Angry Parents on Social Media

[meghanb133]

My daughter goes to a Fundamental Middle school here in Florida. We were told the Friday PM before spring break week that school would be closed, they were off for the 5 days of spring break and then nothing was in place the following week as they needed time to get a plan together. I will say over that week, they distributed laptops to ALL students who didn’t have access to one and made sure everyone had wifi from Spectrum. distance learning has been happening for 7 weeks and we have 12 more days left of the school year. My daughter is doing graded work and has 7(!) classes each day. She is thriving and getting As.. She wakes up and starts by 8am on her own and is done by 1 at the latest. My mom comes to stay with her during the day and doesn’t usually have to help. I will say my main concern is the placement for classes next year since there was no testing being done. My daughter was in accelerated this year but that doesn’t necessarily mean she should be next year, I just don’t know how they can know where kids are academically if they have nothing to go off of. I think everyone is just doing the best they can to get by. It’s a hard pill for everyone to swallow to have their world turned upside down, but tearing people apart will not solve any problems.

 

[Kestryl]

I can't really say I care if it is required or not. I know our school is currently not requiring participation. My concern is that they have access to grade level appropriate material so they don't miss out on a quarter of the material they were to have this year. I don't care if they receive a grade on their transcript for it.

Trust me when I say the teachers also really want the kids to have access and learn the missing material. My husband has department meetings nearly every day. They talk about plans for next year A LOT. There’s gonna be a lot of catch-up and hybrid courses to make up for lost material. Algebra I will start with 8th grade, Geometry Classes will start with Algebra I, Algebra II will start with Geometry, etc. It’s not a great situation.

Holy cow. So those few parents canceled learning for the entire rest of the school year. I bet they will be super popular at PTA night next year.

I don’t know how other parents feel, but I know that one parent is not very well liked by teachers. That parent has been a pain in the butt all year and is notorious for this stuff. The teachers would never take it out on the kids, of course, but they have needed to bring in higher admin and even security to deal with her at parent-teacher conferences.

Part of this is the sheer number of students and parents involved- it’s a county-wide district with multiple HS, MS, and elementary, so more chances for rogue, disgruntled parents. And because it’s so big, there’s a huge disparity of income and general access to resources, so reaching any equivalency was going to be impossible to achieve within weeks. Thus state guidance was to just not offer it.

I just don't understand this. So even if 10% have IEP's, 90% get no education? Nothing? Why can't the 10% just get different remote school and let the 90% do the regular school?

Because it’s not considering equivalent and they don’t have plans for the X% in the first place. You can “blame” state legislation and guidance on this, which didn’t account for nation-wide pandemic response.

On another note, I have a cousin with an autistic son. The way she tells it, the school system he’s in has basically decided to “give up” on anyone needing special accommodations- all kids get the same material in the same way. She’s quite upset with the school, but she’s also not threatening a lawsuit because she understands that this is incredibly difficult no matter what actions a district chooses to take.

 

[Kestryl]

I've seen a fair bit, but not with that level of detail. The big frustration around me is that the district is doing almost nothing for these months that are being missed, and with conversations already starting about next year being more of the same, there's a feeling that the kids are never going to catch up. But we're a rural district where some homes cannot get broadband at any price (except satellite which is expensive, data-capped and unreliable), so there's little the district can really do about that. Most of the complaints come from parents who have the attitude that the district should be doing more for the kids who do have internet and the parents of those who don't can figure out how to get their kids caught up... which isn't how public schooling works, of course.



It is easier to hold to that higher standard when you have more resources, though. Our private school doesn't have to worry about limiting our online education to the access of the least-connected child (and we don't have any families that can't work out an internet connection anyway). Our kids already had Chromebooks, nothing fancy but enough to connect for Zoom classes and daily assignments. And our class sizes are so much smaller that meeting this way actually works okay. Public schools that have to worry about everyone's access, IEPs, device availability, etc. don't have the same degree of flexibility.

And in a broader sense, not having to accept and retain all students is a huge advantage too. Our private school teachers are highly qualified and could make significantly more in public schools, but we have little turnover because the working conditions are so much better in our school - small classes, with the largest in the mid-teens, strict and consistent discipline, supportive parents, and no students with more than mild special needs (because we're not equipped to handle them and don't have to be).

THIS. My old public high school used to fail state standards all the time. Comparatively, we looked way worse than the local private or charter schools. But we also had a very large special education group that failed the standardized tests- hence, our school “failed.” (For the record, I do not blame those students at all- I blame the system.)

 

[Frwinkley]

3rd grade teacher here.

What kills me about these parents that are complaining is that they are the same parents that complain about everything when we are IN school too. We will never please everyone. For the most part, my parents have really been very appreciative of all of my efforts.

We were told on Thursday, March 12th that our last day for two weeks was March 13th. We scrambled to send things home for our initial 2 week closure. Our closure was than extended by the state (PA) until the end of April. Within a week, our entire district was up and running with distant learning. It has been a monumental task.

The other thing that seems to be forgotten in the conversation is that teachers are parents too, some with very young children at home. Some of our parents expect us to be available 24/7, with little regard to our own family situations.

BTW--You parents are rock stars. You did not sign up for this; I am really proud of how my district has handled all of this. They gave us the flexibility to do as we saw fit, given that we knew best our kids, etc. I personally make all of my assignments available on Saturday mornings (I'm using Google Classroom) and they are not due until the following Monday. That gives working parents two weekends to help their kids with their school work. Parents have loved that.

 

[JediBonas]

It's not just public schools, I can tell you that. My kids go to private school and they were completely unprepared to do any kind of distance learning. Many public schools around us seem to be handling things better then the private schools. We pretty much have a half an hour meeting with the teacher each morning to go over what work they need to do and then we are the ones trying to teach them while working. It's a hard situation for everyone and I know the school is trying their best but it's, IMHO, not working.

 

[Turn the Page]

How do they give the poorer kids (Atlanta has a 24% poverty rate from what I've seen online) who don't have internet or computers at home the same access?

What does your state mandate for snow days?

For your first question, I don't have any idea. I don't know for sure but it sounded like the online programs were graded but perhaps not required.

For your second question the state mandates that there be a certain number of days in school, I want to say 180. The districts then set their own calendars (within certain guidelines, can't start before Labor Day for example though more schools are getting waivers to start earlier) and pad the year with extra days to accommodate snow days. I think our district usually adds 6 or so days. I have heard of the state giving waivers for a few days over that amount but if they miss too many they are supposed to make them up in June.

 

[Bamaclan4]

I just don't understand this. So even if 10% have IEP's, 90% get no education? Nothing? Why can't the 10% just get different remote school and let the 90% do the regular school?

It’s Federal law, IEP’s are Federal documentation. Most children with an IEP struggle or they wouldn’t have one, so they are already faced with odds that the other 90% isn’t facing, and may very likely have a more difficult time when they do get to return to school.

 

[texaslover]

I'm a teacher in one of the biggest districts in TX. We are working 10, 12, 14 hour days making lesson videos, Zooming with kids/parents, meeting with our teams to create content, translating for our ESL students, modifying for our special education students, developing online resources, etc. I'm lucky to be old and have a college aged son so I don't have the demands of parenting in addition to the new demands of elearning. Each meeting I'm in has teacher's babies and young kids who need something while they work so teachers are in the same boat as most parents. We cannot please everyone. The parents who blame the schools while their child is there will blame the school while their child is home, no matter what we do.

I hope this will allow parents to see their kids the way they are as a learner and move them toward gratitude for the effort teachers put into their children every day. If it is hard to teach your own 2 or 3 children imagine putting them into a class of 22 diverse learners and managing education and behavior to the point that they all actually make progress and are happy at school! Maybe this will advance teacher/parent relations going forward. That's my prayer.

 

[Mainsail Minnie]

Schools need to open for the majority of America's children to be educated properly. Unfortunately, Dr. Fauci just testified to Congress that opening schools in the fall would endanger children, and as he is so influential, that might cause many schools to not open next year. Did he have an end-game for the closures to suggest to Congress? Nope. Any suggested dates for reopening? Nope. Just more of the old: we need to keep cases as low as we can- reopening is dangerous. Has it ever occurred to him that closure is hurting a lot of people, especially children, and they can't stay home forever? His only good news was that he thought it was "more likely than not" that a vaccine would eventually be developed. Not anytime soon, of course, as safe vaccines typically take years to develop. And anyone who tries to reopen now, or in the forseeable future, is irresponsible...He needs to be treated by an opthamologist for a severe case of Covid tunnel vision.

As a mom and a teacher, I'm so upset about the schools possibly being closed next year. Many kids cannot learn well academically or socially at home. That's why some parents are so angry. Please, please, let the schools open in the fall.

 

[Minniesgal]

The one that is annoying me in the UK is people shouting to open the schools so they can get back to work. Put the younger children back first so parents have childcare, open the schools over the summer so the parents have childcare. Eh no thats not what schools are for. The first pupils to return should be those with the biggest educational and social need to be back not those whose parents want childcare.

 

[Disney Doll]

So schools are expected to provide. Store school care, after school care, 3 meals per day, send food home for the weekend, teach all the things they’re supposed to teach and additionally teach manners and proper behavior. They’re supposed to be ready at a moments notice to be able to have education prepared for a variety of kids with a variety of abilities and if not, they risk breaking a federal law. They’re expected to provide internet service and appropriate hardware to each of the thousands of children in their district.

I wonder what the parent is supposed to do?

And I thought being a nurse was bad. At least we’re being called heroes for the time being. That will change back to the usual “you’re just a nurse” at some point, but at least we get some props for awhile.

 

[Southernmiss]

Good grief. It's a pandemic.

An unprecedented event in our lifetime. Why don't people get that?

Absolutely no one was prepared for any of this.

 

[mom2rtk]

Good grief. It's a pandemic.

An unprecedented event in our lifetime. Why don't people get that?

Absolutely no one was prepared for any of this.

An unprecedented event in most of our parents' lifetimes.

Honestly, I would pretty much just write off the balance of the current school year for that reason. Nobody in education was ready for that.

Fall is a completely different matter though. If they can't open in some areas, schools can and must do substantially better.

 

[Nayan]

Schools need to open for the majority of America's children to be educated properly. Unfortunately, Dr. Fauci just testified to Congress that opening schools in the fall would endanger children, and as he is so influential, that might cause many schools to not open next year. Did he have an end-game for the closures to suggest to Congress? Nope. Any suggested dates for reopening? Nope. Just more of the old: we need to keep cases as low as we can- reopening is dangerous. Has it ever occurred to him that closure is hurting a lot of people, especially children, and they can't stay home forever? His only good news was that he thought it was "more likely than not" that a vaccine would eventually be developed. Not anytime soon, of course, as safe vaccines typically take years to develop. And anyone who tries to reopen now, or in the forseeable future, is irresponsible...He needs to be treated by an opthamologist for a severe case of Covid tunnel vision.

As a mom and a teacher, I'm so upset about the schools possibly being closed next year. Many kids cannot learn well academically or socially at home. That's why some parents are so angry. Please, please, let the schools open in the fall.

I have friends with kids from elementary to high school and none of them plan on sending their kids back in the fall, schools open or not. The more we learn about this disease, the scarier it is and now we're seeing a spike of some kind of mutation in kids, meaning they are not immune. Dr. Fauci is right, whether anyone likes it or not, opening too soon and too fast could be disastrous. I highly doubt schools will be open and if they are you'll see many parents saying 'no thanks'.

 

[Southernmiss]

I have friends with kids from elementary to high school and none of them plan on sending their kids back in the fall, schools open or not. The more we learn about this disease, the scarier it is and now we're seeing a spike of some kind of mutation in kids, meaning they are not immune. Dr. Fauci is right, whether anyone likes it or not, opening too soon and too fast could be disastrous. I highly doubt schools will be open and if they are you'll see many parents saying 'no thanks'.

This.

Life as we know it has changed.

Adapting is very hard. But what's our alternative?

 

[PollyannaMom]

rjb123 said:
I just don't understand this. So even if 10% have IEP's, 90% get no education? Nothing? Why can't the 10% just get different remote school and let the 90% do the regular school?

It’s Federal law, IEP’s are Federal documentation. Most children with an IEP struggle or they wouldn’t have one, so they are already faced with odds that the other 90% isn’t facing, and may very likely have a more difficult time when they do get to return to school.

Yes, they will have a more difficult time, but there's a saying: "If one tire goes flat, don't slash the other three." By holding everyone else back too, that will only further divide the resources when we do go back and kids who were missing extra services need us even more.

I get that IEP's are federal law, but I truly believe that law needs to be more flexible than it is. We need to provide what we can to those who are able to access it now, so we can concentrate our resources where they're needed most when this is finally over.

 

[HeatherC]

Schools need to open for the majority of America's children to be educated properly. Unfortunately, Dr. Fauci just testified to Congress that opening schools in the fall would endanger children, and as he is so influential, that might cause many schools to not open next year. Did he have an end-game for the closures to suggest to Congress? Nope. Any suggested dates for reopening? Nope. Just more of the old: we need to keep cases as low as we can- reopening is dangerous. Has it ever occurred to him that closure is hurting a lot of people, especially children, and they can't stay home forever? His only good news was that he thought it was "more likely than not" that a vaccine would eventually be developed. Not anytime soon, of course, as safe vaccines typically take years to develop. And anyone who tries to reopen now, or in the forseeable future, is irresponsible...He needs to be treated by an opthamologist for a severe case of Covid tunnel vision.

As a mom and a teacher, I'm so upset about the schools possibly being closed next year. Many kids cannot learn well academically or socially at home. That's why some parents are so angry. Please, please, let the schools open in the fall.

It is actually not Dr. Fauci’s job to decide about schools or offer solutions. His job is to simply explain the science behind this virus and what he believes is and will be happening as a result of it. I think he has done a very good job of providing an unbiased response to all of this. He is a scientist. He relies on science. Simple as that.

I think we would all like things back to normal, but the reality is that this is a brand new disease of which we know very little about. They are now seeing kids exhibiting disturbing symptoms. They are also now saying it is not simply a respiratory disease in adults, but can affect the entire body and people who do survive it may have lifelong repercussions from it.. (Just saw that on CNN website today.).

States and school districts are trying to rectify this information with the risk of opening schools in a few short months. I think they are making plans for both possibilities, but at this point it would be irresponsible to ‘guarantee’ schools will be open. There is just too many unknown factors right now.

 

[Darcy03231]

While our school system went to remote learning fairly quickly, we have issues as we live in a rural area that weren't well thought out. There are areas that don't have internet access and the school system did not provide tablets/laptops. While it didn't affect me (I have high-speed internet and electronics) it's been an issue for others in the community and I understand they're upset. Kind of hard to do remote learning if your town doesn't provide the tools. As of last week I believe that the school has now handed out tablets/laptops to those that need them, but there's been no expansion of the internet service in town. Families have been given a list of free hotspots in town, but if you're working you can't sit in a parking lot all day. My guess is that there are children falling through the cracks here.

 

[cvjw]

To the poster who asked about the underprivileged kids in metro Atlanta - the school systems are trying to give the kids without computers, devices to use for free. Some of the school districts turned school buses into WiFi hotspots and drove them into the poorer areas so that everyone could get online.

I will say that there were news stories begging parents to go and pick up the free iPads so their kids could learn. The school districts know which kids were logging into their online learning, and lots of kids had done nothing.

 

[CarolAnn856]

Our kids aren't getting grades. I don't even think participation is required, just strongly encouraged. But again, friends in 4 different states have had online programs in place for years. One of those is in the metro Atlanta area. One of the largest school districts in the country and they have had online stuff for school closures for years without the school issuing devices for every student. It can be done.

There is a vast difference between implementing a program already in place and starting one from scratch. A school district that never had an online learning program can’t just flip a switch and have it up and running right away. As others have mentioned, equity is a major hurdle. Are there districts out there that maybe could have moved faster? Sure. But even in the district I work in, where the majority of families are upper middle class, there were a lot of issues to work out.

We did go online immediately, but we had the means to do that. There are a lot of other districts out there were kids don’t even have reliable Internet, due to living in a more remote area. There are districts where kids don’t have access to technology at home, so getting them devices to use obviously can take quite some time.

I have seen a bit of that. A friend of mine and I have kids in the 2 largest school districts in the area. We shared similar frustrations in that as soon as schools were closed they were immediately getting information out about when and where to pick up meals for their kids if that was a concern. Don't get me wrong, that is a great service and in my, admittedly somewhat sheltered, experience the need for those services in the community was much larger than I ever realized.

However, the schools had absolutely nothing in the way of academic work for our kids for 3 weeks.

As for comparing it to kids getting fed, I find it odd that you’d even use that. Feeding children is far more important that missing instructional time, and I say that as a school librarian. Obviously getting meals out was a top priority and was implemented immediately, even though online learning took longer to get up and running.