That is true. I do think it could be argued that we would be in a better place if Trump hadn’t sidelined the CDC or blasted their plans for reopening schools as too strict. But in fairness, we know Redfield hasn’t always been in the President’s favor (who has).
Barron Trump's school says stay home
- Thread starter 82hoosier
- Start date
They care about people.
I always thought the anonymous letter about “good people” working for Trump was wrong. I thought they should have said “it was me”.
I get it more now.
It’s wrong.
The scientists are saying, well we’ve bungled this to the point that we should just go ahead and give in to it. And they’re doing it because they realize it spreads faster than the next 100 days take. And they know if he stays in power, they’re worried about how that will look. They’re cornered
Fauci is trying to tell people all he can get away with and a segment of the population is vilifying him for it. Another tiny section doesn’t quite see it. The largest section is like most of us. We know but we’ve got to get back to work now or else.
But not the schools man. This isn’t right.
So how do we address the increase in child/teen suicide, child abuse, child neglect, child malnutrition, and those at-risk kids who aren't going to get the educational support they need?
Just one, do you listen to the vast majority of scientists regarding global warming?
The absolute best we can!!!!!!!!!!!!!
teachers role right now is more important than ever.
That's a good question. We should make it a priority. I know that LAUSD has put a great deal of effort into food distribution centers with Covid protocols that serve any student who needs meals. They have been a big success in helping meet that part of the equation. Child abuse and neglect is a trickier issue. It's a lot that schools are asked to be the front line in that (much like asking police to be social workers and mental health counselors.) I've already seen a lot of progress in touching at-risk kids who need educational support. A good friend is deals with IEPs in district and she's been impressed with the effort that's been made in engagement with at-risk populations. It's been a lot engagement on multiple platforms combined with a ton of door knocking.
All that said, I agree that they are big issues to address...as is how one keeps this virus from spreading through close quarters of extremely large populations in over-crowded schools.
It’s probably best not to be glib on this. On our school district’s reopening call with parents the most vocal urges for getting the kids back in school were from medical doctors.
Some don't. 2 teens in Bloomington killed themselves since covid began. Plus many summer school programs closed. In Bedford, I believe they had to shut down the free lunch summer program. And the Boys/Girls Clubs in many communities shut down. The YMCA's in many cities shut down too. Summer camps, church Bible schools, athletic camps...all shut down. Those programs are "how kids survive", especially low income, high risk kids.
I wasn't trying to be glib, but I also didn't realize that being out of school for an extended period was so threatening to kids' health. If that's the case, why aren't we having school year round? (normally, of course)
Ask the doctors. I know you’re being rhetorical so I won’t provide a detailed answer but kids need to be around other kids. In our geography where I live, it’s not flat and seeing kids from other neighborhoods means we’re driving them. At school they have huge social circles compared to their local lives.
This is why we’ve got to start putting money in smart places. Buy kids laptops iPads whatever. Buy them cheap phones with a hotspot. Let’s spend some money making this work instead of pipe dreams that we’re going to have to eventually shut down. We need a government that is looking at what this really is and doing something about it. We’ve had farmers burying their crop. We’ve had farmers pouring milk out. The government should (maybe) pay to run the supply chains to make sure that nobody has to dump anything and make sure people get food. It’s not just about writing a check to people. The government should be behind getting things to people that need it instead of just talking about how this will go away. We need a national response paying attention to what is and isn’t getting done and getting done what isn’t getting done on a larger scale. Instead of saying open the schools open the schools.
I don’t know how long it would take to get back in person if we did this. Hopefully it’s six weeks. it’s probably not six weeks though.
I so badly want to be the one whose opinion is wrong. And I get it that my opinion isn’t going to be the one we go with. I’m not trying to fight for it to be so. I’m just stating that it’s a bad decision. But I can’t hope I am wrong more than I do.
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I'm in So. Ind. And we saw how online learning worked with rural and at-risk kids. Your solutions are admirable, but if kids live in a no service area, with no Wi-Fi, and can't drive to a hotspot, then they are screwed. And that can't be fixed in a few weeks. And I am not talking about the 80% of kids who could do online. It's the 20%. Most are low income and rural. A friend of mine is a teacher at a small school. He said it was a disaster last spring. He says he thinks it will be better, but the D students who need him will likely fail. The A and B students will stay that way, with family support and a solid socioeconomic standing. But the C and D students don't have that support and will really struggle.
Buy the kids a phone with a hotspot. It can be done. The problems we had were problems. No doubt. Teachers were definitely not trying to push kids harder than they needed pushed at the time. Everything that happened was so worrisome that we didn’t want to push the kids to be stressed more than they already were. Now we’ve adjusted. It doesn’t mean what we did can’t work. It means it didn’t work well enough then. This can be done. It’s not the best thing we can do. It’s the best thing available to us.
Have you been to So. Ind? Many areas don't have coverage. And I mean none in the hallows. But who is going to stay home with the 8 year old and make sure the kid is 1) safe, and 2) logging on to e-learn?
I think the doctors and scientists are more right than you are. I trust them more than you. No offense.
That is the big question no one wants to address. It will be an economic hardship for so many families. I’m sure some with younger children will go the daycare route and hold their kids back.
I’m also from southern IN. Some districts (greater Clark for example) are already back. We are scheduled to start in a week and a half. Hopefully it stays that way. I’m fine with districts making their own decisions. I don’t know enough about any district in Indy to say they should go or not.
I hear your concerns. And I agree that the answers that are appropriate for Indianapolis or Los Angeles are likely not the same answers that should be insisted upon for southern Indiana. I just fear we are asking teachers to be too many things that they shouldn't have to be just as we ask police to be too many things that they shouldn't have to be.
What's your opinion on all of the hatred and vitriol they've been getting from many conservatives...particularly other members of the Trump administration and the President himself?
That is fair. Their reality will be much different than this time a year ago. I do think the same is true for people in many other professions as well.
Well...I'd suggest that the degree of disagreement might make it so. Regardless, we could start here and then look here and then maybe look here?
And then the death threats?
You don't seem to acknowledge the administration's strong pushback against "the science" that you insist we should follow. That strikes me as disingenuous.
I'd humbly suggest that, as with asking police to do too much, the problem with what we ask teachers to do didn't start with coronavirus.
As I reflect on our previous exchange on this topic, I'm struck that despite your insistence that you're looking at this broadly, the only argument that you ever make is the two-income parent argument. It's definitely a piece of the puzzle and it's good to me that you recognize the appropriateness of districts making their own decisions, but I hope that they take into account more than just the difficulties presented to families who need a place for their kids to go during the school day (a demo which I'm part of.)
2 of 3 are pay sites, but I'll take your word. Again, is disagreement hatred and vitriol? Were the death threats from the admin? If so, then that would be disgusting.
As for science, I could say the same for you (or anyone who opposes going back to school) and that group is too being disingenuous.
Of course, I would challenge you to find where I posted that we should not have followed the science. I'll save you the time. It doesn't exist. I am staying consistent.
That simply isn’t true. I’ve also made the case that students learn more in classroom and that young children especially will struggle or find it impossible to learn online. I posted numbers in the other thread about the minuscule number of deaths for young kids. I’ve posted about steps schools could/should take to ensure safety of everyone. I’ve said big schools may have unique struggles (why I’m not advocating a one size fits all standard, as say DeSantis in Florida). So yes, while I think the strain on parents is a major issue, I’ve never suggested it is the only thing to consider and have posted about other considerations on this site. There have been many posts on this subject so it’s understandable you wouldn’t have seen or remembered everything
the lack of uniformity about everything covid-related drives me nuts. public schools here are largely online only. private schools here are largely in-person. youth soccer just got shut down. 11 v 11 outside on a 120 yard field, yet bars and restaurants are still open. some states are near a total lockdown. others wide open.
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