This is tough, because the asynchronous remote learning my kids endured from March-May sucked. I get that it was a less-than-ideal, hastily-arranged triage situation to allow a non-zero amount of learning to happen, but I could see that both my kids went backwards in some subjects (e.g. math). And this was in an ideal home scenario where my wife and I were both home and we have good Internet access and laptops each of our kids could use. Round Rock ISD doesn’t issue any devices (whether they be iPads, Chromebooks, or full laptops) to students for take-home use, so I can only imagine how much worse it was for families with lesser technology access at home, or in homes where the parents still had to work.
Round Rock doesn’t have any solid plans yet for the fall, but they are investigating having split weeks where students attend 1-2 days in person and then attend remotely the rest of the week. This is so they can do most classroom/academic stuff from home (synchronously) and only go to the school building for electives and extracurriculars (e.g. music) while wearing masks and/or with proper social distancing. Meanwhile, my sister and her kids are in Leander ISD, where they just announced yesterday that families will have to choose whether their kids attend exclusively in person or exclusively remotely - not both. My sister and one of my nephews both have auto-immune disorders, but it’s far from a slam dunk decision. Keeping them both home robs them of participating in band, where they are both excelling, as well as the social interaction that is necessary for their ages. They are almost hoping that all of the extracurricular stuff just gets outright canceled so that the decision becomes easier, but then are they just going to fire all the band directors, coaches, etc.?
This is the shit that governments should’ve spent the last four months figuring out.
Exactly. While Trump and his enablers are trying to force the economy to open up, they have failed to address how people are going to be able to go back to work if schools aren’t open.
Florida decided that it doesn’t have enough COVID yet, so will force schools to open, putting at risk teachers, staff, bus drivers etc. etc. as well as the families of all the above…so basically everyone. That’s insane, but it’s where they are and where I fear we - in Texas - will be.
Agreed on all points. My five-year-old daughter was supposed to start Kindergarten in Cy-Fair ISD this August, but my wife and I are going to hold her back a year due to COVID-19 and continue to work on the basics with her at home. There’s no way we are comfortable having our child do in-person classes right now, and I would prefer her first year not be done virtually unless there’s no other choice (the situation doesn’t change in August 2021). If she was already going to school, I would have her learn virtually until it was safe to attend in person. I also understand not all families have the luxury to either stay home with their kids or have them come to work with them like my wife and I do (my wife runs a family business with my father). I feel for them and hope schools figure out the best approach for those families.
The safety of my child and our family is the most important thing.
A question for the legally-minded of the board, what liability do school districts have for COVID-19 outbreaks? Are there criteria to show they were careless (like not having enough masks), or something like that? Kids get sick all the time, so I assume there some legal protection.
That’s pretty close BillyD. There was little to no wind and pile was In and over a recessed pit approximately 6 feet wide and 5 feet deep. I poured the gas from the top so there was a trickle down effect that added to the vapor or fumes. I did use charcoal lighter fluid to pour a wick or fuse about four feet long away from the pile but it was not far enough away and the vapor flared up the instant I struck the lighter. Perhaps the dumbest thing was wearing only shorts and a t-shirt because only exposed skin took the burns. Had I been wearing jeans, a long sleeve shirt, gloves and a hat, I probably would have walked away unharmed. I’ll be fine in a few weeks with hardly any scarring. Just my right forearm, backside of wrist and right shin.
Next time, take off a nuke the site from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure.
And get well soon, Colonel. That sounds painful. My Dad was somewhat of a pyro, so his quarterly yard refuse disposal fires were usually an adventure but he somehow managed to avoid immolation. Somehow.
Meanwhile, another item for the bulging “This Is Fine” file:
Trump administration gives formal notice of withdrawal from WHO
WASHINGTON — The United States officially notified the United Nations on Tuesday of its withdrawal from the World Health Organization, a White House official said.
The notice, which comes as the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the globe, was submitted to the U.N. secretary-general and to Congress. The withdrawal is expected to take effect July 6, 2021.
A WHO spokesperson told NBC News they were aware of reports that the U.S. submitted the formal notification to withdraw, but declined to comment further.
Lawmakers from both parties, including Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., swiftly criticized the move.
The butcher’s bill is starting to come due as nearly 1,000 died today. Many states now have significant increases in daily cases and many, such as Texas, are hitting new highs in their 7 day rolling averages for fatalities.
It’s depressing looking at the numbers and the trends. We will likely be at over 60,000 daily cases before the end of the week and soon thereafter back to 2,000 daily fatalities. With no end in sight.
We’ve got to try to stay alive until election day. If Trump wins, Americans will die in the millions. Not hyperbole.
