Running thread of the disaster that is the new school year

[GRHorn 105]

2 minutes ago, hayden_horn said:

yep, my two middle school age boys, 7th and 8th graders.

it is so hard to motivate them to do good work. the other day i went in to check that they were on zoom, and they both were, in their separate rooms, and they were on the floor playing their phones. phones are now off limits during class.

but my oldest just fidgets endlessly. his workstation is a mess every day. the first grading period ended last friday, and we were playing super catch up to get them to passing. i need to be a better monitor of their grades and assignments, so that's on me, but jesus.

that said, i cannot foresee sending them to in-class instruction any time soon. 

Why not?

[hayden_horn 11364]

9 minutes ago, GRHorn said:

Why not?

couple reasons

well, there's a pandemic that's killing roughly 800 - 1000 people a day in this country. 

we are in aisd and if they go to their middle school, they will be sat in a classroom, masked all day on zoom, and will even eat lunch in that room. they have 90 minute class blocks, 60 of that is synchronous, 30 is asynchronous. i can barely keep them engaged, and i'm here in the fucking house. their asynchronous would be worthless in the classroom. fridays are almost all asynchronous. 

i just don't see that problem getting solved until we navigate as a globe through the covid. i'm not worried about them getting sick, necessarily, though it is a slight concern. i'm mostly worried about them passing it to us, and us passing it onto others. but i'm also worried about their well-being in a surreal hybrid model of attendance. honestly, that sounds miserable. here, they can take a break at lunch, maybe play a bit of xbox to unwind before going back to their afternoon classes.

hell, i've shared that i think we all might have gotten it in this household before we even knew it was a thing, as i was at ces in january. but i just feel like it is irresponsible to send my kids to go sit inside for an extended period of time when all the evidence points to that as a main way this thing spreads. 

anything else will probably get to cr, but i feel like the lack of a statewide plan is a big problem for schools, and they are left to their own devices. 

edit: also, for my part, i'm lucky to have a job where i can work from home. i also do not foresee me going back to an in-office environment for the foreseeable future either.

Edited October 16, 2020 by hayden_horn

[GRHorn 105]

8 minutes ago, hayden_horn said:

couple reasons

well, there's a pandemic that's killing roughly 800 - 1000 people a day in this country. 

we are in aisd and if they go to their middle school, they will be sat in a classroom, masked all day on zoom, and will even eat lunch in that room. they have 90 minute class blocks, 60 of that is synchronous, 30 is asynchronous. i can barely keep them engaged, and i'm here in the fucking house. their asynchronous would be worthless in the classroom. fridays are almost all asynchronous. 

i just don't see that problem getting solved until we navigate as a globe through the covid. i'm not worried about them getting sick, necessarily, though it is a slight concern. i'm mostly worried about them passing it to us, and us passing it onto others. but i'm also worried about their well-being in a surreal hybrid model of attendance. honestly, that sounds miserable. here, they can take a break at lunch, maybe play a bit of xbox to unwind before going back to their afternoon classes.

hell, i've shared that i think we all might have gotten it in this household before we even knew it was a thing, as i was at ces in january. but i just feel like it is irresponsible to send my kids to go sit inside for an extended period of time when all the evidence points to that as a main way this thing spreads. 

anything else will probably get to cr, but i feel like the lack of a statewide plan is a big problem for schools, and they are left to their own devices. 

edit: also, for my part, i'm lucky to have a job where i can work from home. i also do not foresee me going back to an in-office environment for the foreseeable future either.

Fair enough. Thanks for responding. I was just curious to hear people’s reasoning now  that it looks schools are playing little role in transmission.
 

Having kids in middle school or above certainly helps make that decision. 

[Message Board User 12395]

Mayor of that rural, podunk, muh rights, muh freedom, redneck city of *check notes* San Francisco weighs in.

 

[atomheartbevo 89742]

I wonder how much activity in Minecraft ramped up starting back in March.  Microsoft got their money's worth -  I was talking with some parents, and it seems like everybody's kid was playing Minecraft this past spring/summer.

[Message Board User 12395]

“The academic performance and attendance data indicates online learners are under-performing in comparison to students physically at school, making online learning unsustainable for long-term academic success,” Cain said.

 

 

Due to this, the superintendent said Waxahachie ISD will be requiring all students, except those who have proper medical documentation, to return to in-person learning on Monday, Nov. 2. Students who do not show up to their classrooms on that Monday will be considered absent.

“Waxahachie ISD is extremely proud of the compliance from students in wearing masks, washing hands, and socially distancing when possible. We are confident in our safety precautions, even with more students returning to campuses,” Cain said.

[Deej 76853]

I'll take "Famous Last Words" for 1000, Alex. 

[Hefeweizen 5328]

Fuck the pandemic.  Fuck everyone who is treating it like no big deal, too.  I think the elimination of remote options is going to push those with means to opt out, but go right ahead.  I suspect (no CR) that it's probably somewhat intentional to cause more havoc with public eduction.

[bmbmd 1027]

And the beat goes on....

https://myparistexas.com/bonham-isd-taking-action-following-covid-19-concerns/

 

On Thursday, Bonham Independent School District announced its decision to cancel its next two varsity high school football games tonight and Friday, Oct. 23. The Purple Warriors were scheduled to play at home against Mt. Vernon, then at Pottsboro at 7:30 p.m. each night.

In addition to this, Bonham ISD announced the final three regular-season JV and varsity volleyball games are canceled. The Lady Warriors were slated to face Bells at home tonight. Bonham was set to play at Blue Ridge and at Pottsboroon Tuesday and Friday, Oct. 23, respectively.

The worst the Lady Warriors can finish is a tie for fourth with Bells, which will play at Leonard (Tuesday) and at home against Whitewright (Friday, Oct. 23). The Bonham football team must forfeit each district contest against Mt. Vernon and Pottsboro, which equates to two district losses.

With the presence of confirmed positive cases at the high school campus, Bonham ISD took swift action.

“We had to self isolate a large number of kids in the football program due to close contact with a person that received a confirmed positive test,” Bonham High School athletic director Ryan Prock said. “They will also be isolated for 10 days and will receive four days of remote instruction. We have closely followed the requirements of the Texas Education Agency (TEA).”

Despite missing several games, Bonham High School staff members are taking advantage of its school calendar to get through the athletic difficulties quickly. More importantly, Bonham ISD is confident it will keep every student and staff member safe with the protocols in place.

“We just put out a statement district-wide saying that all the students at BHS are going to transition to remote learning starting next week,” Prock said. “Every student at the high school will be going to remote learning next week. We will return back to the campus for in-person learning starting Tuesday, Oct. 27. The 23rd and 26th (of October) were already student holidays, so the kids will only be missing four days of school.”

Prock said the varsity football team is still on track to play its last two football games of the regular season. The Purple Warriors will play at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30 at home against Howe for Senior Night. Bonham’s season finale is scheduled to follow at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6 at Emory Rains. For more sports coverage, click here.

[atomheartbevo 89742]

"Purple Warriors" ????

Why are they using my dick's nickname?

[Guest Lobo]

Because your vagina’s nickname was already taken sir?  

[DonkeyCigars 143]

3 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

I wonder how much activity in Minecraft ramped up starting back in March.  Microsoft got their money's worth -  I was talking with some parents, and it seems like everybody's kid was playing Minecraft this past spring/summer.

TONS! Also Roblox, which is set to IPO soon at a valuation of around $4bn or $1 for every Obby or whatever they are called. Oof. (Only Dads of 4 to 9 year old's will get this joke).

[Mole 4333]

Honestly, not allowing a Briles coached team to come to town seems like a good public health decision in the best of times.

[mdmost 43009]

Oldest had to sit next to mom all day during virtual school based on her inability to stay on task and not go on Discord and other sites instead of her studies. While she whined about it and fought us at first, she did pretty well. She's a kid that wants to do the right thing. She even says that. It's definitely a factor/byproduct of her ADHD. And I get it. I stared off into space in elementary school or retreated into my daydreams at my desk. I had to be brought back to reality by my teachers. I wasn't a bad student but I was definitely easily distracted when bored. I was also very prone to obsessing on hobbies. So sub playing Nintendo or thinking about GI Joes for Discord. I can only imagine how terrible school would've went for me if I had access to everything she now has with the Chromebooks.

She's clawing her way back and our hope is this will right the ship for her. She's always the type that needs a bit of course correction when she gets a bit lost, either by her own hand or by getting wrapped up in other things. The wife is still not onboard with going back. We still have 2 weeks to decide so we'll see how it goes. 

[utee94 15835]

18 hours ago, mdmost said:

Oldest had to sit next to mom all day during virtual school based on her inability to stay on task and not go on Discord and other sites instead of her studies. While she whined about it and fought us at first, she did pretty well. She's a kid that wants to do the right thing. She even says that. It's definitely a factor/byproduct of her ADHD. And I get it. I stared off into space in elementary school or retreated into my daydreams at my desk. I had to be brought back to reality by my teachers. I wasn't a bad student but I was definitely easily distracted when bored. I was also very prone to obsessing on hobbies. So sub playing Nintendo or thinking about GI Joes for Discord. I can only imagine how terrible school would've went for me if I had access to everything she now has with the Chromebooks.

She's clawing her way back and our hope is this will right the ship for her. She's always the type that needs a bit of course correction when she gets a bit lost, either by her own hand or by getting wrapped up in other things. The wife is still not onboard with going back. We still have 2 weeks to decide so we'll see how it goes. 

My 11yo 5th grader was having similar issues.  He went back in-person last week and is already keeping up with his schoolwork much better.

He's so much happier now, it's like night and day.  Even he noted that he likes this better, he just wasn't able to help himself when it was just him, and a laptop.  And it bothered him but he couldn't keep from drifting.

 

 

 

[BabaYaga 15302]

53 minutes ago, utee94 said:

My 11yo 5th grader was having similar issues.  He went back in-person last week and is already keeping up with his schoolwork much better.

He's so much happier now, it's like night and day.  Even he noted that he likes this better, he just wasn't able to help himself when it was just him, and a laptop.  And it bothered him but he couldn't keep from drifting.

 

 

 

Because they are children.  They are not wired to sit down on some stupid laptop all day.  They need to run, cut loose, and have physical interaction.  

[mdmost 43009]

Ha. My oldest would live her entire life on a laptop now if we let her. The 10 year old would as well but maybe to a lesser extent. The problem is what's on the laptop will always be more exciting than school work. Discord, Tik Tok, and the like are more exciting than math or anything that might be more difficult.

The problem is sending her back doesn't necessarily make things magically better since she's still sitting on a laptop watching her teacher, just this time at school instead of at home. She can still choose to do other things than her schoolwork up there.  

Edited October 20, 2020 by mdmost

[Hawndoh 2386]

 She can still choose to do other things than her schoolwork up there.  

Not as easily by far, at least in our district.

If they're at school we can ensure they are on their school issued computer, which we have total control of and can lock out anything that isn't their assignment.

Our students that are wasting all their time at home on YouTube and tiktok are doing it on personal devices.

Our kids in the building aren't doing that.

[Guest Lobo]

I for one am glad to hear that students aren't goofing around in the school building.  

I'm so glad to be surrounded by serious former scholars who spent all 7 hours in school focusing on lesson plans and academics.  

This is all an illusion.

[mdmost 43009]

This is a school issued Chromebook she's doing this on, my dude. I've traded numerous emails with the principal over this very subject. She assures me the district has them locked down from social media. It's not. If I could figure out getting OpenDNS to work on my Apple router, this wouldn't be as big an issue. It has lessened now that Mom and Dad can see what she's doing at any given time. 

Edited October 20, 2020 by mdmost

[Hawndoh 2386]

Well, that just means your district has not done a good enough job training their teachers how to monitor the remote students.

And Lobo, I never said they spend 7 solid hours never doing anything other than their academics. 

They still have the normal class changes, lunch, PE, all the usual chances they have normally to interact with each other outside of a lesson.

My point is that when it comes down to when they need to focus on some academics, we can influence the kids in the building way more easily to keep them on track.

To act like there is absolutely no difference between at home and in the building is disingenuous.

[utee94 15835]

34 minutes ago, mdmost said:

Ha. My oldest would live her entire life on a laptop now if we let her. The 10 year old would as well but maybe to a lesser extent. The problem is what's on the laptop will always be more exciting than school work. Discord, Tik Tok, and the like are more exciting than math or anything that might be more difficult.

The problem is sending her back doesn't necessarily make things magically better since she's still sitting on a laptop watching her teacher, just this time at school instead of at home. She can still choose to do other things than her schoolwork up there.  

Oh my 11yo loves his computers with their Tik Tok and Fortnite and Roblox and whatnot.  And he's easily distracted by them.  He too would choose to spend all day doing that.  But he also recognizes that it's distracting him, and making his schoolwork suffer, and he's also in a worse mood after allowing himself to do it.

Going back to school in-person, having at least some limited social interaction with kids his own age, being in a more structured setting-- it's done wonders for his mood.  He recognizes it, too.  It really is like night and day. 

[Guest Lobo]

9 minutes ago, Hawndoh said:

My point is that when it comes down to when they need to focus on some academics, we can influence the kids in the building way more easily to keep them on track.

To act like there is absolutely no difference between at home and in the building is disingenuous.

Agreed.  Easy for me to say because I have 2 kids, only one of whom is doing remote learning at the Kindergarten level.  Though, I have to admit, it's a bit of a challenge because it's Spanish Immersion.  Foreign languages are just not as easy to learn online, no matter what bullshit Rosetta Stone tries to tell sell us.

I just come back to the fact that I'm for school choice in all its incarnations.  So are most people of my political ilk.  With that mindset comes consequences and tests of dedication.  Covid-19 is one of those tests.  My wife and I CHOOSE to keep our child home right now to learn remotely.  Obviously it would be a different story if she were in high school.  

I had to fight for several years with well-meaning education advocates tell me what online learning had a substantial place in the future of education from K-12 to Higher Ed.  Those people didn't shut the fuck up for a decade and we had to go 12 rounds with them from 2006-2016.  And now those same fucking people are telling me that in-person education is the only way to connect with young people.  I appreciate where you're coming from, I'm venting because of these other cunts that don't think we're gonna remember the irony.  Rick Perry and his regent gurus are gonna suck cocks in hell.  Stupidity of that level is never forgotten.

Edited October 20, 2020 by Lobo

[mdmost 43009]

23 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Oh my 11yo loves his computers with their Tik Tok and Fortnite and Roblox and whatnot.  And he's easily distracted by them.  He too would choose to spend all day doing that.  But he also recognizes that it's distracting him, and making his schoolwork suffer, and he's also in a worse mood after allowing himself to do it.

Going back to school in-person, having at least some limited social interaction with kids his own age, being in a more structured setting-- it's done wonders for his mood.  He recognizes it, too.  It really is like night and day. 

Trust me, no one is more aggravated and disappointed by this than me. I would prefer both my kids go back. I now get to spend the next 2 weeks fighting an uphill battle with the wife over it even though the youngest, who is doing fine, wants to go back and has been campaigning for it. There's only been 1 kid at the school who's gotten Covid. At the school, at least the teacher can redirect my oldest if she's lagging. The problem is it's still there as a distraction since all the kids up there have to be on the Chromebooks all day long as well. 

Edited October 20, 2020 by mdmost

[BearSchlong 8100]

2 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

Because they are children humans.  They are not wired to sit down on some stupid laptop all day.  They need to run, cut loose, and have physical interaction.  

 

[Guest Lobo]

2 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

Because they are children.  They are not wired to sit down on some stupid laptop all day.  They need to run, cut loose, and have physical interaction.  

Why do I feel like this is the opening paragraph to a Chuck Palahnuik prequel novel?  

"Our children are not their fucking khakis!"  

[MrBig 5423]

My sister in law and her friend have little kids both in the same class at a charter school. The friend got an email late Friday saying her kid was potentially exposed to COVID and the family should quarantine.

My sister in law is freaking out because the two kids are in the same class all day. She didn’t get an email, so she’s like WTF how can this be? She gets an email on Monday morning saying her kid was exposed and they should quarantine. She’s pissed they waited all weekend to tell her. 

[Nolacycling 893]

I have 15 students in my classroom for two-period English blocks. It is lovely and reminds me of what it's like to engage a classroom while involving everyone. Teaching.

I also have a 1-period virtual class with 60. 

[atomheartbevo 89742]

Eanes wants Abbott to suspend STAAR this year.

https://www.kxan.com/news/education/eanes-isd-board-strongly-urges-gov-abbott-to-suspend-staar-testing-for-2020-21-school-year/

[Horn_Spanker 524]

On 10/13/2020 at 10:54 PM, J.R. Juniors Junior Jr. said:

Bear Creek?  That's the school we're not attending in person

Anyone's teacher have a "meltdown" during a class?  Anyone's teacher disappear and has not been seen since?

[EE2B 1565]

School near here closed down all three campuses yesterday due to 7 elementary school teachers teachers testing positive this week. Either the teachers are piling up together in break rooms or kids are spreading it while being asymptomatic.

[GRHorn 105]

On 10/20/2020 at 2:22 PM, mdmost said:

Trust me, no one is more aggravated and disappointed by this than me. I would prefer both my kids go back. I now get to spend the next 2 weeks fighting an uphill battle with the wife over it even though the youngest, who is doing fine, wants to go back and has been campaigning for it. There's only been 1 kid at the school who's gotten Covid. At the school, at least the teacher can redirect my oldest if she's lagging. The problem is it's still there as a distraction since all the kids up there have to be on the Chromebooks all day long as well. 

Share this article with her. It’s from npr so maybe she’ll trust it. In Texas it seems most schools are doing a good job with the precautions. 
 

 

[Knoxtnhorn 6061]

We just had an outbreak.  How big?  Nobody knows.  From what I gather, we only know of a positive test if the family decides to tell the school.  I suppose this is a HIPAA thing.  Anyway, two confirmed in 2 days in my grade level.  I have 8 (out of 12) that have either stayed home sick or been sent home.  And lol at one of the moms that told her her daughter has been running a fever all week, but she seemed ok to attend school.

None of this bothers me that much.  I know admin and the nurses are doing the best they can... but, holy cow, we've got some teachers freaking the F out.

[J.R. Juniors Junior Jr. 1084]

20 hours ago, Horn_Spanker said:

Anyone's teacher have a "meltdown" during a class?  Anyone's teacher disappear and has not been seen since?

That happened at your kids' school?

[utee94 15835]

A couple of weeks ago, my son told me that one of the girls in his Zoom class thought she had turned off her camera, and then she picked her nose and ate it.

That's about the most drama we've had so far this year. 

He's now back to in-person school so I guess I'm done getting those riveting updates.

[BrazilHorn 6620]

On 10/20/2020 at 2:22 PM, mdmost said:

Trust me, no one is more aggravated and disappointed by this than me. I would prefer both my kids go back. I now get to spend the next 2 weeks fighting an uphill battle with the wife over it even though the youngest, who is doing fine, wants to go back and has been campaigning for it. There's only been 1 kid at the school who's gotten Covid. At the school, at least the teacher can redirect my oldest if she's lagging. The problem is it's still there as a distraction since all the kids up there have to be on the Chromebooks all day long as well. 

Looking at the TEA data since reopening (Texas started with ~1M students and as of 9/28 is at 2.1M students) Texas has only seen 0.11% of students test positive for CV19. This does not mean they caught it at school, just that they have tested positive. There have been 914 cases that have been confirmed to have been caught on campus vs ~12k overall. The 0.11% is from the 12k number.

We have held our boys until 10/26 for our 11 year old and 11/2 for our 13 year old (5th & 8th grade). I wanted to see what data showed etc. It is showing this is a non-issue in the classroom. Not saying kids cannot and won't catch CV19, just saying it looks to be more coming from other sources than being in class.

[Anastasis 23479]

59 minutes ago, BrazilHorn said:

We have held our boys until 10/26 for our 11 year old and 11/2 for our 13 year old (5th & 8th grade). I wanted to see what data showed etc. It is showing this is a non-issue in the classroom. Not saying kids cannot and won't catch CV19, just saying it looks to be more coming from other sources than being in class.

We sent ours back after nine weeks, elementary and middle school aged. They wear masks and wash their hands and don't lick doorknobs.  So far so good. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by Anastasis

[UT_OB1 2224]

1 hour ago, BrazilHorn said:

Looking at the TEA data since reopening (Texas started with ~1M students and as of 9/28 is at 2.1M students) Texas has only seen 0.11% of students test positive for CV19. This does not mean they caught it at school, just that they have tested positive. There have been 914 cases that have been confirmed to have been caught on campus vs ~12k overall. The 0.11% is from the 12k number.

We have held our boys until 10/26 for our 11 year old and 11/2 for our 13 year old (5th & 8th grade). I wanted to see what data showed etc. It is showing this is a non-issue in the classroom. Not saying kids cannot and won't catch CV19, just saying it looks to be more coming from other sources than being in class.

Any chance that there is a number of tests done on those ~2M students?  I want to send mine back, but it will likely be an uphill battle.  The low numbers will help, but i'm sure it will be met with "well no one is being tested."

[dingleberryswitzer 2724]

8 hours ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

Nobody knows.  From what I gather, we only know of a positive test if the family decides to tell the school.  I suppose this is a HIPAA thing.

Yup.  And I get the feeling they only tell the school if it's a sports kid and they have to tell the coaches why Johnny softball isnt gonna be at practice. 

Interesting stuff this week.  Our district tried to get all the teachers that had medical requests to work from home to come back to campus, or they can file FMLA.  I guess there were enough that did file and the district backtracked because there's still plenty of teachers working from home. 

[Nolacycling 893]

I was working online w/the only student to come to a tutoring session and yes the failure numbers are tremendous. Anyway, he jumps up and asks me to wait because his grandfather "left the gate open and the meanest cow is in the front yard".

He wrote his paragraph about the cow with appropriate evidence as to it's ferocity.

[smoky 840]

I've got 2 kids in elementary and 1 in middle school.  The middle school teachers (and from what I've seen on FB, the high school teachers) are absolutely petrified to be in the same building as kids.  Meanwhile, the elementary teachers are rocking it.

My elementary kids are back in person and loving it.  But like others on here, we've kept our middle schooler at home because they're still not switching classes.  The middle school teachers are really trying hard to persuade the kids to not come back, telling them how awful it'll be if they choose to come back.  They're even writing that the kids will be in the classroom and the teacher will drag their desks out into the hallway and zoom teach from there.

The principal of the middle school sent out a letter home regarding the Nov 2nd "Return to School". 27% of teachers will not be in person at my son's middle school.

In our elementary school, only 1 classroom teacher isn't in the classroom.

Really surprised at the upper grades, but really proud of our elementary teachers and admins for keeping it together.

Edited October 24, 2020 by smoky

[Cement 314]

6 minutes ago, smoky said:

I've got 2 kids in elementary and 1 in middle school.  The middle school teachers (and from what I've seen on FB, the high school teachers) are absolutely petrified to be in the same building as kids.  Meanwhile, the elementary teachers are rocking it.

My elementary kids are back in person and loving it.  But like others on here, we've kept our middle schooler at home because they're still not switching classes.  The middle school teachers are really trying hard to persuade the kids to not come back, telling them how awful it'll be if they choose to come back.  They're even writing that the kids will be in the classroom and the teacher will drag their desks out into the hallway and zoom teach from there.

The principal of the middle school sent out a letter home regarding the Nov 2nd "Return to School". 27% of teachers will not be in person at my son's middle school.

In our elementary school, only 1 classroom teacher isn't in the classroom.

Really surprised at the upper grades, but really proud of our elementary teachers and admins for keeping it together.

Every single one of those teachers refusing to return to school should be fired.  Do what Reagan did to the air traffic controllers back in the day.

[atomheartbevo 89742]

36 minutes ago, smoky said:

The principal of the middle school sent out a letter home regarding the Nov 2nd "Return to School". 27% of teachers will not be in person at my son's middle school.

There will probably be at least 25% of kids not returning for in-person until things get back to norma.

And the US is starting to trend back up, and Texas is making me wonder, so don't be surprised if they are all back home by Thanksgiving.

[Brisketexan 105161]

Man, we’re still struggling. The boy went back to in person a few weeks ago (senior year). The routine has helped him - schedule is good for him physically and mentally. And his school performance improved materially.

 

BUT...NONE of his friends are back (relatively small school). So, he’s feeling really isolated and alone, more than he was even at home, where he could get on the phone with his friends on free periods and at lunch. It’s really taking a toll.

 

Should he go back to online school? Stay there where he feels alone? This whole thing is still a bitch.

[Guest Lobo]

2 hours ago, Cement said:

Every single one of those teachers refusing to return to school should be fired.  Do what Reagan did to the air traffic controllers back in the day.

You are so brave.  I hope you run for school board next year.  

[HornOnTheBayou 8939]

9 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

Man, we’re still struggling. The boy went back to in person a few weeks ago (senior year). The routine has helped him - schedule is good for him physically and mentally. And his school performance improved materially.

 

BUT...NONE of his friends are back (relatively small school). So, he’s feeling really isolated and alone, more than he was even at home, where he could get on the phone with his friends on free periods and at lunch. It’s really taking a toll.

 

Should he go back to online school? Stay there where he feels alone? This whole thing is still a bitch.

I'm seeing this in my classroom too. The high schoolers walk in, sit separated, masks on, and stare at their computers to work. They don't talk to me and they don't talk to each other. At this point, I wish they would get off task and talk about anything! I miss hearing them complain about all the work I'm handing out or talk about music, food, sports, anything. They might be chatting with each other on their computers, but I don't even see them smiling or laughing at random crap on their screens or see them leaning over to their neighbor saying "Check this out" and handing them their phone. It's just surreal and depressing and I don't know what to do about it. 

[dingleberryswitzer 2724]

11 hours ago, Cement said:

Every single one of those teachers refusing to return to school should be fired.  Do what Reagan did to the air traffic controllers back in the day.

Oh sure, so now you are having to replace teachers in the middle of the year?  The Reality is there is no good answer.   Well the good answer is to rearrange the schedules so virtual teachers teach virtual kids and teachers in the building teacher in-person kids, but as far as I've seen there has been 0 effort to do that.  

[smoky 840]

10 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

Man, we’re still struggling. The boy went back to in person a few weeks ago (senior year). The routine has helped him - schedule is good for him physically and mentally. And his school performance improved materially.

 

BUT...NONE of his friends are back (relatively small school). So, he’s feeling really isolated and alone, more than he was even at home, where he could get on the phone with his friends on free periods and at lunch. It’s really taking a toll.

 

Should he go back to online school? Stay there where he feels alone? This whole thing is still a bitch.

Man, that's tough.  What are the chances that his friends come back to school soon?  Someone has to lead the way and it sounds like yall are the ones doing it.  But if the families of his friends aren't on board, then that's going to be a rough road for your son.

 

[Brisketexan 105161]

Man, that's tough.  What are the chances that his friends come back to school soon?  Someone has to lead the way and it sounds like yall are the ones doing it.  But if the families of his friends aren't on board, then that's going to be a rough road for your son.
 

One of the things we’re going to explore this week is to think about which of his friends/families might be persuadable. If he just had ONE there, it would help.

He is doing ok at making some socialization happen - 4 of em are getting together tonight for a bit, for example.

But it’s just shaping up to be a shitty year. What keeps him going is 1) baseball season coming up starting in January, and 2) his plan for NEXT year - he’s looking at taking a gap year, where we send him to a language school in Berlin to become fluent in German (and maybe even get into a German university). But that’s sad - he’s really not looking forward to ANYTHING at school this year, his senior year.

This all just sucks. And there’s no path that doesn’t suck.

[utee94 15835]

13 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

Man, we’re still struggling. The boy went back to in person a few weeks ago (senior year). The routine has helped him - schedule is good for him physically and mentally. And his school performance improved materially.

 

BUT...NONE of his friends are back (relatively small school). So, he’s feeling really isolated and alone, more than he was even at home, where he could get on the phone with his friends on free periods and at lunch. It’s really taking a toll.

 

Should he go back to online school? Stay there where he feels alone? This whole thing is still a bitch.

That's tough.  I'm a strong proponent of getting kids back in school in-person, overall it's just a much better learning situation.

But in your son's specific case, I'd be inclined to pull him back home until more of his friends are going.

Ultimately, sadly, this is basically just a lost year as far as forward progress in education is concerned.  Maybe, at best, kids that are online might be getting 25% of what they should be.  But that's going to be true across the board and won't be unique for your son.

 

Good luck, I hope you can make a decision that puts your son in the best possible situation.