school closures harmed american education

But schools are open now, so what’s the excuse?

 

Really? Are you being purposely obtuse?

 

I shouldn’t have to since comparing American and European school systems is like comparing a fluffy white rabbit to a brass band, there were differences before the Covid shutdown. However keep painting those fake tunnels on the side of a mountain for me to beep beep through before you get hit by that freight train.

 

Oh, so this is your way of saying school lockdowns were wrong. Got it. Thanks for confirming.

 

You love that word obtuse. LOL. Anyway I’ve already made the point that you’re making the assumption that school closures are the reason more students are missing school now that they’re open while ignoring the plethora of other possible reasons.

 

My gosh, with you the wheel is turning but the hamster’s dead.

 

Well, I'd use another term but it would probably get me banned. You are being obtuse. It's ok. Everyone else here sees it.

 

Yet we still have uneducated posters on here thinking school closures didn't harm children. Those people are batshit crazy.

 

It’s a strange inconsistency where Republicans work so hard to drive away teachers, and eliminate public education because they say it hurts the children, and then turn around and say the schools shutting down hurts the children.

 

How is FL driving away teachers? Be specific.

Here is some of the ways DeSantis is "driving away" LOL...

Oh and the "eliminate public education" is too dumb of a statement to even respond to.


DeSantis offers $3,000 bonus to Florida teachers who complete civics training

Many Florida teachers will see raises starting July 1. But how much, and who gets them?

Governor Ron DeSantis Approves Record Increase in Teacher Pay and Signs the Nation’s Most Comprehensive Package of Legislation to Support Teachers

 

You know at first I thought DeSantis was doing a good job when one of his first acts was to give teachers a raise. What he didn’t like was that he felt teachers should be able to be fired without cause at any time during their career. He doesn’t like the idea of a Florida Retirement System either saying teachers should have a 401K plan instead. He also doesn’t like local control of school systems.

It’s no secret DeSantis favors charter schools and voucher schools, where teachers have no job security and no pensions.

To your point you make the mistake of thinking people go into the teaching profession to make money. They don’t but would like to at least have a living wage. Florida ranks 48th in teacher pay but was 47th when DeSantis took office. So providing raises are pretty useless when they can’t keep up with the cost of living and got worse under DeSantis.

The facts are Florida has 5,294 teacher vacancies compared with 2,217 vacancies in January 2019 when DeSantis took office. Teachers say they are leaving because of low pay and DeSantis' education policies, dubbed the "war on woke." My old school district is hurting so bad that they sent out a mass mailing to retired teachers, with me being one, asking if we would come back with top of the scale pay. It’s plain dumb to think DeSantis isn’t driving away teachers.

 

I agree that teachers are still underpaid in FL. Think that needs to change, either by raising property taxes or thru some other form of a tax. Disagree about vouchers. That should make schools more competitive, not hurt them. Pensions should be for teachers who dedicate their lives to the profession. Want teachers to have that. The whole "charter schools" issues is garbage. Are there some bad charter schools? For sure, just like there are bad public schools. It's what it is. Job security I'm iffy on. I don't have job security other than me doing my job well and helping my company make money. My significant other was a teacher and now in administration. I have always been for higher teacher pay and have posted before I hope FL raises their levels at least to the US avg.

 

Children were undoubtedly set back for not having access to Drag Queen Story Hour.

 

You’re right that competition would make schools better, but both parties need to play by equal rules.

This is where I think both the Democrats and the Florida Education Association missed the boat. By opposing vouchers they opened the door for the pro-voucher crowd to say public schools are afraid of competition. What they should have done is insist the voucher schools need the same accountability for teacher credentials, curriculum, and the same number of low and disadvantaged students as the closest school with the same aged students.

The voucher students must then take the same state sponsored tests, and be graded the same. If the voucher schools showed more improvement then we can discuss the reasons why and apply it to the public schools. As it stands the voucher schools don’t even have to take the field for them to declare themselves the winner.

 

Well, I am for vouchers because I think parents should be able to use their taxpayer money towards choosing what's best for their children. My significant other is also in favor of vouchers which obviously isn't popular in her profession. Some kids are stuck in crappy schools. I know kids can go to a different school if it isn't full or has a specialty program but vouchers gives more freedom. I do agree all students should have to take state sponsored test and be graded the same. I am pretty much down the middle on most subjects believe it or not. Teachers are one of the most important professions in our country and should be paid accordingly(but also have measures to judge them and fire them if they suck).

 

Kids can do that now. No one is “stuck” in a crappy school. They can always transfer and they do so frequently.

The problem with the “My tax dollars” argument is you’re not just using your tax dollars, you’re using mine as well, and I don’t have any kids in school.

 

That is what we all pay towards. You use things I don't use right now regarding tax dollars. It is what it is. Some kids can transfer to another crappy school. Most of the best schools are full. I've dealt with that first hand. Why anyone would want to restrict kids from having the best education for THEM is beyond me. Each kid is different. Giving them choices should help everyone be competitive. Hopefully those BS charter schools get shut down by kids leaving and parents being knowledgeable.

 

Okay then. The good schools are full so why are those schools considered good, and what are the differences between that full good school and the crappy school? Fix that and you’ll have two good schools instead of one.

 

That is up to the Schools Admin, Teachers, staff and of course the FL Government. Easier said than done obviously. I'm not naïve enough to think these schools don't want to be F or D rated to get better but sometimes people get complacent. Hopefully school choice will fix that.

 

Why include teachers in that? They are the least powerful group that has zero say in the money that’s allocated to struggling schools, except for what they take out of their own pockets in order to do their job.