onfocus

"University campuses as well as elementary through high schools, are supposed to be places where students can flourish—places where ideas can be generated and learned. They can’t serve this purpose if they are environments of mortal fear."

We can’t continue to watch this without changing anything.

"Ironically, Manatee County is making thousands of books inaccessible to students just in time to celebrate ‘Literacy Week’ in Florida, which runs from January 23 to 27. Only about 50% of students in Manatee County are reading at grade level."

Felony prosecution for providing books in the classroom! This is the nazi behavior we have been warned about happening in modern times.

"Over the past two school years, the number of attempts to remove books from schools has skyrocketed to historic highs. Of the thousands of titles targeted, an overwhelming majority were written by or about people of color and LGBTQ individuals, according to the American Library Association and PEN America."

The real cancel culture in America. Feels like governments in many states trying to dismantle or at least diminish the effectiveness of public education.

"During the readings on the last day, kids typed, “I liked that line” or “so suspenseful” or “wow, that was really good!” as speakers read their pieces out loud. If verbalized, those compliments would have been rude interruptions. But the chat allows students to talk respectfully while someone else has the floor, which in turn allows them to better express their appreciation of one another. "

A nice silver lining: remote school is opening up some new ways for students to participate and connect. [via Dan Hon’s Things That Have Caught My Attention]

"Teachers don’t feel safe. Most parents said in a survey that they’re “very concerned” about sending their kids back to school. So why are we getting bullied into opening?"

School administrators are being forced to choose between the health of their communities and losing part of their funding. They shouldn’t be put in this position.

"A majority of Americans are concerned that reopening schools this fall for in-person learning will lead to a surge in new coronavirus infections."

Most people realize we can’t wish the virus away. This survey didn’t even ask for opinions about covid-19 testing in schools or how people feel about increasing funding for schools to take on these challenges. I think we should be talking about those.

"...parents and teachers would be wise to reject any invitation to unnecessary heroism. I don’t want educating my kids to be a heroic act of American defiance — I want it to be ordinary. And I’d rather not sacrifice my children’s teachers, either, so that America’s economy can begin humming once more."

Yes to all of this. We are still in a growing pandemic that we can't wish away. There hasn't been enough testing and mitigating infrastructure built to make opening safe.

"On June 3, two weeks after schools opened, more than 244 students and staff were found to test positive for COVID-19.

According to the education ministry, 2,026 students, teachers, and staff have contracted COVID-19, and 28,147 are in quarantine due to possible contagion.

Just in the first two weeks of July, 393 kindergartens and schools open for summer programs have been shuttered due to cases of COVID-19."

This doesn't sound good.

This is a fascinating interview with World Health Organization's Dr. Aylward who recently visited China. He's optimistic about replicating their rapid response:

"China’s counterattack can be replicated, Dr. Aylward said, but it will require speed, money, imagination and political courage."

His take on whether or not to close schools:

Does that imply that closing schools is pointless?

No. That’s still a question mark. If a disease is dangerous, and you see clusters, you have to close schools. We know that causes problems, because as soon as you send kids home, half your work force has to stay home to take care of them. But you don’t take chances with children.

And on the cultural difference between the US and China:

Isn’t all of this impossible in America?

Look, journalists are always saying: “Well, we can’t do this in our country.” There has to be a shift in mind-set to rapid response thinking. Are you just going to throw up your hands? There’s a real moral hazard in that, a judgment call on what you think of your vulnerable populations.

Ask yourself: Can you do the easy stuff? Can you isolate 100 patients? Can you trace 1,000 contacts? If you don’t, this will roar through a community.

I've been reading all the Coronavirus things and this felt like hearing from someone who has seen the future.

Oregon students will not be staying home:

Oregon Department of Education Director Colt Gill: “Keeping schools open is the best option for our state and, most importantly, for our students. Our safety efforts should focus on practicing good hygiene, staying home when we are not feeling well, and cleaning surfaces in our schools. We can all play a part with these simple steps to protect ourselves and our friends, classmates and community.”

It sounds like the justification is that there are no existing cases. We also have a very low testing capacity in Oregon right now, so.

"The University of Washington said it would move to online classes for its 50,000 students. With colleges nationwide about to empty for spring break, students fear they might not be coming back."

They’re planning to open their campus again March 30th.