CURMUDGUCATION: The Why Of Opening Schools Matters As Much As The When

CURMUDGUCATION: The Why Of Opening Schools Matters As Much As The When

The Why Of Opening Schools Matters As Much As The When

Originally posted about three weeks ago. Not much has changed; only become more so.

At some point, schools are going to open again. Figuring out when will require some complicated medical and political calculus, and while lots of folks are hoping it will be just as easy as life going back to normal sometime over the summer, nobody is ready to bet the farm, or even a few select outbuildings, on that simple scenario.

The “when”of re-opening schools will matter, whether it’s early, late, or right on time. But it will be equally important to talk about the “why.”

It would be great if the “why” was something along the lines of “We want to get back to making good on the promise of a full and free education for every child” or even “We want children to get back to learning and planning for their futures.”

There are, unfortunately, less useful arguments in play.

Some of the battle over re-opening the US has become starkly political, with GOP lawmakers joining protestors on the steps of state capitols. Perhaps the very worst reason for re-opening US schools (or not) would be in order to score a political victory for one team or the other.

Another common pressure for re-opening comes from the desire to re-open the economy. It will be that much harder to get workers back on the job if they have nobody to watch the kids, and so the desire to get workers back on the line will go hand in hand with the push to get students back in the classroom. 

One may ask, “What difference does it make why we’re re-opening schools, as long as we’re getting CONTINUE READING: CURMUDGUCATION: The Why Of Opening Schools Matters As Much As The When