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There's a New Trend to Close Schools Again and It Has Nothing to Do with Covid

Leah Barkoukis
Leah Barkoukis  |  December 09, 2021 11:30 AM

Parents across the country were hopeful at the start of the year that with schools back to in-person instruction, remote learning would be a thing of the past. Unfortunately, many are finding that's not entirely the case.

According to a report in The New York Times, many school districts are going remote or canceling classes altogether, and it has nothing to do with outbreaks of Covid-19. 

Instead, teacher burnout and staffing shortages are being blamed.

Detroit public schools announced last month, for example, they would switch to virtual learning every Friday. Then, they decided to close school—in person and remote—for the entire week of Thanksgiving. It's a trend that's taking off around the nation and one that will likely pick up steam as the year progresses. 

At least six other school districts in Michigan extended Thanksgiving break, and three districts in Washington State, including Seattle Public Schools, unexpectedly closed on Nov. 12, the day after Veterans Day. In one instance, Brevard Public Schools in Florida used leftover “hurricane days” to close schools for the entire week of Thanksgiving.

In Utah, the Canyons School District announced that all of its schools would go remote one Friday a month from November until March, equivalent to more than a week of school.

A few of these districts have closed with very little notice, sending parents to find child care, as well as summon the wherewithal to supervise remote learning. Beyond the logistics, many parents are worried that with additional lost days of in-person school, their children will fall further behind. (NYT)

While a number of reasons have been cited, according to The Times, many closures "are a last-ditch effort to keep teachers from resigning."

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They are burned out, educators said, after a year of trying to help students through learning loss, and working overtime to make up for labor shortages.

Battles in the classroom — over mask mandates and critical race theory — have also taken a toll, said Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, the country’s second-biggest teachers’ union.

“What you hear from teachers is that it’s been too much,” she said. “And they’re trying the best that they can.”

These temporary closures, though, may only hamper relationships with parents at a moment when tensions in many districts are already high. (NYT)

While Weingarten lamented the "enormous" challenges for educators this year, critics said the move to resort to Zoom school or canceling classes altogether shows that the well-being of children is again being put last.