EVERYBODY OPEN THE SCHOOLS! WHAT?

by Ruth A. Sheets

So, the command has come down from on high.  All schools will open this fall.  And, if they don’t, funds will be CUT from the districts that don’t follow this command (who dare to care about the safety of their students, teachers, and staff)

There are a couple of things to note about that pronouncement.  First, Donald Trump has no right to interfere with the schools’ funding.  His ignorance and arrogance know no bounds. Betsy DeVos, Secretary of Education, knows nothing about education, medicine, or anything else besides money, so her demands are irrelevant and should be dismissed as the hogwash they are.

Once past that nonsense, the problem remains.  What must happen when it is time for students to begin classes this fall? 

I am a teacher and worry about the decisions our school districts must make as to how school will be conducted this year during a pandemic that is not yet under control.  In the spring, we were caught off guard by the out-of-control COVID19 so were not nearly prepared to operate online classes.  Some teachers managed to get lessons going and there were the online reading and math programs, but many of our students didn’t have computer access until the beginning of June while some are still waiting.  Some have computers or rather one computer for 2 or more children.  

A big challenge was making sure the students could figure out how to take full advantage of the resources available.  Some never caught on.  Some of us teachers didn’t get online either.  All over the country teachers and students are trying to figure out how to get complex concepts down in this new, certainly not mastered format. 

Then, there are the children with special needs.  Computer time often does not work for them.  They need the hands-on connection with teachers to learn the required skills.  What happens when they are at home for months without that trained teacher’s attention?    

Over the years, teachers have been called lazy, useless, a waste of good money, and a host of other pejoratives.  I guess one good thing coming from this lock down is that teachers are a bit more appreciated, at least in some quarters.  We may still be seen as glorified free babysitters, but they now realize they need us. 

That need is what is causing Donald Trump and Betsy DeVos to toss out their demands and threats.  Their economy will not be able to reignite without babysitters (child care) for the workers they need.  A killer virus stalks and they whine that the workers don’t have people to watch their kids. 

Trump and DeVos are not interested in the problems the schools have opening every year with obtaining sufficient supplies, properly maintaining old buildings, etc.  They are OK with attempting to destroy the public school system in favor of publicly funded privately operated charter schools which are generally better funded, not more successful.  They just want their economy’s babysitters and their charges back in school.  They don’t actually care about the quality of education the children get or they wouldn’t push vouchers and more charter schools.  Neither program has proven superior to traditional public schools, they just suck taxpayer money into the pockets of rich folks who “say” they can do it better, or rather, cheaper.  They can’t!  The Trumpers just want babysitters.  Now! 

The Trump DeVos team does not care about what students are truly getting from what the government offers because they don’t expect or even want those kids to compete with the privileged white kids in private schools and the wealthiest public school districts.   They want babysitters, and McDonalds workers, hotel housekeepers, farm laborers.  Those are the jobs they want for American workers and they are hoping the public schools (and charters) will provide them.  That way we don’t need immigrants, right?

Now we come to COVID19.  The current president can’t even wear a mask without practically having a heart attack.  He can’t even repeat what scientists know, that masks do help keep the virus from spreading.  He still hangs with the line said once or twice back in February before people knew much about how the virus works.   That was five months ago and Americans have watched family members, friends, front-line workers and others die, 140,000 of us so far.  We have seen stories of people on ventilators.  about 30% die even with ventilator assistance.  No one really knows yet how many children get the virus and whether or not they pass it.  We do know that people over 60 and people of color are at significant risk for becoming infected.  We also know that at this point there are few places in the U.S. where cases of COVID19 are not on the rise.

This does not seem to me and to most Americans, (particularly parents) as a good time to reopen in-person school sessions.  But it looks great to the Trump-DeVos team.  They are so anxious to get parents back to work, they would sacrifice teachers, staff, students, and families, and for what, so Trump can claim a thriving economy?  That sounds pretty messed up to me.         

I love my students and want to be with them more than anything, but I work in a school district where most of our students live in poverty or near poverty.  Many have serious health problems and their families are also at risk.  How will opening in-person schools serve the people here? 

A challenge for me is that as a blind person it has been hard for me to gain access to the online services other teachers are able to bring to their students.  Disabled teachers, like disabled students are generally not considered when schedule changes happen.  Being back in school with my kids would be better for me, but not for everyone else.  So, I use the US Post Office to get materials and books to my students, 7 mailings since March.  How long will that form of connection to my students last if Donald Trump gets his way and takes down the US Post Office?  Who knows? 

So, let’s see, The Trump crew wants schools reopened so he can get the parents back to work and they’ll have their free babysitters.  His team cares nothing for the safety of the school communities.  He wants to put everyone at risk so he can claim a great jobs report and strong economy, IN THE MIDDLE OF A PANDEMIC THAT IS NOT UNDER CONTROL!  Then, there’s the Post Office . . . .    

I am not totally sure what the answer is.   I suspect it will vary from district to district, from state to state and may involve a number of different models.  What I do know is that teachers need to be in the discussions from the beginning as do families and other members of the community like doctors, nurses, and other health care persons.  COVID19 is no joke as some like to believe.  People are dying or have permanent physical impairments due to the virus.  Unless a whole range of safety measures are put in place, I don't see how schools can open  no matter how much I and the other teachers would like to be back physically with our kids.  I also don't see the money flowing from Congress toward districts to help us with those safety measures. 

It is truly a tragedy that Trump & Co. had no clue and could not get a handle on what was needed for dealing with COVID19.  We will all be paying for that lack of vision for years to come.  I just don’t want our children, families, teachers, and staff to pay for it unnecessarily with our lives.