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School Talk

It’s not that’s expensive to pay a teacher as much as they normally make. Because teachers don’t make that much.
 
It’s not that’s expensive to pay a teacher as much as they normally make. Because teachers don’t make that much.

We interviewed a nanny that wanted to make $70K to watch 3 two year olds.

She also wanted it in cash. So that’s a hard pass.
 
Notre Dame moving online for at least 2 weeks. Michigan State told students not to come at all.
App faculty had a vote of no-confidence in their chancellor (about more than just Covid).
 
Somebody "hacked" into our elementary school's virtual 1st grade music class on Monday and just started screaming profanities.

What the fuck is wrong with people?

As an aside, we just started day 3 of 1st grade virtual schooling and my happy-go-lucky, always smiling daughter fucking hates it and was in tears this morning.

What are we fucking doing? The impact to learning and stress on mental health is way worse than COVID-19 would be on elementary school kids.
 
What are we fucking doing? The impact to learning and stress on mental health is way worse than COVID-19 would be on elementary school kids.

Jury is still out on the health effects on kids, but I do agree that the social and educational aspects really suck. But who is going to teach those kids? And what about the families of those kids? Covid is much worse for them, and you know that first graders aren't going to socially distance in person. That's where we are because America has pretty much acted like a class of elementary school kids with one of the kids in charge.
 
Somebody "hacked" into our elementary school's virtual 1st grade music class on Monday and just started screaming profanities.

What the fuck is wrong with people?

As an aside, we just started day 3 of 1st grade virtual schooling and my happy-go-lucky, always smiling daughter fucking hates it and was in tears this morning.

What are we fucking doing? The impact to learning and stress on mental health is way worse than COVID-19 would be on elementary school kids.

My kindergarten daughter is so fucking confused - for good reason. The schools are doing things to try to maintain the "feel" of a classroom in the virtual space when that makes no fucking sense in the virtual landscape. My daughter keeps asking why we are doing things certain ways instead of just simplifying, and I keep having to tell her, "well, this is a closer way to do it to how we normally do it in real life." That's not helping.

For example, the Microsoft teams environment that she's learning in has the option for her to see the other 6 classmates in little boxes while the teacher is teaching on the main window. Unfortunately, most of the other kids are keeping their cameras off. She keeps saying, "I want to see my classmates." Because I think she's trying to gauge how well she's learning compared to them. But instead they are just monolithic circles with two letters in them, instead of the face of a little boy or a little girl trying to figure shit out.

I've started to remember how stressful grade school is/was. And I think it's even worse for my kids now. That's sad.
 
Well the good news is that the pandemic, among other things, has shown that we as a country are dumb as shit. Proving the way we previously educated the population is a huge failure so your kids aren't missing much.
 
Well the good news is that the pandemic, among other things, has shown that we as a country are dumb as shit. Proving the way we previously educated the population is a huge failure so your kids aren't missing much.

Sounds like someone is jealous of the My Pillow guy’s immunology chops.
 
Jury is still out on the health effects on kids, but I do agree that the social and educational aspects really suck. But who is going to teach those kids? And what about the families of those kids? Covid is much worse for them, and you know that first graders aren't going to socially distance in person. That's where we are because America has pretty much acted like a class of elementary school kids with one of the kids in charge.

Serious question... What about elementary school do you think would be different w/ a different President? I imagine we'd be in the same scenario of virtual learning no matter what. Even if/when we get a vaccine, you aren't going to see an immediate reopening of the schools... We're likely going to do this the entire school year. I think that sucks and I don't think it is necessary.

I'm not saying Trump has done a good job in leading the COVID-19 response (far from it), but my beef isn't about that.

IMO, there has to be a point where you look cost/benefit and realize that virtual learning is not an acceptable answer over any timeframe beyond a few months. We're lucky in that my wife is able to stay at home to help facilitate the learning and we also have access to a good computer, wifi, etc. There is a high percentage of kids that don't have that and it has to be a nightmare. Not all parents are "work from home" parents with the ability to supervise virtual learning. Not all children have access to technology. I guess those kids are just shit out of luck.

I've said it before... The decision to close schools in the spring was easy (and correct). The decision to reopen them is going to take fucking forever because people want it to be 100% "safe" and it never will be.
 
My kindergarten daughter is so fucking confused - for good reason. The schools are doing things to try to maintain the "feel" of a classroom in the virtual space when that makes no fucking sense in the virtual landscape. My daughter keeps asking why we are doing things certain ways instead of just simplifying, and I keep having to tell her, "well, this is a closer way to do it to how we normally do it in real life." That's not helping.

For example, the Microsoft teams environment that she's learning in has the option for her to see the other 6 classmates in little boxes while the teacher is teaching on the main window. Unfortunately, most of the other kids are keeping their cameras off. She keeps saying, "I want to see my classmates." Because I think she's trying to gauge how well she's learning compared to them. But instead they are just monolithic circles with two letters in them, instead of the face of a little boy or a little girl trying to figure shit out.

I've started to remember how stressful grade school is/was. And I think it's even worse for my kids now. That's sad.

Couldn't agree more.

I feel like our kids got more out of the camps they attended the last couple of months than they'll get from school this year. At least at camp they were interacting w/ other kids and doing activities where they were learning new things. In school right now, it is Zoom all day. Maybe that works for older kids who are used to sitting in class for lectures... That doesn't work for K, 1st Grade, etc.
 
Better President in place means better testing and tracing infrastructure set up back in March/April/May, which means not only reduced community spread but also allowing people to quickly isolate after a positive test, then return after the proscribed isolation time. Definitely would be easier for schools to open in that case.
 
Serious question... What about elementary school do you think would be different w/ a different President? I imagine we'd be in the same scenario of virtual learning no matter what. Even if/when we get a vaccine, you aren't going to see an immediate reopening of the schools... We're likely going to do this the entire school year. I think that sucks and I don't think it is necessary.

I'm not saying Trump has done a good job in leading the COVID-19 response (far from it), but my beef isn't about that.

IMO, there has to be a point where you look cost/benefit and realize that virtual learning is not an acceptable answer over any timeframe beyond a few months. We're lucky in that my wife is able to stay at home to help facilitate the learning and we also have access to a good computer, wifi, etc. There is a high percentage of kids that don't have that and it has to be a nightmare. Not all parents are "work from home" parents with the ability to supervise virtual learning. Not all children have access to technology. I guess those kids are just shit out of luck.

I've said it before... The decision to close schools in the spring was easy (and correct). The decision to reopen them is going to take fucking forever because people want it to be 100% "safe" and it never will be.

Look at many countries in Europe. They have things mostly in hand without a vaccine, and were hit earlier than the US when less was known about the virus. The difference was two-fold. Strong central coordination on containing the virus and people willing to go through some mild to moderate discomfort for the public good. In the US, we have a president who still thinks covid will go away on its own and a population where "masks violate my rights and will maybe kill me" is given some sort of a reasonable position instead of being laughed at by everyone like the idiocy that it is. A different federal response would probably not have gotten all the crazies go through the "arduous" process of contact tracing and mask wearing, but I certainly feel like things would be significantly better, and potentially at a point where in person schools would be a reasonable consideration.
 
Different leaders would prioritize a plan for reopening schools rather than haphazardly reopening restaurants and bars. We’ve had five months to come up with a plan and done nothing.

Our district has no guidance from the state Department of Education except come up with a plan and we approve it and recently don’t close school just because of a COVID outbreak. Obviously Betsy DeVos has done nothing.
 
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