Fingers Crossed for High School Sports

[Unregistered]

Nobody deserves the taxes we pay either but we do it anyway .... for the taxes we pay in all of our towns in the northeast, you better cut us something back or the cuts will be coming hard. If the teachers union keeps getting their way with work at home and salary/benefits negotiations, we need to push back hard. Not for nothing, many of the public schools do not work well .... if it was the corporate world, most of the noncompetitive systems would have gone out of business long ago .... make all schools, schools of choice and lets see which ones have kids remaining in their classrooms.

Nobody deserves taxes? What?

Anyhoo, I don't disagree with the rest of your rant and do want them to return to playing. But, I'll continue to maintain no kid "deserves" to play HS sports. If that's the case, then every single kid in school deserves the same.

[Unregistered]

Don't confuse the Teacher's Union with teachers. Biggest scam going. The teachers want to be back in their classes with the kids.

[Unregistered]

Don't confuse the Teacher's Union with teachers. Biggest scam going. The teachers want to be back in their classes with the kids.

No way. My wife is a teacher .... she cant believe how many of her peers are balking at returning.

[Unregistered]

These are all good questions, but the wrong focus. Bottom line, there is risk with covid-19. There is risk in everything we do. drive a car, walk down the street, etc. If a teacher does not want to work, do not work, hire a substitute. If a bus driver does not want to work, do not work, hire a replacement or find another way to school. If a parent is not comfortable sending their kid to school do not send them. But that is no reason to shut down everything for everyone. For those people that want to, let them get on with their lives. Sign a waiver, whatever. This country will crumble if we think we can just shut the doors while they search for a vaccine. THIS IS THE MAJOR POINT. WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO LIVE WITH THIS UNCERTAINTY FOR A LONG TIME. Get used to it. If you want to hide away for years until a vaccine, that is your prerogative, but you will not make it unless you are very wealthy. Many prefer to do the best we can and get on with our lives.

Agree

[Unregistered]

Out with the old and In with the new the teachers union biggest scammers almost as bad as EBT.

[Unregistered]

Nobody deserves taxes? What?

Anyhoo, I don't disagree with the rest of your rant and do want them to return to playing. But, I'll continue to maintain no kid "deserves" to play HS sports. If that's the case, then every single kid in school deserves the same.

School sports are tax payer funded, nice to haves, but not necessities. If a schools sports programs are supported with public funds, they have to be equal opportunity. If all kids deserve cafeteria, libraries and robotics labs, well they “deserve” sports too.

[Unregistered]

Everyone gets a trophy yaaay!!

[Unregistered]

Access to a good education is a right. Not all kids get that now as it is. Playing HS sports isn't a right.

[Unregistered]

Questions for School Openings:
30% of the teachers in the US are over 50. About 16% of the total deaths in the US are people between the ages of 45-65.
• If a teacher tests positive for COVID-19 are they required to quarantine for 2-3 weeks? Is their sick leave covered, paid?
• If that teacher has 5 classes a day with 30 students each, do all 150 of those students need to then stay home and quarantine for 14 days?
• Do all 150 of those students now have to get tested? Who pays for those tests? Are they happening at school? How are the parents being notified? Does everyone in each of those kids' families need to get tested? Who pays for that?
• What if someone who lives in the same house as a teacher tests positive? Does that teacher now need to take 14 days off of work to quarantine? Is that time off covered? Paid?
• Where is the district going to find a substitute teacher who will work in a classroom full of exposed, possibly infected students for substitute pay?
• Substitutes teach in multiple schools. What if they are diagnosed with COVID-19? Do all the kids in each school now have to quarantine and get tested? Who is going to pay for that?
• What if a student in your kid's class tests positive? What if your kid tests positive? Does every other student and teacher they have been around quarantine? Do we all get notified who is infected and when? Or because of HIPAA regulations are parents and teachers just going to get mysterious “may have been in contact” emails all year?
• What about bussing? Do we quadruple the number of busses to achieve proper social distance? Each bus will be disinfected between each group of students, right?
• What is this stress going to do to our teachers? How does it affect their health and well-being? How does it affect their ability to teach? How does it affect the quality of education they are able to provide? What is it going to do to our kids? What are the long-term effects of consistently being stressed out?
• How will it affect students and faculty when the first teacher in their school dies from this? The first parent of a student who brought it home? The first kid?
• How many more people are going to die, that otherwise would not have if we had stayed home longer?

These are fair questions for psuedo-professional to ask.
How are these issues any different than those faced in other industries. What have Dunkin Donuts employees done? Restaurant Workers, Flight attendants, Bus Drivers, Nursing home aides .... they all face similar if not identical issues.

Every profession has risks and rewards. Tell teachers that like Uber Drivers, Restaurant Workers, Flight Attendants, and every one else. If you don't work, you don't get paid. You job will be here when your ready but in the meantime, you decide on your risk tolerance

[Unregistered]

Kids can not waste another year pretending to learn on google classroom and zoom. My kids lost half a year last year. If attendance is not important, give them all As and lay off the entire staff and lower our taxes. If they go back online, no more 30 minute check-in for teachers, assign worksheets and reading and go back to the golf course or pool in FL for martinis. Have online video lectures like corporations meet. Same exact class schedules and length of classes. Teachers cant keep pretending that this was all new, difficult and that they really worked hard (and that it was the same experience as in-person school). Don't like it, find another job or retire.

So, we understand that you know ZERO about education. Perhaps you should do some reading on the subject so that you don't look so .... "Trump-like."???

There has been a significant amount of research done on remote learning for various age groups and student populations. One thing that has jumped out over and over again is that simply mirroring the normal in-school class environment on-line is one of the worst ways to educate kids. That's why so many principals, department heads and school committee members are scrambling to understand asynchronous teaching methods or hybrid models. For well-run school systems - and there are many in MA - the fall will be much more successful than the spring was, due to their ability to learn and plan.

[Unregistered]

So, we understand that you know ZERO about education. Perhaps you should do some reading on the subject so that you don't look so .... "Trump-like."???

There has been a significant amount of research done on remote learning for various age groups and student populations. One thing that has jumped out over and over again is that simply mirroring the normal in-school class environment on-line is one of the worst ways to educate kids. That's why so many principals, department heads and school committee members are scrambling to understand asynchronous teaching methods or hybrid models. For well-run school systems - and there are many in MA - the fall will be much more successful than the spring was, due to their ability to learn and plan.

So what you are saying is that the 2-3 hours my kid spent daily with online school was as good as 6+ hours in the building. Not sure they learned much but still got straight A‘S and the GPA is still well over 4. I think a lot still gets missed by not being in the building. Lack of socializing will have some detrimental effects if it last too long.

[Unregistered]

Suburban middle and upper income kids in good districts missed much less than lower income kids in poor performing ones. My spouse tutors in a low income nearby town. The nonprofit organization tried to help kids with their school work since day 1 of the shutdown. Many parents had to work so kids were at home with a teenager in charge. Some parents were ESL and struggled with homework instructions. Most had limited internet access, no computer or one for multiple kids. Trying to do a math lesson on Facetime goes as well as you think it would. These are the kids that really need to be back in class. They're losing so much and they were already behind. Studies by education experts bear this out - a big difference in the learning experience depending on your family income and school district.

Most teachers I know are caring and compassionate and want to be back in class - safely. There are ways to improve with staggered schedulesz everyone with masks, gallons of sanitizerz taking over gyms etc to distance classroom space. There is a smaller group of teachers that has understandable health concerns. Stay home at reduced pay. The problem is this isn't like a Target needing more staff. You can train a cashier in no time. There isn't a supply of teachers in the wings waiting to step in. There are no easy answers to any of this.

[Unregistered]

Suburban middle and upper income kids in good districts missed much less than lower income kids in poor performing ones. My spouse tutors in a low income nearby town. The nonprofit organization tried to help kids with their school work since day 1 of the shutdown. Many parents had to work so kids were at home with a teenager in charge. Some parents were ESL and struggled with homework instructions. Most had limited internet access, no computer or one for multiple kids. Trying to do a math lesson on Facetime goes as well as you think it would. These are the kids that really need to be back in class. They're losing so much and they were already behind. Studies by education experts bear this out - a big difference in the learning experience depending on your family income and school district.

Most teachers I know are caring and compassionate and want to be back in class - safely. There are ways to improve with staggered schedulesz everyone with masks, gallons of sanitizerz taking over gyms etc to distance classroom space. There is a smaller group of teachers that has understandable health concerns. Stay home at reduced pay. The problem is this isn't like a Target needing more staff. You can train a cashier in no time. There isn't a supply of teachers in the wings waiting to step in. There are no easy answers to any of this.

Ok really? Lets call a spade a spade here. I would argue that middle class and upper class kids had a more difficult time with the shut downs. Most middle class and upper class families have two working parents thus the kids spent most of their time fending for themselves in this endeavor. Most lower income families have no job or only a part time job thus meaning the parents were home more often with their children. So that argument is out. With regards to internet, most, if not all, internet providers in most cities and towns provided free wifi to low income families, so that is just another excuse. Also, facetime is no different than zoom or Microsoft teams so please don't use that as an excuse either.

Now with regards to the teachers, I agree that most are caring and compassionate and are in the field for the right reasons. Like any field there are those who are not and/or are burnt out. That being said its not the teachers that are the problem its the unions. The teachers know that they have to be back in the schools and teaching in person, but the unions will always want more because that their job and what they are supposed to do.

These kids should be back in school full time and playing sports. That's an opinion based on numbers not emotion. Teachers will need to take all precautions necessary including wearing masks, washing and sanitizing hands and their room as often as humanly possible.

[Unregistered]

Ok really? Lets call a spade a spade here. I would argue that middle class and upper class kids had a more difficult time with the shut downs. Most middle class and upper class families have two working parents thus the kids spent most of their time fending for themselves in this endeavor. Most lower income families have no job or only a part time job thus meaning the parents were home more often with their children. So that argument is out. With regards to internet, most, if not all, internet providers in most cities and towns provided free wifi to low income families, so that is just another excuse. Also, facetime is no different than zoom or Microsoft teams so please don't use that as an excuse either.

Your whiteness is showing.

[Unregistered]

Ok really? Lets call a spade a spade here. I would argue that middle class and upper class kids had a more difficult time with the shut downs. Most middle class and upper class families have two working parents thus the kids spent most of their time fending for themselves in this endeavor. Most lower income families have no job or only a part time job thus meaning the parents were home more often with their children. So that argument is out. With regards to internet, most, if not all, internet providers in most cities and towns provided free wifi to low income families, so that is just another excuse. Also, facetime is no different than zoom or Microsoft teams so please don't use that as an excuse either.

Now with regards to the teachers, I agree that most are caring and compassionate and are in the field for the right reasons. Like any field there are those who are not and/or are burnt out. That being said its not the teachers that are the problem its the unions. The teachers know that they have to be back in the schools and teaching in person, but the unions will always want more because that their job and what they are supposed to do.

These kids should be back in school full time and playing sports. That's an opinion based on numbers not emotion. Teachers will need to take all precautions necessary including wearing masks, washing and sanitizing hands and their room as often as humanly possible.

The digital divide is real. Low income households are not better equipped to handle remote learning - for so many reasons. We need schools to open to keep kids safe in lower income areas. As for sports, i agree! But this is TS, we are clearly biased towards soccer, but I understand why others feel it’s superfluous. HS Sports can and should he played outside this fall even if classrooms are in a hybrid mode.