DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Reopening Schools: A Decision to Die For!

DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Reopening Schools: A Decision to Die For!

Reopening Schools: A Decision to Die For!

Would I die for my students?
Probably.
Teachers have placed themselves in harm's way for their students countless times.

But, not like this.
Not in a situation where decisions could be made that would keep our students and educators safe.

A 61 year old educator in Arizonza was infected with COVID19, along  with two other educators who were working in the same classroom.  She died.They still don't know if she got it from her family, and bought it into the classroom, or if she contracted it from another teacher.

It doesn't matter. With all the precautions, all three teachers were still infected.

Our "Secretary of Education" Besty Devos states that we shouldn't worry.
“If there’s a short-term flare-up for a few days, that’s a different situation than planning for an entire school year in anticipation for something that hasn’t happened,” she told CNN host Dana Bash. “Kids have got to be back at school, they’ve got to be back in the classroom. Working families have got to have their kids back in school.”

What do you notice? 
I notice that she does not mention the fact that educators or school personnel can get CONTINUE READING: DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: Reopening Schools: A Decision to Die For!

New York State Tip-Toes Toward a Measured School Opening with Significant Local Input and a Long List of Unanswered Questions. | Ed In The Apple

New York State Tip-Toes Toward a Measured School Opening with Significant Local Input and a Long List of Unanswered Questions. | Ed In The Apple

New York State Tip-Toes Toward a Measured School Opening with Significant Local Input and a Long List of Unanswered Questions.

As the President and the Secretary of Education call for a full school reopening, with threats aimed at states that are more cautious, the fifty states and 14,000 school districts consider the options.

John Hopkins University posted a reopening policy tracker, a user-friendly source that enables the user to click on every state and organization and view whatever documents they posted.  Impressive!!

For example, see the Texas plan here and the New York University, Guidance on Culturally-Responsive Sustaining School Openings here.

New York State is complicated and confusing. The governor, who was granted wide-ranging emergency powers by the legislature appointed a “Reimaging Education Task Force” and, at daily press conferences emphasized again and again that he will decide on whether or not schools re-open. The chancellor reminded us that the State Constitution places education under the leadership of the Board of Regents.

The State Commissioner, after a number of regional meetings with representatives from across the states, presented the state plan to the Board of Regents. See plan here

A few hours later the governor held his press briefing and laid out the data points CONTINUE READING: New York State Tip-Toes Toward a Measured School Opening with Significant Local Input and a Long List of Unanswered Questions. | Ed In The Apple

Now is not the time. | Opine I will

Now is not the time. | Opine I will

Now is not the time

Now is not the time to open schools!

Yes, I know we need to get the economy open. I know parents need to get back to work. I know children are losing important time in school. I know all the reasons why we need to open schools. Unfortunately, now is not the time.

We keep hearing that we need more testing, more contact tracing, social distancing, and masks. Even if we had 100% compliance ( which we are nowhere near), is it worth the risk?

We don’t know the long term effects of Covid. We are not pouring money and assets into school buildings to upgrade their ventilation systems, expanding to accommodate 6′ social distance spacing, or the proper training of teachers and other staff members that will need to work in a potentially high infectious environment.

When the policy makers are meeting in virtual meeting rooms from their respective “bunkers” to decide whether children and teachers should be together in a classroom, we should all be able to see through their smoke and mirrors to know something is wrong.

Governor Cuomo today told us all that as long as the infection rate stays below 5% of CONTINUE READING: Now is not the time. | Opine I will

Mr. G for District 3: Chris Guerrieri's Education Matters: Superintendent Greene's less than inspiring Meninak Meeting

Mr. G for District 3: Chris Guerrieri's Education Matters: Superintendent Greene's less than inspiring Meninak Meeting

Superintendent Greene's less than inspiring Meninak Meeting

After I read the Times Union's summary of the meeting, I didn't feel much confidence that teachers and their concerns are being addressed.

https://www.jacksonville.com/news/20200713/duval-schools-superintendent-greene-gives-hints-for-back-to-school-plan-ahead-of-tuesdayrsquos-meeting

You know papers have deadlines and space limits, so I tracked it down online and listened.

https://www.facebook.com/meninakjax/

Here are the highlights.

She talked about finding out learning losses and mental health, where she mentioned mental health for staff.

Then she talked about CDC guidelines and the massive undertaking bussing for busses. She admitted that they could not meet the standards and talked about mitigation instead.

I am begging to learn guidelines are more like suggestions than rules you can and cannot break even when lives are on the line.

Desks will be spaced apart whenever possible.

Face shields were ordered for all pre-k- second graders.

The upper elementary grades will get face coverings and desk guards.

The district shifted custodians from evening hours to the day CONTINUE READING: Mr. G for District 3: Chris Guerrieri's Education Matters: Superintendent Greene's less than inspiring Meninak Meeting

IF ONLY IT WAS SO SIMPLE – Dad Gone Wild

IF ONLY IT WAS SO SIMPLE – Dad Gone Wild

IF ONLY IT WAS SO SIMPLE

“Though we are politically enemies, yet with regard to Science it is presumable we shall not dissent from the practice of civilized people in promoting it”
― John Hancock

“Every year, if not every day, we have to wager our salvation upon some prophecy based upon imperfect knowledge.”
― Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

School districts across the country have begun releasing their re-opening plans for the upcoming school year. Plans are running the gamut from full opening with minor adjustments to opening schools in person with alternating schedules; from a complex hybrid opening to full-time distance learning. MNPS falls into the latter camp.

On Thursday afternoon, MNPS announced that starting on August 4th schools would be open, but all instruction would be delivered remotely through a curriculum developed by the Florida Virtual School. In all fairness, it’s probably the best option available at this stage in the game, considering rising infection rates across the city, but comes with some concerns that need to be further fleshed out. But I’m getting a little ahead of my self.

Throughout the ongoing pandemic, there have been cries that we just need to follow science in developing strategies. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), National Education Association (NEA), and AASA, The School Superintendents Association, joined together late last week to issue a statement on the safe return of students, CONTINUE READING: IF ONLY IT WAS SO SIMPLE – Dad Gone Wild

YOUR DAILY DOSE OF Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007

Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007

A VERY BUSY DAY

Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day...

The latest news and resources in education since 2007

“Q&A Collections: Student Voices”

by Larry Ferlazzo / 4h

Q&A Collections: Student Voices is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. All Classroom Q&A posts featuring commentaries written by students (from the past nine years!) are described and linked to in this compilation post. Here’s an excerpt from one of them:

YESTERDAY

New TED-Ed Video & Lesson: “What makes volcanoes erupt?”

by Larry Ferlazzo / 13h

Pexels / Pixabay I’m adding this new TED-Ed lesson and video to The Best Sites For Learning About Volcanoes :

Tuesday’s Three Must-Watch/Must-Read Videos & Articles About School Reopening Plans

by Larry Ferlazzo / 13h

paulbr75 / Pixabay The roller coaster ride continues. Here are Tuesday’s additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : DeVos Abandons a Lifetime of Local Advocacy to Demand Schools Reopen is from The NY Times. I hope our district can do something like this: California district designs novel plan to boost remote learning with in-person ‘student support hubs

New Resources To Help Us Understand All The New TOK Curriculum Changes

by Larry Ferlazzo / 13h

geralt / Pixabay I’m in the final week of an International Baccalaureate online course to review all the new changes to the Theory of Knowledge class, and my head is spinning a bit. Here are some new additions to THE BEST RESOURCES FOR LEARNING ABOUT THE NEW THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE SYLLABUS : Mr. Hoyes TOK Website TOK Resource The Oxford University Press has two videos you can watch, though you have

A Look Back: Implicit Bias Training Doesn’t Seem To Work – So What Should Teachers & Others Do, Instead?

by Larry Ferlazzo / 13h

I thought that new – and veteran – readers might find it interesting if I began sharing my best posts from the first half of this year. You can see the entire collection of best posts from the past thirteen years here . In the wake of recent murders of Black citizens, like George Floyd, and subsequent protests, there has been a lot of attention being paid to the concept of implicit bias and how t

Latest Update On Reopening Sacramento Schools

by Larry Ferlazzo / 17h

OpenClipart-Vectors / Pixabay The Sacramento Bee has just published California school districts announce fall closures. Will Sacramento schools be next? , and that gives the most recent update about where we are on reopening. For what it’s worth, here are my observations that appear in the article: Luther Burbank High School teacher Larry Ferlazzo said teachers want to return to their classrooms,

Reopening Schools Is Analogous To The Research Finding That The Greatest Influence On Student Achievement Is Outside School

by Larry Ferlazzo / 18h

So much of the discussion about school reopening has been on safety procedures in school – masks, social distancing, temperature checks, cleaning, etc. I understand that is important and support – and have participated – in those talks. Of course, the primary determining factor about if schools will be able to open will be the rate of community spread of COVID-19. Just as over two-thirds of the f

Los Angeles and San Diego School Districts Announce They Are Starting The School Year All Online

by Larry Ferlazzo / 21h

I’m adding this info to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : Los Angeles and San Diego Schools to Go Online-Only in The Fall L.A. Unified will not reopen campuses for start of school year amid coronavirus spike So many districts in CA have been making the same announcement over past few days. . @officialSCUSD should work w/ unions 2 make similar announcement now so

The Publisher Of Our Next Book Has Agreed To Let Us Release Our Chapter On ELLs & Distance Learning Early & For Free

by Larry Ferlazzo / 23h

Katie Hull and I are working hard on the second edition of The ESL/ELL Teacher’s Survival Guide, the first book we wrote as a team. We think it’s a great book, and we’re keeping most of what’s in the first edition. In addition to minor changes, though, we are adding content to double the size of the book. In addition to writing new chapters ourselves, we’ll be including new ones from other great

“Five Ways to Use Music in Lessons”

by Larry Ferlazzo / 1d

Five Ways to Use Music in Lessons is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Five educators share ways to use music in lessons across the curriculum, including for textual analysis and to help create a 

Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007