katybee
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,377
Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jul 10, 2020 1:19:34 GMT
Literally.
I can’t believe this is actually happening. Today, we had our first virtual meeting about reopening school. They didn’t tell us much, just reassured us that teacher and student safety is their number one priority.
Bullshit.
The TEA guidelines (Texas Education Agency) do not require social distancing. They encourage it “where feasible without disrupting the educational experience.” Basically—they know it’s not possible.
Masks are required according to the governor’s mandate. Which doesn’t require masks for kids under 10. So no social distancing. No masks.
Parents can choose all on-campus, or all virtual. There will be no 2 days on, 2 days off. Teachers who are on campus will be teaching a full class, 5 days a week. No social distancing. No masks.
They suggest that we wash or sanitize our hands more, and open a window. (I have a small window in the back of my room. I’ve never tried to open it. Does it open?) And—they’re installing more hands-free hand sanitizer stations around the school. So....yeah.
Did I mention that Texas had almost 10,000 new cases today? And that we are the 11th most active CV19 hot spot in the world?
But come hell or high water, we are going back to school!
I don’t know how to keep myself safe.
As if I’m not enough if a basket case, I’ve been on social media today. I’ve been called lazy, entitled, spoiled and accused of not caring about the kids.
You know what’s funny—these same buttholes couldn’t make the simple sacrifice of wearing a mask and staying home when it would have made a difference. And yet I’m the selfish one.
I LOVE my job. Anyone who knows me will tell you that. I’ve given so much to it over the years. And this is what I get for it...
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inkedup
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,837
Jun 26, 2014 5:00:26 GMT
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Post by inkedup on Jul 10, 2020 1:32:17 GMT
Hugs, katybee. Being a teacher is thankless under normal circumstances. But now, wow. You have a president that thinks you should risk your lives and many parents who do, too. I'm astounded by the callousness and selfishness of the comments on our school district's FB page. Our district's re-opening plan is the same as your district's plan. There is a hugely vocal, hostile element screaming that they want nothing less than for school to be like it was last year. No masks, no distancing, nothing. These same people are calling teachers lazy and entitled. One lady proposed a 40% pay cut because, you know, virtual teaching is less work. Please know that many of us see you and can understand your fear and heartbreak. My son's teacher last year was genuinely devastated by the way things played out. I hate that we are having this discussion instead of examining why so few of the trillions in relief dollars have gone to tax payers. This rush to reopen is really a rush to get those profit machines going again and schools are a necessary component of that.
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Loydene
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 2,639
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Jul 8, 2014 16:31:47 GMT
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Post by Loydene on Jul 10, 2020 1:37:44 GMT
Isn't there a teachers union?? NEA or something like that? Organize!
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Post by myshelly on Jul 10, 2020 1:44:14 GMT
Isn't there a teachers union?? NEA or something like that? Organize! A union? In Texas? Ha, that’s cute. No.
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Post by gizzy on Jul 10, 2020 1:48:54 GMT
I can't believe we are actually going to have in person school in the fall. Everyone is talking like we don't need to worry about the health of the teachers and staff at these schools. Some must be scared shitless, I know I would be.
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katybee
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,377
Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jul 10, 2020 1:49:05 GMT
Isn't there a teachers union?? NEA or something like that? Organize! No. We are a right to work state. If we strike, we could lose our teaching certificate and every penny we’ve put into the state retirement system (which is my social security). I technically cannot even quit at this point. We have to give our resignation at least 45 days prior to our report date. That would have been last Friday. But we still don’t even have details on how they plan to keep us safe. If we break our contract, we could lose our teaching certificate for a year.
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Jili
Pearl Clutcher
SLPea
Posts: 4,363
Jun 26, 2014 1:26:48 GMT
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Post by Jili on Jul 10, 2020 1:49:39 GMT
I’m sorry, Katybee. It’s going to be that way here, too. I’m feeling the same as you.
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katybee
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,377
Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jul 10, 2020 1:50:18 GMT
I can't believe we are actually going to have in person school in the fall. Everyone is talking like we don't need to worry about the health of the teachers and staff at these schools. Some must be scared shitless, I know I would be. Me. I am scared shitless. Actually, teachers all over Texas are in an uproar. I am not alone. We just have very little power.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Apr 27, 2024 2:13:08 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 10, 2020 1:51:34 GMT
I guess I am not getting the histrionics that teachers are having about going back to school. There is a whole world of people who are already back to work or never were off work and who work in very close contact jobs with other people.
The world keeps revolving. You will find a way to manage just like they have.
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Post by myshelly on Jul 10, 2020 1:57:36 GMT
I guess I am not getting the histrionics that teachers are having about going back to school. There is a whole world of people who are already back to work or never were off work and who work in very close contact jobs with other people. The world keeps revolving. You will find a way to manage just like they have. What other profession has to be in a 10x10 room with 30 people who are not masked or distanced?
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katybee
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,377
Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jul 10, 2020 2:08:10 GMT
I guess I am not getting the histrionics that teachers are having about going back to school. There is a whole world of people who are already back to work or never were off work and who work in very close contact jobs with other people. The world keeps revolving. You will find a way to manage just like they have. You know what? I had a really long, well-thought out response for you. But then I decided I’d rather just tell you to go F yourself. There. I just confirmed the board is full of bullies and abusers.
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Post by pierkiss on Jul 10, 2020 2:10:37 GMT
Your state is really fucked up. I am so sorry that you are going to have to work like this.
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Post by Merge on Jul 10, 2020 2:18:53 GMT
We do have a union, at least in Houston. It's non-bargaining but it does have some sway with the state and lege. AFT and specifically HFT are pushing back hard against this. A strike is not outside of the realm of possibility. We've learned a lot watching teachers strike - and win - in other RTW states. (Fun fact: our state education association, including the commissioner, have all been working remotely since March and will do so at least until December. It's too dangerous for them to go to work in an office environment, but teachers and students should crowd into those classrooms.) At this point, some teachers are quitting/retiring rather than go back in person, for their own safety. My district now has 275 teacher openings to fill for August. Where are those teachers going to come from? Parents may need to decide if having online instruction is better than no instruction at all, because there simply may not be a teacher for your child's class. @bonanza: As to why teachers are upset about going back - our job requires us to do exactly what all the health experts say not to do: be in a close, confined, poorly ventilated space with many people for a long period of time, many of whom will not wear masks or will not wear them properly, and some of whom will be sent to school sick by their parents. It is not possible to do our jobs with the layers of PPE that are recommended for healthcare workers. It is not possible for us to socially distance with the space and numbers that we have. Unlike cashiers and others who work in service, we cannot work from behind a plexiglass shield, and we cannot deal with our "customers" one at a time. We are also cognizant that trying to run a school in anything resembling a safe manner will be a lot like running a prison for children - and as educators, we know that this will be even more stressful and potentially harmful to young kids than staying home might be. There will be no carpet time, no hugs, no singing, no group play or shared playthings. Kids will be miserable and we know this. You know how a lot of community spread has come from bars and clubs? That's a situation very similar to an overcrowded public school. And schools will have similar spread rates. My state has shut down bars again; the governor says he wishes he'd never opened them. Crowding in schools will only get worse as teachers get sick and have to quarantine. We'll be splitting classes up between the remaining teachers, doubling up, canceling music so the music teacher can sub in an ELA class, etc. Further, no one can yet answer questions about what we will do when teachers and students start getting sick, who will provide masks and other protective equipment, who will provide cleaning supplies (and who will do the additional cleaning required), what happens if a teacher has to quarantine with a child who is exposed at another school or daycare, etc. There are hundreds of questions no one in charge is willing to answer because the answer is - this will all fall on teachers. Every bit of it. And it's not OK. We've reached our limit. We're not willing to continue to be the people who put a bandaid on the messes our society creates. This statement is from Richmond, Virginia, but every governor, legislator and state school commissioner should be forced to read it and respond to the questions in it. It is not the schools' job to fix every problem created by society.
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Post by freecharlie on Jul 10, 2020 2:22:32 GMT
I guess I am not getting the histrionics that teachers are having about going back to school. There is a whole world of people who are already back to work or never were off work and who work in very close contact jobs with other people. The world keeps revolving. You will find a way to manage just like they have. name some. Name the ones where the person is in contact with 30-125 of the same group of people 7 hours a day, five days a week in a small area with little to mo ventilation
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katybee
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,377
Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jul 10, 2020 2:23:02 GMT
Merge You’re a better person than me.
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Post by freecharlie on Jul 10, 2020 2:23:34 GMT
Your state is really fucked up. I am so sorry that you are going to have to work like this. it is not just Texas, Colorado is on the same path
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Post by Merge on Jul 10, 2020 2:26:50 GMT
Your state is really fucked up. I am so sorry that you are going to have to work like this. it is not just Texas, Colorado is on the same path I'd wager that every state with a Republican governor is on this path. All following the directives of dear leader.
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Post by freecharlie on Jul 10, 2020 2:30:04 GMT
I am fielding these concerns and questions from members.
There is no good answer and in my state the Governor is passing the buck to the county health departments and the individual school districts because we have local control.
I'd be less freaked out if there was at least a mask mandate.
But students are just as exposed as teachers. How much school will they miss if they have to quarantine for 14 days anytime a classmate, teacher, or family member tests positive? How are we covering teacher's classes when subs were already in short supply? How do I meet the educational goals if my students on IEPs if one or both of us are quarantining? Who pays for me to quarantine? Does it come out of my sick leave? Is there any accountability? Could a staff member or student just not tell that they had been exposed and since Hippa keeps us from knowing, do they get away with knowing potentially infecting everybody?
So much...
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Post by freecharlie on Jul 10, 2020 2:30:27 GMT
it is not just Texas, Colorado is on the same path I'd wager that every state with a Republican governor is on this path. All following the directives of dear leader. ours is a Democrat (but is pro charter)
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used2scrap
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,034
Jan 29, 2016 3:02:55 GMT
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Post by used2scrap on Jul 10, 2020 2:31:24 GMT
I guess I am not getting the histrionics that teachers are having about going back to school. There is a whole world of people who are already back to work or never were off work and who work in very close contact jobs with other people. The world keeps revolving. You will find a way to manage just like they have. A lot of them have managed by getting sick, and some of them by dying, and others by suffering long term, possibly permanent damage.
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Post by Merge on Jul 10, 2020 2:31:45 GMT
Merge You’re a better person than me. Nah. I just finished writing professional, polite letters to Abbott, Morath and my state rep and senator (don't bother with your SBOE rep - they'll quickly pass the buck off to Morath and Abbott) asking them to allow more latitude for districts in hard-hit areas to return online for as long as necessary. I'm sure it won't do any good, but doing it made me feel a tiny bit empowered and "filled my bucket" a bit, if you know what I mean.
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Post by freecharlie on Jul 10, 2020 2:32:15 GMT
I guess I am not getting the histrionics that teachers are having about going back to school. There is a whole world of people who are already back to work or never were off work and who work in very close contact jobs with other people. The world keeps revolving. You will find a way to manage just like they have. A lot of them have managed by getting sick, and some of them by dying, and others by suffering long term, possibly permanent damage. and many of them have proper ppe (although even with that many still got sick)
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Post by Merge on Jul 10, 2020 2:33:44 GMT
I am fielding these concerns and questions from members. There is no good answer and in my state the Governor is passing the buck to the county health departments and the individual school districts because we have local control. I'd be less freaked out if there was at least a mask mandate. But students are just as exposed as teachers. How much school will they miss if they have to quarantine for 14 days anytime a classmate, teacher, or family member tests positive? How are we covering teacher's classes when subs were already in short supply? How do I meet the educational goals if my students on IEPs if one or both of us are quarantining? Who pays for me to quarantine? Does it come out of my sick leave? Is there any accountability? Could a staff member or student just not tell that they had been exposed and since Hippa keeps us from knowing, do they get away with knowing potentially infecting everybody? So much... We found out today that parents are definitely not required to disclose if their child or a family member tests positive. They can just keep sending that kid to school.
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TankTop
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1,871
Posts: 4,767
Location: On the couch...
Jun 28, 2014 1:52:46 GMT
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Post by TankTop on Jul 10, 2020 2:34:47 GMT
March... close the schools because it is unsafe August... open the schools when there are more cases and a virus that has mutated to be more easily spread.
I believe strongly that all teachers should show up to school in masks, face shields, gloves, and white jumpsuits to make a statement.
I have been told I will no longer have a daily prep period, I will increased duties, and I will need to stay past contract hours to monitor socially distanced dismissal.
Teachers and students will die. No question about it.
Is it okay if it is your kid? Your kid’s teacher?
What if your kid tests positive and then their teacher does? Can you look them in the eye and say... well, we had to get back to normal?
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Post by prapea on Jul 10, 2020 2:36:01 GMT
I am not a teacher. But on behalf of all the teachers, I am sooooooo fucking pissed. I am not only pissed at those who voted for trump but also those who did not vote for either in 2016. Thank you assholes.
My senator and governor’s office are not longer taking calls. Lol. May be they had enough of people like calling to chew them out. I have been working from home for Almost 14 years now. And my kid is old enough that I don’t have to monitor him every hour. I get that I am probably not supposed to say anything as I have had moms with younger kids question me how they can get work done if their child doesn’t go to school.
I have no good answer for it other than saying this: If I have no job, I can still live for more days and months than get a virus and possibly die in few days. If not me, the guilt will kill me that I sent my kid to school and his teacher got sick. If we all were such awesome citizens and were completely locked down for last few months, then I might cut some slack. But nope. We spent time vacationing like there is no pandemic, we caused the spread to increase, we showed how fucking stupid we are and then we want to turn around and pass the germs to teachers. If I could, I would sue every idiot who went out and then said, “what’s the big deal? It’s just a flu. What’s the big deal? Everyone will get it anyways”
The fact that entire world is telling us what not to do and some are laughing at us doesn’t even seem to make us stop and think. You can fix stupid probably, you cannot fix stupid people who think they are the smartest in the world.
<random rant over. I am still livid>
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Post by Merge on Jul 10, 2020 2:38:49 GMT
March... close the schools because it is unsafe August... open the schools when there are more cases and a virus that has mutated to be more easily spread. I believe strongly that all teachers should show up to school in masks, face shields, gloves, and white jumpsuits to make a statement. I have been told I will no longer have a daily prep period, I will increased duties, and I will need to stay past contract hours to monitor socially distanced dismissal. Teachers and students will die. No question about it. Is it okay if it is your kid? Your kid’s teacher? What if your kid tests positive and then their teacher does? Can you look them in the eye and say... well, we had to get back to normal? This is exactly the conversation I had with my rising senior, who would love to return to school. How would we feel if we somehow passed the virus on to one of her teachers? Or a friend? What if one of them became very ill or died? Would that be more traumatic than missing a good chunk of your senior year?
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breetheflea
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,882
Location: PNW
Jul 20, 2014 21:57:23 GMT
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Post by breetheflea on Jul 10, 2020 2:40:50 GMT
I'm in Washington with a democrat governor and our teachers have a union...
I'm on my elementary school PTA board (since 2015) and know quite a few of the teachers and a lot of the staff and trust they care about the kids and will try to keep things sanitized, but I don't want to go into that germ pit to do my volunteer job 1-2 hours a week, I can't imagine being a teacher and not having a choice.
I do have a choice not to send my kid (our district is offering a virtual academy for K-12 this year, usually it's only 6th grade and up) and even though it's 5.5 hours a day (ugh, 2 hours last spring was painful) I might take them up on the offer versus sending my kids to school every other week. Maybe if enough parents choose 100% online the district will pay attention.
Our district keeps saying "parents want their kids in school" yeah, they probably do, they also probably want world peace, to win the lottery, not to be dead...
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Post by Bobomommy on Jul 10, 2020 2:45:13 GMT
Our school district released the new calendar. We start back three weeks late, on August 24. Teachers report on August 14. We will end school a week later than the old calendar. They have taken away all breaks except Christmas and Spring, and reduced our Thanksgiving break.
All teachers and students will receive cloth masks, but we don’t know if it’s one per person. If so, I guarantee the kids won’t come with clean masks every day. They haven’t decided if masks will be mandatory or voluntary or if they will be worn in the classroom or just in hallways and on the bus. Lunch will be in the classrooms.
There will be a room where anyone with a fever is sent until they can be picked up. One teacher asked how they will make sure someone who has seasonal allergies or ear infections and runs a fever will be protected from those who may actually have Covid-19. That hasn’t been thought out.
People on Facebook are making fun of teachers who express concerns about being in a windowless room with less than stellar air filtration with 30 little Petri dishes. They argue that children do not typically get the virus. I work in a Title 1 school that has one of the lowest incomes in the metro area. Parents who have jobs are ones who work in high contact places. They can’t afford to miss their hourly pay and frequently mask symptoms with Tylenol and send their little ones to school.
I purchased a face shield and several cloth masks for myself. If I could afford to do so, I would get enough masks for the students to have 5 each in different colors. Monday would be red day, Tuesday orange, Wednesday Yellow, Thursday green, and Friday blue. On Tuesday morning i would collect all the Monday masks and wash them. Wednesday I’d return the Monday masks and wash the Tuesday masks, and so on. That way I’d know the masks were being washed. But I can’t afford to purchase that many masks!
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Post by prapea on Jul 10, 2020 2:46:58 GMT
March... close the schools because it is unsafe August... open the schools when there are more cases and a virus that has mutated to be more easily spread. I believe strongly that all teachers should show up to school in masks, face shields, gloves, and white jumpsuits to make a statement. I have been told I will no longer have a daily prep period, I will increased duties, and I will need to stay past contract hours to monitor socially distanced dismissal. Teachers and students will die. No question about it. Is it okay if it is your kid? Your kid’s teacher? What if your kid tests positive and then their teacher does? Can you look them in the eye and say... well, we had to get back to normal? This is exactly the conversation I had with my rising senior, who would love to return to school. How would we feel if we somehow passed the virus on to one of her teachers? Or a friend? What if one of them became very ill or died? Would that be more traumatic than missing a good chunk of your senior year? Few months ago my 13 year old kid randomly brought up his daycare/play school teacher. I was surprised because he was 3.5 at that time and I didn’t think he remembered her. He was telling me and the husband that he remembers she was always super sweet and he remembered her making him laugh. I walked away in tears and took us few minutes to let him know that she passed away in an accident few months after he was in her class. He doesn’t remember her death because the playschool left it to parents to decide whether they want to tell their kid or not and at that time I couldn’t. I just couldn’t. When we told him, he was upset but he was ok. And knowing my kid, I will tell you, he might not get all emotional and all but it will stay with him for the rest of his life. I am all for letting children grow and I am not trying to make them “too sensitive”(oh I heard it), but this feels like we are hurting them on purpose by pushing them and their teachers into a pandemic. And to say shit like, get to school or you will lose funding or you will lose job sounds like mafia threatening to kill me if I don’t pay up.
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Post by Merge on Jul 10, 2020 2:47:54 GMT
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