Should schools reopen?

I have mixed feelings about reopening the schools.

I think the majority of kids in the wealthier suburban schools would be fine with homeschooling or some new form of teenage fee based daycare where smaller numbers of kids could get together with an adult for the day to supervise them, help with computer-based learning, provide some activities and allow the parents to return to work.

I think that for many of the inner city kids school becomes the surrogate parent, big brother/sister, etc... Many of those kids need the stability and structure school provides to their daily lives along with meals, activities, adult role models, and the hope of a better future. I'm afraid that the longer the inner city schools stay closed the more kids we will lose for life.

Tough decisions.
 

Pappy said:
To me, this looks like visiting an inmate in a prison, but has been suggested for our schools down here. That, and not rotating the students from room to room. The teachers would rotate. Another is rotating days or staying home and take classes on line.

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I spoke with a school administrator just the other day about this same thing. I was under the impression that the schools were considering to send the kids back, but then enforce mitigation. School buses would be sterilized after each run and classrooms likewise. The administrator told me that what they were considering was to keep each class in their home room and then just switch the teacher. I told her that I understood, but what about if the kids in the classroom didn’t all have the same subjects. No problem. At the start of the school year, all the academic achievers going onto college would be in the same classroom. Then, all the kids studying to be business would be in the same room and so on. I thought this to be a good idea. Instead of the kids moving from classroom to classroom, the teachers would move.
 
911 said:
SS: I fully understand what your concern is and I can’t deny that it is an issue that needs to be considered when (or if) the kids go back to school. What I thought was kind of questionable was that when teachers were surveyed, the majority of this particular survey agreed that it was time to return to school. However, when the teachers’ unions were surveyed, the consensus was to stay at home.

What do you make of this?
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I would think that different people were being surveyed, or the survey questions were framed differently, or both.

Every single teacher I know - and I know many - has asserted that most school districts have a long way to go before being ready to reopen.
So many teachers, admins and children are at risk because of their own (or a cohabiting family member's) age or existing health condition.
 

Sunny said:
That sums it up perfectly, Fmdog. Just look through this thread and see which opinion which person comes down on.

Needless to say, my feeling right now is, hell, no. The numbers in my state have started to go up again. IMO, anybody who is more worried about jobs, money, the economy, etc. than about people's health and lives, is just plain nuts.

And yes, the disease is usually milder in children. But usually doesn't mean always. Children have died of it, or complications from it. And they can easily spread it to their parents and grandparents. I think Europe is being pretty premature in reopening also, but that is not my business.
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Well, I guess I’m just plain nuts. The U.S. has to get back to work. We can’t continue down the road of printing money, so people can stay home, but more importantly than that, the kids really need to be in the classrooms.

I read an interesting article online at www.chalkbeat.org that reminded me that not everyone can afford to buy a computer and have online education available. The article also stated that many of our inner city kids don’t get proper nutrition by not being in school.

Maybe the risks are worth the returns.
 
fmdog44 said:
It is more political than medical now.
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It’s election year. Everything is politicized one way or another. We should all consider on doing what’s best for the child. The kids in the inner cities feel the pain more than those living in the burbs. Going to school for some of these kids is the only form of protection from abuse that they have. I know you probably didn’t expect that kind of response, but it’s true. Some of these inner city kids have a terrible home life. Some of them don’t even get a meal if they don’t go to school. Most of the kids want to go back.
 
Bonnie said:
Schools are scheduled to reopen by the end of August around here. I'm hoping they can go back.
My granddaughters want so much to get back to school. They miss all their friends and teachers, and although they've been doing online schooling since March, it sure isn't the same.
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Online schooling itself is a good lesson learned. There will be times in life when you are on your own.
 
911 said:
Well, I guess I’m just plain nuts. The U.S. has to get back to work. We can’t continue down the road of printing money, so people can stay home, but more importantly than that, the kids really need to be in the classrooms.

I read an interesting article online at www.chalkbeat.org that reminded me that not everyone can afford to buy a computer and have online education available. The article also stated that many of our inner city kids don’t get proper nutrition by not being in school.

Maybe the risks are worth the returns.
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I read about one school district and they are making sure that all the students have a computer. It's an idea long past its time.
For me I'm not quite comfortable with putting children at risk. For nutrition. I'm sure the money that went to inner city kids can be continued to be used for the same purpose.
 
StarSong said:
I would think that different people were being surveyed, or the survey questions were framed differently, or both.

Every single teacher I know - and I know many - has asserted that most school districts have a long way to go before being ready to reopen.
So many teachers, admins and children are at risk because of their own (or a cohabiting family member's) age or existing health condition.
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I think the older teachers are very hesitant about returning to the classroom, but the younger teachers have voiced their opinion to return. I was at the school board meeting this past Monday evening. Almost the whole meeting was centered around reopening the schools. I can understand why the older teachers are very hesitant, but the board President stated that they will have a epidemiologist advise them of proper mitigation techniques.

Here in PA, we have had an uptick in cases, but the curve has flattened as deaths have also slowed. I‘ll just keep praying for an effective vaccine. The sooner, the better.
 
There is no way I think it is safe for children to go back to school. I have 3 grandchildren and I would not put them in danger when they could do just as well working from home.
 
I think it depends on where you live. If you live just south of No Where, and the infection rate is low, then schools ought to open. Buy, if you live in an area with a high infection/death rate, well, obviously, you wouldn't send your kids into that kind of situation. It's one of those things, we're you're going to have to trust your local officials.
 
Keesha said:
I think the idea of shoving kids back to school so that parents can get back to work is a pathetic reason to do this. Putting our kids at risk shouldn’t be an option no matter what. It’s better to live in a depression WITH your kids than toss them to the unexpected. Sure some are getting depressed. Some will always get depressed. Depression is common across the board for everyone.

Saying we should ALL just get used to it and get on with life is the ultimate in selfish and irresponsible. Lives matter. Whether they are young or old, everyone has the ability to spread this. Look how many snubbed their nose at this pandemic saying it was all just nonsense yet are now sick with the virus and many of them LEADERS!

People need to wonder what the intention is of some of the suggestions out there. Financial gain should never be placed higher than serious contagious health risks.
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Really ? ... And if the parents can't go back to work, cannot afford to go back to work? Who is going to feed them all? ...... kids and parents alike.
 
Also, how about the considerable danger to the teachers? They are in a higher risk group than the children, and inevitably, some of them would become sick, and some would die. So if the teachers refuse to put their own lives at risk, and just quit their job, what kind of education would these kids be getting? 200 students to each teacher?

I think they are better off with online learning, which at least is safe.
 
Yes. I feel that kids need the kind of education they receive in a school as well as sports and extraccuricular activities.
 
I think schools are really grappling with this. Nobody wants to put kids at risk. Do we cancel school indefinitely until there's a vaccine? Maybe we do. I don't know. I've heard a proposal to alternate one week in school, and two weeks online. I guess that will limit exposure. I was a teacher. I can promise you that if there is no school, children will go hungry. Even if they still hand out free breakfasts and lunches at a central location, as they did here, kids will still go hungry, because some parents are even too lazy, or busy, to pick it up. There is no easy solution. Some kids will be left to fend for themselves at home if there isn't any school. You think they're going to tune in to online teaching? And what about special needs kids? How are their needs going to be met? So many questions. So few answers.
 
-What there is no vaccine for one, two years-or longer.
This is a multi-faceted problem and it is not a pandemic, it's a plague because we ignore guidelines. .
 
I would add that my daughter worked with CPS for ten years before she went back to teaching. Her best friend still works for CPS as a Master Investigator. Since the lockdown, things in that area have gotten bad. Parents testing positive for meth AND Covid. School might actually be a safer environment, ironically. There is no escape for some kids. Not even school. Think about that, those of you who claim to care about kids. So many problems. Still no answers.
 
911 said:
I spoke with a school administrator just the other day about this same thing. I was under the impression that the schools were considering to send the kids back, but then enforce mitigation. School buses would be sterilized after each run and classrooms likewise. The administrator told me that what they were considering was to keep each class in their home room and then just switch the teacher. I told her that I understood, but what about if the kids in the classroom didn’t all have the same subjects. No problem. At the start of the school year, all the academic achievers going onto college would be in the same classroom. Then, all the kids studying to be business would be in the same room and so on. I thought this to be a good idea. Instead of the kids moving from classroom to classroom, the teachers would move.
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Most of the teachers I know are in their 30s. They do not feel it's safe for them or their students to return to the classroom. They miss teaching and their students but are taking a longer health view.
 
rgp said:
If they cannot work ..... how are they supposed to hire babysitters ?
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Same as always in the U.S. as elsewhere. If you can't hire a babysitter you stay home or one stays home and one goes to work. Or both apply for welfare. It's a problem. I don't have a solution. Do you?
What you are talking about is extreme scenarios.
 
The local school district here has taken opinions from everyone, and the latest plan, as of today, is to start school/open schools by the end of August.
They are going to offer both online, and in person school sessions, for people to make their own choice. Seems fair enough.
Guess they can tweak things as they go along, depending on what the current situation is.
Buses will run, but parents can drop their kids off if they choose. ... a lot of this or that will have to be figured out.
The kids over age 10 will have to wear face masks in classes when attending. Probably won't be too much in the way of PE classes I'm guessing.
 

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