What School Looks Like Around The World During COVID-19

Robert59

Robert59

Well-known Member
Location
Now I live in Tennesee. Did live in Michigan.
Kids around the world are going to school under very different circumstances during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many schools have reopened with varying degrees of mitigation depending on government guidance, while others haven’t reopened at all but instead implemented distance learning. Take a visual tour of what children of the world are dealing with during this unusual time.

https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/first-day-school-covid-19-210753306.html
 

The images are about what I'd expect. Humans continually adapt to new environments and circumstances from the moment we exit the womb.

Children will get through this unscathed if the adults in their lives tamp down their own drama and help the kids cope.

Good schools will continue to educate while shepherding their students, staff and faculty through this crisis safely.
 

Many children will not get through this unscathed, no matter how well their parents react. Doing this in school, as necessary as it may be, is unnatural and unsocial. Kids need interaction. Kids need to be socialized. Kids need to feel safe. They need human contact. My kids would come in to the classroom every day, and almost all of them hugged me. I could tell the ones who needed that hug and enjoyed that hug. With others, it was just a greeting. No hugging now. It's heartbreaking seeing these pictures. Will they all turn into germaphobes? Probably not, but at least some will. Sure, good schools will continue to educate. What about the not-so-good schools? Because they're out there. If they can't cope in normal times, what now? Fingers crossed and prayers going out.
 
CarolfromTX said:
Many children will not get through this unscathed, no matter how well their parents react. Doing this in school, as necessary as it may be, is unnatural and unsocial. Kids need interaction. Kids need to be socialized. Kids need to feel safe. They need human contact. My kids would come in to the classroom every day, and almost all of them hugged me. I could tell the ones who needed that hug and enjoyed that hug. With others, it was just a greeting. No hugging now. It's heartbreaking seeing these pictures. Will they all turn into germaphobes? Probably not, but at least some will. Sure, good schools will continue to educate. What about the not-so-good schools? Because they're out there. If they can't cope in normal times, what now? Fingers crossed and prayers going out.
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You're right that poor schools will likely serve their students far worse than good ones.
I didn't mean to suggest that this will be easy for kids. It won't be. But a lot of stuff isn't easy for kids. It is survivable though, and with good support it need not be traumatizing.

As for hugging students - even before Covid, teachers are strongly cautioned to not have physical contact with their students beyond fist bumps and high fives. When kids "come in for a hug" teachers angle them off into a side hug. (This is according to my MS teacher daughter and HS teacher son-in-law. They said that even with elementary kids, hugs are rare and always side hugs these days.)

Most children are still getting social contact and interaction - they have families, neighbors, relatives, and other humans in their circles, many of whom they continue to see on a regular basis. My grands may not be hugging their neighbors, but they certainly do see them and talk to them when they're playing outside. Yes, they're wearing masks and chatting from six feet away, but they're interacting nevertheless.

I'm not sure what the solution is. If we reopen the schools the way they were a year ago, this virus will likely explode. None of the choices are good.
 
Well, I taught in a small, rural school, and we were able to "get away with" more than larger, more restrictive schools. Those kids needed those hugs. I told the principal that the day I had to stop hugging my kids was my last day. And I meant it. It is a sad, sad time in education.
 
CarolfromTX said:
Well, I taught in a small, rural school, and we were able to "get away with" more than larger, more restrictive schools. Those kids needed those hugs. I told the principal that the day I had to stop hugging my kids was my last day. And I meant it. It is a sad, sad time in education.
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I grew up in rural schools and know exactly what you're talking about, Carol. Unfortunately, now that pedophiles have realized teaching and coaching professions provide enormous unrestricted access to children, the landscape has changed for everyone.

My daughter says she never has a single child in her classroom. When classes are changing, she stands outside the door, so as not to be alone with the last child out or the first child in. If kids want to meet for extra help, she arranges time outdoors on the quad or in the library. On her campus all solid doors, the principal's included, were replaced with doors featuring large, untinted glass panels.

My son-in-law is even more cautious.

A sniff of a rumor, no matter how innocent the teacher, student, and/or the action, and police are called, careers destroyed, reputations forever tarnished, and finances ruined.

Because of this, all school employees are strongly cautioned and repeatedly reminded to always be hands-off. The stakes are just too high.
 
Some of those classrooms are not set up for proper social distancing. Some of them clearly are. And do they really expect that children judging distance by stretching out their arms is alright?! This is a tough situation for teachers, students and parents. N.J.'s governor decided based upon teacher objections and the school board's vote, that our schools will not reopen for in class learning until November if the COVID cases are at manageable levels.
 
OneEyedDiva said:
Some of those classrooms are not set up for proper social distancing. Some of them clearly are. And do they really expect that children judging distance by stretching out their arms is alright?! This is a tough situation for teachers, students and parents. N.J.'s governor decided based upon teacher objections and the school board's vote, that our schools will not reopen for in class learning until November if the COVID cases are at manageable levels.
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Is this new and/or statewide? I was talking to a NJ friend just last night. She said her grands' schools started hybrid schedules this week. All students have 3 days online, 2 days in-class.
 
StarSong said:
Is this new and/or statewide? I was talking to a NJ friend just last night. She said her grands' schools started hybrid schedules this week. All students have 3 days online, 2 days in-class.
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I thought it was statewide Star but maybe not. This is from less than a month ago, the last time I read about the school reopening situation. "Paterson has joined a growing list of New Jersey school districts starting the new academic year with all-remote learning." I had read about the delayed opening and remote schooling in another publication, in which I thought it said statewide. I can't find that article now. Here's the link for the complete article: https://www.pix11.com/news/back-to-...o-keep-school-buildings-closed-until-november
 

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