School Daze
Empty out bars, restaurants, and gyms, but pack children in schools … the only people who think that’s a good idea are the people who don’t have to be at school.
It’s mid-July and teachers are scheduled to return on August 3. Remote learning is to take place beginning August 10. The governor has mandated that all schools open up face to face instruction on August 17. There doesn’t seem to be a plan in place to make any of this happen safely.
I’m a teacher, and I have not heard any helpful information since the two hour staff meeting on zoom last week. The teachers expressed concerns for their students, the student’s families, and their own well-being.
Every question was answered the same, “I don’t know.”
This is what I know:
Children are carriers. Every teacher has had pink eye, ring worm, lice, strep throat, influenza, and every other contagion that can be spread by students in school. When I worked in the state of Hawaii, I was required to have current TB tests and a series of hepatitis vaccines. I’m not sure why scientists and the medical experts found that children are less likely to spread COVID. I hope it’s true, but I’ll bet it snot.
Children will be required to stay six feet apart in overcrowded classrooms. If recess happens, students will keep their distance. Fact! Children are social magnates. Separating them requires classroom management skills better suited for employees in the Department of Corrections.
One brilliant idea is for students to remain in the same room with the same people all day to prevent contamination. Bathroom breaks at a scheduled time. Excuse me? Anyone who has been in a classroom for ten minutes knows there is no such thing as scheduled bathroom breaks.
On a good day, some students with emotional or physical disabilities are not able to comprehend or follow basic school protocol. Thus, the term “special education” applies. Expecting young students to keep a mask on their face for seven hours per day is asking a lot. In light of the current debate, will parents tolerate their children wearing masks?
https://www.boredteachers.com/trending/elementary-kids-wearing-masks-in-school-will-be-like
Speaking of parents, I get it. I want the best for your kids too! Believe me when I say school is not going to be the place your kids left last spring. And, once schools do open for face to face instruction, it could be interrupted with an indefinite closure, depending on medical mandates, political positioning, and issues that no one could possibly predict.
Consistency is a key component to successful education. My advice is to make contingent plans for child care to prevent a scramble at the last minute.
When my daughter was a freshman in high school, she went through the windshield of a car. It was a horrific accident that led to many absences. She struggled with major health concerns and lengthy hospital stays, but eventually she caught up. She graduated from high school with her class and moved on to higher education. Another student in her class developed leukemia and missed a whole year. When he returned to school he was behind for several months and with time and work he went on to be successful.
Sometimes the health and welfare of a child takes preference over any other life events. And, in most cases students can and will catch up on academic skills.
On a personal note, I’m in a high risk demographic. At age 65 I’m healthy. But anxious about my own safety. This state is one of the major hot spots, not only in the U.S. but in the world. If I become ill, there won’t be a hospital bed for me. My age makes me dispensable. I’m being asked to risk my health in order to keep my job and retirement benefits. It’s like being asked to play Russian Roulette with no blanks on a daily basis.
Yes, I remind myself every morning, I’m lucky to have a job, an income, retirement benefits, and medical insurance. However, none of it matters if I’m dead.
What am I going to do?
“I don’t know.”
If COVID-19 were a class, it would be “social studies.” When COVID-19 shows up in a classroom, everyone, in one way or another, fails.
