One of the important citations in the letter is this research study on COVID-19 viral load among young children. Spoiler alert: it's higher than you think.
I strongly recommend that you sign onto the letter (like I did).
Some of you know that I am a master teacher with Math For America, an organization whose sole purpose is to keep high-quality math and science teachers in the classroom. They recognize that many of us do not get the resources we need to be more effective at our jobs and so we often leave for other Districts or other career paths. Two teachers from Bronx Science recently crafted a letter to Governor Cuomo urging him to keep NYC schools closed until certain criteria are met. Here is the letter and here is the link to sign onto it.
One of the important citations in the letter is this research study on COVID-19 viral load among young children. Spoiler alert: it's higher than you think. I strongly recommend that you sign onto the letter (like I did).
0 Comments
According to an NYC DOE document entitled "Preparing for School Year 2020-2021: Instructions Principles & Programming Guidance," students will be eating lunch in their classrooms while instruction is taking place. I find a few particular problems with this:
Basically, it sounds like another risk to keep in mind. I've decided to share some of my thoughts and research into the current impact of the COVID-19 crisis on NYC schools. Close friends and relatives don't get the same kind of information I get so I wanted to post it here for all to see. Feel free to share as we go along.
The item for today is a blog post from School Custodial Engineers union, Local 891, wherein their President, Robert Troeller, shares that despite the policy announcements from the NYC Department of Education, there is no extra budget to allow for the kind of deep cleaning the schools will need and have been promised. He recommends, "Do not include DSF’s [Division of School Facilities] daily sanitizing protocols in your Annual Plan." He says this because they cannot maintain a balanced budget if they include the daily sanitizing protocols and they do not have more staff to complete the work in time. In an article from June, Robert also shared that their budget had remained static despite extra work being mandated. He is quoted as saying, "It’s basically the same funding levels for staff that we had last fiscal year. Yet the staff is expected to do all this extra work. And I just don't know what's going to happen." To me, that alone means schools buildings should not open. |
AuthorI am a math teacher in the New York Department of Education. I infuse technology and real-world problems into my curriculum in order to prepare my students for the future. I would love for people across the country to recognize we teachers can't do it alone. If you don't believe me, come visit my classroom! Contact MeEmail UpdatesArchives
March 2022
|