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Blog School Closings |
The
situation in which a public, private or religious
school are forced to close there doors, to protect the life, health or safety of the students,
parents, staff or administration.
Usually this is done for one, two days or as long as a
week. But in March 2020 the Coronavirus cause massive
world wide closing of school which resulted in
extensive disruption of all levels of education. |
The opinion below are the result of
my professional experiences as an:
historian, webmaster, master teacher,
teacher's union vice president and
president, parent and grandparent. |
Updated 7/7/2024 |
Closing
of schools is not new. Schools have been
closed before due to hurricanes, snow
storms, active shooters, health scares,
bombs and other situations in which the
health and safety of the students, teachers,
staff and administration is at stake. Today
we face an even greater reason for the
closing of our schools here and world wide,
the staggering possible affects of any world wide
pandemics and school shootings. The effects can be short and
limited for an hour, day, week or maybe a
month. Many school officials and politicians
are now talking about closing schools for
the rest of the school year if not longer.
What affects will this have on the students,
parents, staff and administration?
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Staff
Will face the prospects of layoffs and furlough and
must figure out ways of paying their bills and feeding their
families. In a disease related closing. My heart goes out to them in this crisis.
Hopefully this crisis will end sooner than some are
predicting and they will be able to go back to feeding the
kids, cleaning the rooms, fixing what is broken, typing
reports and doing the vital things these personal do in the
schools. In a shooter related closing they must at first
deal with the trauma of the events and the possibility of
both mental and physical trauma.
Students
* Sport training and interschool games will be disrupted. An idea might
be to use this time to develop your skills and body. Your
backyard and an open field is a great place to work out!
Jog along sidewalks and any place you can workout. Use
objects from around the house as weights and pull up bars.
If you have to put up a makeshift basket to practice hoops. Believe me I did that and really built up my
skills, stamina and
body.
*You might have to retake some courses. But look at it this
way if you do have retake a class, it will be easier since
some of the material you have already studied. Use
The Classroom to supplement what
your school is offering especially the
Distant Learning Page.
*Sadly some of you seniors will not graduate on time and
thus jeopardized a job or college, hang in there and use
this time to improve your mind, education and your chances
to land an even better scholarship, college or job.
*Your relationships with your parents and peers will be
strained, as they too will be forced to stay at home.
Compete with them on online games (warning don't overdue
this). Talk
on the phone, text, email, skype or facetime with them
and show that you care.
*Learn to communicate play and work with your parents, brothers and sisters.
I believe if you are patient,
cooperative and use this time to improve yourself you will
come out ahead of the game.
Parents
*You will have to hustle to find ways to balance your
work, education, care and safety of your children.
* Set up schedules so as to structure your child's time. You
will then be able to figure out ways to monitor their
activity. This will help you fill idle time in constructive
ways. Here are some articles that might help
NY Times,
Time,
Dept of Education,
Raising Children,
Scholastic,
thecentsiblelife,
Business Insider. Studies show that the crime rate
increases during the summer vacation
ThoughtCo,
Bureau of Justice Statisticsc,
Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology and thus would
apply to this crisis.
*You should consider your child's educational and emotional
needs by using our education site The
Classroom in which you can get the resources to help
bridge the gap until the schools reopen.
*You will have to deal with the emotional distress caused by
the closing of the schools. Remember keep your counseling
age appropriate and try to calm their nerves. Stress that
the closing is temporary and they will soon see their
friends and teachers.
*Here are some articles that will help
LA Times,
American School Counselors Association,
CDC
*Stay strong and alert. This could be a blessing in that you
will get closer to your children and both and them will
understand each other better.
Teachers
* You will have to use all your
experience, training and imagination to provide your
students a continuation of their studies via the distance
learning programs established by your district and state. If
you are not one of the lucky teachers who has this available
to them I wish you the best of luck.
*Keep your cool! I know how this will disrupt your lesson
plans and research you have done to prepare for the course
work. I know very well how frustrating this is from my many
years of teaching. Hang in there and don't pull your hair
out and get plenty of sleep, you are going to need it.
*If possible keep in contact with the students and the
parents and let them know you are there for them. This is
vital to their success.
*Keep smiling and maintain a caring attitude.
*Make your instructions simple, since you will not be
there physically to help the if they have questions. Here
are some articles that might help in this trying time
USA Today, Distant
Learning Page,
K12,
CDC. For
Administrators
*Here are some tips from the
CDC
* Instruct your staff on the proper ways of
preventing the spread.
* Follow up on the custodial staff as to their
cleaning of the gym, cafeteria, lockers, equipment, halls,
books and classrooms.
*Keep in contact with the staff and offer words of
encouragement for this is a tough situation they are
experiencing.
*Keep in contact with the parents and the PTA to provide
information and support.
*Keep yourself healthy.
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