Are you sending your kids to school next month?

[HeatherC]

Wow that is an insane hybrid model. What state are you in? I wonder if they are making it difficult so more parents chose remote. My son went to Pre-K for 3 hours. By the time I dropped him off it was time to pick him back up again. The morning hours flew by.

Our district is offering hybrid for 7-12. They are in cohorts by last name. A-M mon/wed full day and L-Z Tues/Thurs full day with alternating Fridays. The other days are remote. The elementary K-6 times are staggered because of bussing. So A-M is 9-3 and L-Z is 9:30-3:30 everyday. Middle school here is 5th-8th grade.

I have a K and a 7th. I was worried how my 5 year old would do remote. He can’t sit in front of a chrome book for hours. He wouldn’t even watch videos his preschool teacher would send.

I am in Massachusetts. I am actually shocked they have this plan. I work as a sub in the district and decisions are usually well thought out. This has me shaking my head. Parents are in an uproar which I don’t blame them at all. It is also supposedly based off the surveys they sent to parents earlier in the summer. No survey mentioned this scenario, however.

 

[siren0119]

I am in Massachusetts. I am actually shocked they have this plan. I work as a sub in the district and decisions are usually well thought out. This has me shaking my head. Parents are in an uproar which I don’t blame them at all. It is also supposedly based off the surveys they sent to parents earlier in the summer. No survey mentioned this scenario, however.

Our school in MA just had the school committee meeting about what the start of school was going to look like - they voted to pursue hybrid and not consider full in person learning yet. But our hybrid model makes a lot more sense than the one you had quoted - we are going to a 2:1:2 model. All students would have 2 days in person and 3 days remote (All classes divided into 20 kids, group A goes in person Mon-Tue and remote learns the rest of the week, group B goes Thu-Fri). It's not ideal but it seems to have been given at least some thought.

Those surveys were a total joke. They were sent before we had any real sense of what the schools would be proposing, ours barely left any room for comments on what we would like to see addressed in any non-in-person plan. The full remote options weren't even mentioned but it's apparent that our district is OK with remote learning being handled by a canned curriculum, or whatever collective remote learning plan DESE decides to put out statewide.

 

[HeatherC]

Our school in MA just had the school committee meeting about what the start of school was going to look like - they voted to pursue hybrid and not consider full in person learning yet. But our hybrid model makes a lot more sense than the one you had quoted - we are going to a 2:1:2 model. All students would have 2 days in person and 3 days remote (All classes divided into 20 kids, group A goes in person Mon-Tue and remote learns the rest of the week, group B goes Thu-Fri). It's not ideal but it seems to have been given at least some thought.

Those surveys were a total joke. They were sent before we had any real sense of what the schools would be proposing, ours barely left any room for comments on what we would like to see addressed in any non-in-person plan. The full remote options weren't even mentioned but it's apparent that our district is OK with remote learning being handled by a canned curriculum, or whatever collective remote learning plan DESE decides to put out statewide.

That is what we though our hybrid would be like too. This is crazy.

 

[ajw28]

Many districts in NJ by me are doing half days as well. Then the afternoon, the teachers can connect with the students who are working remotely (either full time remote or remote that day because it wasn't their cohort's day to attend).

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

In its second day of the new school year, the Cherokee County School District shut down a second-grade classroom at Sixes Elementary School in Canton after a student tested postive for COVID-19

 

[mjkacmom]

Many districts in NJ by me are doing half days as well. Then the afternoon, the teachers can connect with the students who are working remotely (either full time remote or remote that day because it wasn't their cohort's day to attend).

Same, looks like 2 mornings a week.

 

[MrsPete]

Just of the myriad of reasons I regret not moving when I was younger.

For the benefit of any young person going into education (LOL -- young people aren't going into education), here are some things that are very important -- things you don't realize is important when you're in college studying /committing yourself to a job for 30 years:

- Teaching is not worthwhile for the paycheck alone, but it IS worthwhile if you stay with it for a whole career and earn a full pension. The real financial benefit comes at the end of your career.
- Earning a full pension in my state requires 30 years; other states vary, but this is pretty standard. You can collect a smaller pension for fewer years, but it's really not worthwhile /not a livable retirement pension unless you "max out" your years.
- If you have a paid-for house AND a full teacher pension AND Social Security, you can live comfortably -- though modestly -- in retirement, even without significant additional savings.
- Teachers are STATE employees, so to earn a full pension you must work your whole career in the same state. This means you AND your spouse have to be committed to staying in the same state (or in an on-the-border town where you can drive to a school in your state). No, you can't teach online and stay in the teacher pension program; online teaching is a contract-gig, and it pays X amount per student /no benefits.

HI. I don't understand how you would be double dipping? Social Security is Federal, retirement is State, right? Did you contribute to both?

Glad I live in a state that made me pay into SS, as I now have both .

In most states (including mine) teachers pay into teacher retirement AND they pay into Social Security; as a result, we will get a retirement check from both teacher retirement AND Social Security.

The tax collectors "double dip" into our paychecks for 30 years, so it's fair that we receive two checks in retirement.

The unfairness of this policy comes into play for those who came to teaching as a second career and for those with side/summer jobs who have all the required quarters for SS but now can’t collect at all or only minimally. Teachers with side and summer jobs have become more and more common over the years.

It also causes problems for teachers who work in one state and then move. Of course, those teachers get screwed over in multiple ways -- for financial success, teachers really need to remain in the same state.

 

[Kitty 34]

In its second day of the new school year, the Cherokee County School District shut down a second-grade classroom at Sixes Elementary School in Canton after a student tested postive for COVID-19

My question (again) who actually tests say like this 2nd grader (the school or the parents)??? And on this 2nd day of school; how quick do these results come in?..........obviously quickly, right?

 

[Pucks104]

In NC right now, at least locally, it’s taking between 5(if you’re lucky) and 10 days or so to get test results. Do not quickly here.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

NYC, testing is 2-3 days now. I don't think that's the case in many other states though.

 

[Kitty 34]

In NC right now, at least locally, it’s taking between 5(if you’re lucky) and 10 days or so to get test results. Do not quickly here.

NYC, testing is 2-3 days now. I don't think that's the case in many other states though.

Thank you for your replies. I still am baffled then on Day Two we suddenly have a 2nd grader having tested and been so quickly diagnosed to shut down???

 

[TipsyTraveler]

Thank you for your replies. I still am baffled then on Day Two we suddenly have a 2nd grader having tested and been so quickly diagnosed to shut down???

I imagine the child had been tested prior to the start of the school year. The parents sent the child to school knowing they were awaiting results.

 

[TomServo27]

Seems safe to me.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Thank you for your replies. I still am baffled then on Day Two we suddenly have a 2nd grader having tested and been so quickly diagnosed to shut down???

At the risk of being flamed again my guess is it's the same scenario of the first one that the student was awaiting a test result but attended anyways. I couldn't locate any story at this time that gave more than just the vague information though.

 

[lifesavacation]

I had my daughter tested recently in WA. We used a drive through community testing center that used Quest Lab and we had results in 4 hours. They initially told us 1-3 days for results.

My son is a firefighter in Eastern WA and he was tested and they also did a blood antibody test. He had results in 2 hours.

 

[gwynne]

These first day photos. Yikes! Surely some adults were aware of the posed photos?
https://www.thegeorgiasun.com/2020/08/04/first-day-of-school-photos-in-georgia-go-viral/

 

[texaslover]

For the benefit of any young person going into education (LOL -- young people aren't going into education), here are some things that are very important -- things you don't realize is important when you're in college studying /committing yourself to a job for 30 years:

- Teaching is not worthwhile for the paycheck alone, but it IS worthwhile if you stay with it for a whole career and earn a full pension. The real financial benefit comes at the end of your career.
- Earning a full pension in my state requires 30 years; other states vary, but this is pretty standard. You can collect a smaller pension for fewer years, but it's really not worthwhile /not a livable retirement pension unless you "max out" your years.
- If you have a paid-for house AND a full teacher pension AND Social Security, you can live comfortably -- though modestly -- in retirement, even without significant additional savings.
- Teachers are STATE employees, so to earn a full pension you must work your whole career in the same state. This means you AND your spouse have to be committed to staying in the same state (or in an on-the-border town where you can drive to a school in your state). No, you can't teach online and stay in the teacher pension program; online teaching is a contract-gig, and it pays X amount per student /no benefits.
In most states (including mine) teachers pay into teacher retirement AND they pay into Social Security; as a result, we will get a retirement check from both teacher retirement AND Social Security.

The tax collectors "double dip" into our paychecks for 30 years, so it's fair that we receive two checks in retirement.
It also causes problems for teachers who work in one state and then move. Of course, those teachers get screwed over in multiple ways -- for financial success, teachers really need to remain in the same state.

This varies from state to state tremendously. In Texas we pay into the TRS (teachers retirement fund) instead of social security. We do not receive a pension on retirement but basically a variation of social security where you get a monthly income based on years of service. It is nowhere near a full salary no matter how long you work.

Someone like me who came into teaching as a second career also paid into social security in past jobs. I paid social security for 15 years and have now paid into TRS for 14 years. At some point legislation was passed and teachers now have to choose their social security or TRS, they cannot take both. For people like me this is devastating. I haven't done a lot of research into it, honestly because it starts to give me anxiety and there is nothing I can do about it right now. I know there are teacher advocates who are fighting to have it changed at the state level.

I have to work until I'm 68 to get my full retirement benefits under TRS which will be about 1/2 of my monthly salary. Honestly I don't know how families where both spouses are teachers are able to retire comfortably.

 

[Colleen27]

For the benefit of any young person going into education (LOL -- young people aren't going into education), here are some things that are very important -- things you don't realize is important when you're in college studying /committing yourself to a job for 30 years:

- Teaching is not worthwhile for the paycheck alone, but it IS worthwhile if you stay with it for a whole career and earn a full pension. The real financial benefit comes at the end of your career.
- Earning a full pension in my state requires 30 years; other states vary, but this is pretty standard. You can collect a smaller pension for fewer years, but it's really not worthwhile /not a livable retirement pension unless you "max out" your years.

Do new teachers in your state still get a pension? Ours has transitioned to a 401K, just like most other places. There's a bit more generous match than many private sector firms, but you're still on your own for saving for retirement... and you're doing it on salaries that are unchanged from the days when the benefits justified the lower pay.

 

[HeatherC]

I imagine the child had been tested prior to the start of the school year. The parents sent the child to school knowing they were awaiting results.

I just saw a TikTok video from Utah where someone posted their districts guidelines where it says parents are allowed to send kids to school if they are awaiting test results but not if they have symptoms. Crazy!

 

[Frwinkley]

PA teacher here, also a 2nd career.

I will retire in about 4 years at 63. At that point, I will get a lump sum of money (which I'll roll over into another retirement vehicle) and a pension that will be about 1/2 my full-time salary. That is my choice. At that point I will have worked 20 years. I have other retirement money from working in the private sector, as does my husband. We will live on my pension, his small pension and cash savings (not touching retirement money). Our house is paid off, and kids are gone. It's important for us to retire at a reasonably young age.

The way the PA pension system works is this: I contribute 7.5% of my salary (mandatory) and this gets matched. I also contribute to SS. Our multiplier is 2.5%. That means 20 years of service x 2.5% is 50%. I'll get 50% of my my salary (which is the average of my last 3 years).

My district offers an early retirement incentive which allows you to retire at 60, with at least 17 years of service. They also continue to pay your medical insurance (minus my contribution which is minimal) until you hit age 65.

I believe all of the above has changed for newly hired teachers.