any hiccups besides her 24 hr cold a few weeks ago. Maybe that was covid.

I’m with you on zero concern. Our k-12 is chugging along outside of HS going to online for a few weeks due to county case numbers & state guidelines. Non outbreaks there tho. Should be back in 2 weeks

[BabaYaga 15289]

17 minutes ago, MNLonghornFUKM said:

Same. We’re at 5 days a week preschool, 3 hrs a day, no masks, and there hasn’t been any hiccups besides her 24 hr cold a few weeks ago. Maybe that was covid.

I’m with you on zero concern. Our k-12 is chugging along outside of HS going to online for a few weeks due to county case numbers & state guidelines. Non outbreaks there tho. Should be back in 2 weeks

Preschool aged kids, elementary, etc are at a very large risk for the classics:  flu, colds, SARS, etc.  That just wrecks the little ones.  My little guy years back caught some nasty shit at daycare, developed pneumonia, go on breathing treatments, and we had to pull him and wife started her permanent work from home career.  It's scary.  Based upon the numbers, this is not the same.

7th grader and 9th grader in Frisco ISD are back FT.  Both doing strength/conditioning before classes and both playing soccer and practicing after + playing for their respective soccer clubs.  Zero issues of any kind other than having to shoulder GT/Pre-AP class loads and sports.

One of daughters friends is in cheer - almost 80 girls tested positive on a trip.  ONE ran a fever and it lasted a few hours.  They are all in insane shape.  It matters.  Their mental and physical shape matter.  Their diets.  Hours of sleep.  All of it.  Same for us. 

Every mask sold should come with a kettlebell and a pair of running shoes....

[GRHorn 105]

1 hour ago, Gardner Barnes said:

It’s anecdotal but there are easy ways around reporting of covid. I am aware of multiple families (especially athletes) being told to not take a covid test. Additionally, for those kids sent home with symptoms to a mandatory 10 day; reporting of test results in voluntary and no documentation of a negative test is required.

There is lots of lying at the high school level. Thankfully very few of these kids actually get really ill.

 

That’s interesting. I could see pressure at the high school level for athletes to not be tested. 
 

But for middle school and elementary kids that are in person, if your kid is sent home with “symptoms of Covid” and you are back to work, then you aren’t waiting 10 days. You’re getting your kid tested and/or getting an alternative diagnosis from a physician so they can go back. 
 

My kids’ middle and elementary schools currently with a big fat zero active positives. 

[GRHorn 105]

1 hour ago, Your Mom said:

I am in favor of 100% in-person school for everybody right now. But that bullshit right there is why I’m still keeping my kids home. The system they have set up in AISD for in-person school is completely fucking worthless right now.  There is a 100% chance that my boys will get more out of the zoom class if they’re watching them while laying on their bed at home.  

I can see that. The teachers having kids in class, but having still to teach others over zoom is weird. Fortunately our district nailed it by going in person from the beginning for those that wanted it. So it’s just regular classes. It’s been pretty normal besides the masks and some of the distancing stuff. 
 

1 hour ago, EE2B said:

My kid is not in school right now, so I know she is good. My concern is the next “man” up mentality of the school administration. You have a teacher test positive that has been around the kids and instead of quarantining everyone, you quarantine the teacher and slide another teacher in her place. All because they believe 3 & 4 year olds are wearing their masks and washing their hands.

You’re missing the entire point.

[MNLonghornFUKM 8817]

Preschool aged kids, elementary, etc are at a very large risk for the classics:  flu, colds, SARS, etc.  That just wrecks the little ones.  My little guy years back caught some nasty shit at daycare, developed pneumonia, go on breathing treatments, and we had to pull him and wife started her permanent work from home career.  It's scary.  Based upon the numbers, this is not the same.
7th grader and 9th grader in Frisco ISD are back FT.  Both doing strength/conditioning before classes and both playing soccer and practicing after + playing for their respective soccer clubs.  Zero issues of any kind other than having to shoulder GT/Pre-AP class loads and sports.
One of daughters friends is in cheer - almost 80 girls tested positive on a trip.  ONE ran a fever and it lasted a few hours.  They are all in insane shape.  It matters.  Their mental and physical shape matter.  Their diets.  Hours of sleep.  All of it.  Same for us. 
Every mask sold should come with a kettlebell and a pair of running shoes....

God yea... I probably won’t be singing this same tune in a few months. We didn’t send to daycare so this whole seasonal sickness thing is gonna hit us like a freight train

[BabaYaga 15289]

8 minutes ago, MNLonghornFUKM said:

God yea... I probably won’t be singing this same tune in a few months. We didn’t send to daycare so this whole seasonal sickness thing is gonna hit us like a freight train

Never been so sick in my life as when the kids initially went to daycare.  In hindsight, wish I'd been mainlining Vit C, D, Zinc, and elderberry like a meth-head. 

Worst thing we got was that awful Rotavirus.  Fuck.  That.  Shit.  We had to go to the hospital because we were dehydrated and too weak to care for for my infant son at the time.  Hooked us both (wife and I) up to some kind of electrolyte IV to get us back to being able to at least take care of him.  It was rough.  

[MNLonghornFUKM 8817]

Never been so sick in my life as when the kids initially went to daycare.  In hindsight, wish I'd been mainlining Vit C, D, Zinc, and elderberry like a meth-head. 
Worst thing we got was that awful Rotavirus.  Fuck.  That.  Shit.  We had to go to the hospital because we were dehydrated and too weak to care for for my infant son at the time.  Hooked us both (wife and I) up to some kind of electrolyte IV to get us back to being able to at least take care of him.  It was rough.  

Oh thanks for the nightmare fuel

[BabaYaga 15289]

Just now, MNLonghornFUKM said:

Oh thanks for the nightmare fuel

Get your immune system on rocket fuel.  Keep it there throughout the Holidays.  It helps.  After that initial nonsense, I made the switch and never had that level of funk with the second one born 2 years later....really or since.  

Vit C, 5000+ IU's of D, Zinc, and elderberry.  I actually quit dipping when my daughter was born, so that was really tough, but worth it.  Not even intentional, which is probably why it worked.  She was just a handful and sleep was tough to come by, so a week went by, then two, then I realized I hadn't touched a can?  So then 3, and 4, etc.  And that was that.  

[atomheartbevo 89630]

Day 2 for my kids in-school here in Austin (AISD), and the pre-K is at one school, second grader at another, and so far impressed.  Pre-k has like 5 kids in class, is getting outside a lot, they are keeping them separate from the other grades, they are cleaning everything, doing a lot of activities, etc.  

Second grader is doing most work with Ye Olde Pencil & Paper/crayons, very little work on the iPad outside of reading (Epic for the win), or taking photos of their work for Seesaw.  They are giving them plenty of exercise, being careful in the cafeteria, etc..  5 or 6 kids in-class, and then next week or the week after, they are going up to over a dozen kids, and those other kids coming into their class have been on Zoom with the class this week, so all of the kids are seeing each other, etc.

My only beef is that some parents are skipping doing the app on their phones, and making the school personnel go through the questionnaires at the fucking door, slowing everybody else down.  I get it if you accidentally forget, but bitch, you have three kids and this is the second day in a row you've pulled this shit, out of two whole days, after multiple emails from the school nurse to everybody.

[BradInATX 9208]

1 hour ago, BabaYaga said:

Never been so sick in my life as when the kids initially went to daycare.  In hindsight, wish I'd been mainlining Vit C, D, Zinc, and elderberry like a meth-head. 

Worst thing we got was that awful Rotavirus.  Fuck.  That.  Shit.  We had to go to the hospital because we were dehydrated and too weak to care for for my infant son at the time.  Hooked us both (wife and I) up to some kind of electrolyte IV to get us back to being able to at least take care of him.  It was rough.  

Same. First year of day care was an absolute shit show. I'm one of those "never get sick" people and I must have caught 5 or 6 bugs. All but one were little 24 hour bugs. But we got some sort of brutal stomach thing, maybe the same thing you mentioned. The worst part is the toddler was over it the next day and it took us 3-4 days to get right, so you had two parents trying to watch over a toddler while both laid up with stomach AIDS. That shit sucked.

[Shaggybevo 353]

I can't comment on how much school has become a shit show; but, I can comment on the shit show that Austin traffic has become. Starting to look like pre-covid shit showedness.

[Horn_Spanker 524]

Looks like a highly ranked SW Austin elementary lost some excellent classroom teachers this week.  They asked to teach remote until Jan 1, AISD ER denied their request, so they quit.  ER approved the music teachers the same request?

 

[smoky 840]

What was their reason for making the request?

 

If they were cool with going back on Jan 1, why not three months earlier. What, in their minds, was going to change in those 90 days?

[Guest Lobo]

58 minutes ago, Shaggybevo said:

I can't comment on how much school has become a shit show; but, I can comment on the shit show that Austin traffic has become. Starting to look like pre-covid shit showedness.

Yeah, what the fuck is up with that?  It was one of the few bright spots of Covid-19, even after school started...traffic (particularly in the morning) was pretty tame.  But fucking-A, the afternoon disasters are back, one after the other.  And the City of Austin ain't fucking helping with one lane closure after another.  

[atomheartbevo 89630]

Unofficial Pfluggerville ISD dashboard

https://sites.google.com/view/pfisd-runningtotal-covid/home

 

[Superhero 8828]

On 10/6/2020 at 11:04 AM, BabaYaga said:

Never been so sick in my life as when the kids initially went to daycare.  In hindsight, wish I'd been mainlining Vit C, D, Zinc, and elderberry like a meth-head. 

Worst thing we got was that awful Rotavirus.  Fuck.  That.  Shit.  We had to go to the hospital because we were dehydrated and too weak to care for for my infant son at the time.  Hooked us both (wife and I) up to some kind of electrolyte IV to get us back to being able to at least take care of him.  It was rough.  

Yeah, it wasn't so bad when my daughter started preschool. But when my son went in, I was sick every other week. Nothing terrible like rotavirus, but it definitely was uncomfortable with nose and chest congestion for about 6 months non-stop.

[Superhero 8828]

Well sheeeeeit. Got an email from my boy's school today about one of the kids testing positive for Covid. Luck would have it that the girl is in my boy's class. Luckily she sits on the opposite side of the classroom, and my son, still in the "girls have cooties" stage of his life hasn't played with her.

I had a scratchy throat and a tickle in my chest today so I went to get a Covid test, then took my boy to get his. The school has said the risk is minimal for the students, so he's going back to school tomorrow. OTOH, my work has told me to stay home until the test results come back. 

Yay..........

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[Guest Lobo]

That's good news ^

We're gonna continue exercising something that's been near and dear to my family for years and something I've worked at the Capitol to expand...School Choice.  We choose to learn remotely this semester.  For those that want to choose to attend in person, our district has that open for you and can accommodate all but just a handful of kids in each grade.  School Choice can be made powerful if people realize it's not just about Charter Schools & Vouchers...it's about empowering parents to make the best choices for their little learners.  My party has been attempting to dissolve the U.S. Department of Education for decades.  So I'd kindly remind the DoE, on the topic of opening of schools district by district, to shut the fuck up.  Nobody asked these cunts.  

[Message Board User 12395]

And yet teachers unions are kicking and screaming in efforts to not have to go back to work.

 

[rpspeed 1363]

Hooks ISD is pretty small but they are going back to in person only Oct 14th. The letter states 52% of remote learners failed at least one class the first 6 weeks.

 

Edited October 10, 2020 by rpspeed

[Hefeweizen 5310]

On 10/5/2020 at 11:53 AM, Gardner Barnes said:

I can assure you that they will not mandate a return unless the TEA threatens funding.  My wife wrote a lot of the current protocols and procedures and frequently meets with Leonard and Arnett.  I’m glad to hear remote is working for y’all.  Some families are not as accepting of it and are a challenge to deal with. 

The EKF people have good intentions but don't realize if they fuck this up and get the TEA to force everyone back in they are going to see a lot of withdrawals.  We've seen the number of positives continue to  grow - in one of my son's classes there are 3 -  word gets around.

[Willfully Horn 8002]

15 hours ago, Message Board User said:

And yet teachers unions are kicking and screaming in efforts to not have to go back to work.

 

Given my kids are carrying 95+ in all their virtual classes, taught by working folk, at both Johnson, and UT,  your assessment of why teachers are kicking and screaming is wrong, and makes me wonder about your motivation.

Maybe you ought to put more time into parenting.

Edited October 10, 2020 by Willfully Horn
Edit

[Hefeweizen 5310]

There are some people who are looking to inject politics into everything.  This isn’t a political issue.  I think there are kids that need to be in the classroom.  In one class at least I know my son would be better off in person but we’re not comfortable with the situation yet.

 

Push comes to shove, we’ve tried out both Tech and UT high school on line and they are serviceable.  So if the TEA mandates before we’re ready to send the kids back, I and others I know will just pull the kids out of school.  That will have some ugly financial impacts to school districts where they are financially skinny.

[Message Board User 12395]

1 hour ago, Willfully Horn said:

Given my kids are carrying 95+ in all their virtual classes, taught by working folk, at both Johnson, and UT,  your assessment of why teachers are kicking and screaming is wrong, and makes me wonder about your motivation.

My motivation is the same as it was months ago (when I was an army of one) - trying to get the kids back in the classroom since ALL of the evidence from across the globe and here in the States says schools are safe and keeping kids out of school will have (and is having) disastrous effects.  

If you're still arguing against school re-openings on October 10 despite all this evidence, it makes me wonder about your motivation.

1 hour ago, Willfully Horn said:

Maybe you ought to put more time into parenting.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 

Edited October 10, 2020 by Message Board User

[Willfully Horn 8002]

10 minutes ago, Message Board User said:

My motivation is the same as it was months ago - trying to get the kids back in the classroom since ALL of the evidence from across the globe and here in the States says schools are safe and keeping kids out of school will have (and is having) disastrous effects.

If you're still arguing against school re-openings on October 10 despite all this evidence, it makes me wonder about your motivation.

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 

Months ago we did not know what we know now. We will learn more this Fall. Much of what has been learned carried a cost measured in human life.

Kudos on your assumed prescience. I hope you are absolutely correct. The numbers do look good. Changing variables, such as the number of children in a classroom, might affect those numbers. Seasonal variability is ahead of us. I think it is wisest to limit changing variables, and to examine the overall picture at the end of this calendar year. 

My motivation is keeping my family safe, and ensuring my children learn what they need to know. And calling out those who smear hard working teachers.
 

 

[Willfully Horn 8002]

30 minutes ago, Message Board User said:

My motivation is the same as it was months ago (when I was an army of one) - trying to get the kids back in the classroom since ALL of the evidence from across the globe and here in the States says schools are safe and keeping kids out of school will have (and is having) disastrous effects.  

I’ll push back on the “ALL.”

JERUSALEM — As the United States and other countries anxiously consider how to reopen schools, Israel, one of the first countries to do so, illustrates the dangers of moving too precipitously.

Confident it had beaten the coronavirus and desperate to reboot a devastated economy, the Israeli government invited the entire student body back in late May.

Within days, infections were reported at a Jerusalem high school, which quickly mushroomed into the largest outbreak in a single school in Israel, possibly the world.
 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2020/08/04/world/middleeast/coronavirus-israel-schools-reopen.amp.html

[Message Board User 12395]

8 minutes ago, Willfully Horn said:

Months ago we did not know what we know now. We will learn more this Fall. Much of what has been learned carried a cost measured in human life.

Kudos on your assumed prescience. I hope you are absolutely correct. The numbers do look good. Changing variables, such as the number of children in a classroom, might affect those numbers. Seasonal variability is ahead of us. I think it is wisest to limit changing variables, and to examine the overall picture at the end of this calendar year. 

My motivation is keeping my family safe, and ensuring my children learn what they need to know. And calling out those who smear hard working teachers.
 

 

You misunderstand - it's not the teachers I'm calling out - it's the teachers unions.  I do not believe the teachers unions are working for the teachers' best interest.

From everything I've read online and talking to actual teachers and parents, this hybrid and virtual schooling is actually making things tougher on teachers and burning them out.  Getting kids back into the school would obviously help the kids...but it would help the teachers as well.

Consider this article from Denton, which summarized a meeting with local elected officials and the superintedents of the local districts:

https://dentonrc.com/education/theyre-burned-out-already-six-denton-county-school-leaders-talk-education-amid-a-pandemic/article_cc804a79-4207-53a6-9f06-b8728b191009.html

Wednesday’s discussion wouldn’t have been complete without an acknowledgement of the — often times unreasonable — burden put squarely on teachers’ shoulders.

Gayle Stinson, superintendent of Lake Dallas ISD, said a perfect world would have seen teachers leading either in-person or virtual classes, “but, in reality, the majority of teachers are having to do both because the numbers just don’t match up,” between the number of teachers in particular grade levels compared to the number of student opting for virtual learning.

She continued: “Our teachers are phenomenal, but we are six-seven weeks in and they are — “

“They’re getting burned out,” Huberty acknowledged.

“They’re burned out already,” Stinson finished.

Teachers aren’t just at risk of burning out, the district leaders agreed, many of them are already there with most of the school year ahead of them.

Mike Davis, the interim superintendent for Krum ISD, said teachers are leading classes and then spending hour after hour chasing down their remote students, trying to wrangle attendance problems, missing assignments and put out any other fires.

“We think about them working all day at school, but they can’t answer all their emails and do all the things that they’re doing with these kiddos,” Davis said. “They go home and start doing it, and their husbands or wives are starting to say ‘enough’s enough,’ and that’s where we’re going to end up losing teachers.”

“Already have,” Wilson added.

Huberty thanked the teachers still working and encouraged the superintendents present to pass along additional problems, with HB 3 or otherwise, to him and Stucky ahead of the pending legislative session.

[Willfully Horn 8002]

20 minutes ago, Message Board User said:

You misunderstand - it's not the teachers I'm calling out - it's the teachers unions.  I do not believe the teachers unions are working for the teachers' best interest.

From everything I've read online and talking to actual teachers and parents, this hybrid and virtual schooling is actually making things tougher on teachers and burning them out.  Getting kids back into the school would obviously help the kids...but it would help the teachers as well.

Consider this article from Denton, which summarized a meeting with local elected officials and the superintedents of the local districts:

https://dentonrc.com/education/theyre-burned-out-already-six-denton-county-school-leaders-talk-education-amid-a-pandemic/article_cc804a79-4207-53a6-9f06-b8728b191009.html

I appreciate the link. Though, I’d like to point out the link did not detail union culpability. Frankly, it doesn’t sound like their union has made teacher’s lives any easier, in regards to teaching in person and virtual classes at the same time. Nor have unions done much for those teacher’s who felt f2f teaching brought unacceptable risk into their lives.

Maybe I’m missing something, and I appreciate learning what I don’t know, but school district administration and CR stuff looks to be the root of teacher stress, outside of CV-19. Your link stated as much.

Perhaps Texas students, and teachers, would benefit from a substantial investment in hiring. Rainy days are much more common than pandemics. I’d rather see more hiring than hoping.

[South Austin 52459]

32 minutes ago, Willfully Horn said:

I’ll push back on the “ALL.”

JERUSALEM — As the United States and other countries anxiously consider how to reopen schools, Israel, one of the first countries to do so, illustrates the dangers of moving too precipitously.

Confident it had beaten the coronavirus and desperate to reboot a devastated economy, the Israeli government invited the entire student body back in late May.

Within days, infections were reported at a Jerusalem high school, which quickly mushroomed into the largest outbreak in a single school in Israel, possibly the world.
 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2020/08/04/world/middleeast/coronavirus-israel-schools-reopen.amp.html

[tchookem 3900]

You misunderstand - it's not the teachers I'm calling out - it's the teachers unions.  I do not believe the teachers unions are working for the teachers' best interest.
From everything I've read online and talking to actual teachers and parents, this hybrid and virtual schooling is actually making things tougher on teachers and burning them out.  Getting kids back into the school would obviously help the kids...but it would help the teachers as well.
Consider this article from Denton, which summarized a meeting with local elected officials and the superintedents of the local districts:
https://dentonrc.com/education/theyre-burned-out-already-six-denton-county-school-leaders-talk-education-amid-a-pandemic/article_cc804a79-4207-53a6-9f06-b8728b191009.html

Wednesday’s discussion wouldn’t have been complete without an acknowledgement of the — often times unreasonable — burden put squarely on teachers’ shoulders.

Gayle Stinson, superintendent of Lake Dallas ISD, said a perfect world would have seen teachers leading either in-person or virtual classes, “but, in reality, the majority of teachers are having to do both because the numbers just don’t match up,” between the number of teachers in particular grade levels compared to the number of student opting for virtual learning.

She continued: “Our teachers are phenomenal, but we are six-seven weeks in and they are — “

“They’re getting burned out,” Huberty acknowledged.

“They’re burned out already,” Stinson finished.

Teachers aren’t just at risk of burning out, the district leaders agreed, many of them are already there with most of the school year ahead of them.

Mike Davis, the interim superintendent for Krum ISD, said teachers are leading classes and then spending hour after hour chasing down their remote students, trying to wrangle attendance problems, missing assignments and put out any other fires.

“We think about them working all day at school, but they can’t answer all their emails and do all the things that they’re doing with these kiddos,” Davis said. “They go home and start doing it, and their husbands or wives are starting to say ‘enough’s enough,’ and that’s where we’re going to end up losing teachers.”

“Already have,” Wilson added.

Huberty thanked the teachers still working and encouraged the superintendents present to pass along additional problems, with HB 3 or otherwise, to him and Stucky ahead of the pending legislative session.

What are these teachers' unions that you speak of? Are you not in Texas? Texas teachers have no unions.

[atomheartbevo 89630]

15 minutes ago, tchookem said:

What are these teachers' unions that you speak of? Are you not in Texas? Texas teachers have no unions.

Oh, there are teacher unions in Texas.  They just can't strike or negotiate pay....okay, more like trade associations than actual unions.

[tchookem 3900]

Oh, there are teacher unions in Texas.  They just can't strike or negotiate pay....okay, more like trade associations than actual unions.

They're weak lobbyist groups. When is the last time you ever heard of any education policy that was supported by teachers actually being implemented? There was a state level pay raise a couple years ago, but that was the "win" I've seen in 20 years of teaching.

But yeah, the insidious teachers' unions are trying to get out of doing work.

[atomheartbevo 89630]

3 hours ago, tchookem said:

But yeah, the insidious teachers' unions are trying to get out of doing work.

We have quite a few friends who are openly considering quitting because of the face-to-face and online teaching combined.    And the ones doing the online teaching are pulling their hair out - way too many kids are just not turning in work, and the parents are hard to get in touch with.

AISD superintendent came out and said they are working to get the face-to-face teachers only dealing with in-person kids, and the online kids only working with online teachers.  I get why they weren't able to do it properly up front, since they weren't sure how many kids were coming back, and AISD hasn't even brought in the second and third waves (increasing capacity next week and I think bringing in more 3rd/4th graders).

But holy shit, it's putting teachers through the ringer.  I was surprised only 96 quit AISD last week.