BY SARA TABIN
Daily Post Staff Writer
The Palo Alto school board voted unanimously last night (Sept. 29) to a reopening plan that will return students to the classroom for the first time since the coronavirus outbreak closed schools in mid-March.
The plan is to have kids in kindergarten and first-grade come back Oct. 12, second- and third-graders return on Oct. 26 and fourth- and fifth-graders come back Nov. 9. Middle and high schoolers won’t return until next semester.
Parents can keep their kids in remote learning if they want.
The two student representatives on the board voted against the plan but their votes are symbolic and have no legal weight.
Many teachers spoke against reopening at the meeting because they say they don’t feel safe returning to the classroom.
Paly teacher Sheri Mulroe said the school board shouldn’t force teachers to go back to school in person when the board is still meeting virtually over Zoom.
A number of parents had complaints about the reopening plan. One complaint that came up multiple times is that the district is asking elementary school parents to commit to either remote or in-person learning for the year.
Nate Blair said the reopening plan is a colossal failure of leadership. He said parents shouldn’t be forced to commit when the reopening plan is still half-baked.
Roxanne Patel said she wants to be allowed to revisit her choice about her child’s schooling in January.
Other parents are upset that kids will be reshuffled into new groups when the in-person learning starts.
Greg Brail said he doesn’t care if his second-grader learns remotely or in-person as long as the child gets to stay with the same teacher and classmates.
Board member Jennifer DiBrienza asked Superintendent Don Austin if the district will try to keep kids with the same teachers or at least in the same school.
Austin said he will meet with the nine elementary school principals tomorrow (Thursday) to create cohorts for in-person and remote learning. He said they will try to keep as many kids with the same teachers as possible, but it won’t be possible in every case.
Under the current plan, kindergarteners will come to school every day, but half the kids will only come in the morning while the other half only comes in the afternoon.
Older elementary students will be broken up so half the kids come Monday and Tuesday while the other half come Thursday and Friday. Everyone will attend class on Zoom on Wednesday.
Classes such as music, PE and art, which are normally taught to kids in different classes by one teacher, will take place over Zoom on days kids are at home. Only kindergarteners will get these classes in person.
Kids will have two or three live classes on two of the days they are at home. Other classes will be asynchronous, meaning kids learn the material on their own.
Student representative Thomas Li said he voted against the plan in part because he is concerned that kids will have to spend some of their time in asynchronous learning. He said he isn’t sure there will be enough support for elementary school kids trying to learn without a teacher to help them in real-time.
The meeting was held on the Zoom platform, and some parents who called in told the board they wanted to plan approved so kids can start going back on campus.
Ryan Elliot said remote learning has been a disaster for his son. He said the board has support in reopening from many parents who are afraid to speak out because it is such a politically divided issue.
Kids and teachers will have to wear masks at school. Lunch and recess times will be staggered.
Assistant Superintendent Anne Brown said playgrounds will be sectioned off so kids in different cohorts play apart from each other.
The principals of each school will designate entrance and entry points for each classroom to try and prevent large groups. Parents won’t be allowed on campus and will have to stay in their cars during drop-off.
Many essential workers have been on the job throughout this pandemic — grocery clerks, healthcare workers, daycare providers, car mechanics, police, firemen. It’s time for our well-paid teachers to return too. Follow safety precautions but get back to work. Our kids can’t afford to lose another year.
Are you unaware that children are super spreaders of this disease?
Are you unaware that despite closures and quarantines in place, adults and their children are STILL going to people’s houses and attending social events as if there were no pandemic?
Are you unaware that there is no vaccine in place?
Are you aware that if you step foot on any single random elementary school campus, how unprepared these schools are to address social distancing and safety measures?
WAKE UP! READ THE SCIENCE, READ THE RESEARCH.
You won’t know how terrible coronavirus is until you read the damn newspapers, until you read the stories of those who actually had the disease. Because guess what? IT WREAKS HAVOC ON YOUR BODY, ON YOUR PULMONARY SYSTEM, EVEN ON YOUR BRAIN.
You sound hysterical with no factual basis to any of your points.
Children do not spread CV to adults. Schools are open in Europe and Asia except here and there is no evidence of children spreading to teachers in those places.
The so-called pandemic ended a long time ago. There has never been a cold virus or flu epidemic in the summer – the conditions are just not ripe for it. Hardly anyone died from CV. They died mainly from old age causes like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.
Stop with the phony scare-mongering. [Portion deleted — no personal insults. Be polite.]
The teachers must be finding it easier to teach from home versus confronting an entire class and trying to keep the peace with some with behavioral issues, etc. But it’s good for the children and parents for the children to be on campus. Isn’t that why they chose to teach children in the first place? Sadly, some teachers in middle and high schools are definitely there for the 6-figure paycheck with 3 months off per year. There isn’t much COVID in Palo Alto and the intellectual residents are conscientious about the situation.