Thread by @SarahCohodes

Thanks again for all the feedback!

I'll try to address a few questions that seemed to come up frequently here, unfortunately there are so many at this point I can't go through one by one.

Hopefully in a shorter thread than before. 😉

https://twitter.com/SarahCohodes/status/1277948254269906944

Q1: You monster! Middle and high schoolers need in-person instruction and social opportunities too!

A1: Yes. I agree. In an ideal world all students would have an opportunity for f2f. Unfortunately the risk of COVID transmission is higher for older students.

A1 cont: I think it’s possible to safely convene older students with appropriate social distancing but that would need more space and more use of transportation. Given the complexity of that, I think the tradeoff with elementary schoolers is appropriate. Others disagree.

A1 cont: Certainly more possible to convene older students when case counts are low. However, HS students having close interactions with each other seems much more likely than younger students.

Q2: You monster! Middle and high schoolers need supervision at home too!

A2: Yes. I agree. I’m hopeful that the coaching model I propose could substitute for some of that supervision.

A2 cont: Also, in both these “you monster” cases I urge a comparison to what is actually likely to happen in the fall -- what I would call the counterfactual -- rather than a regular school year.

I don’t think it’s possible to return to normal this fall.

A2 cont: The most likely counterfactual is full remote or hybrid (2 days a week, or every other week), likely interrupted. Try to compare this proposal (or any proposal!) to what you think is actually going to happen on the ground.

Q3: You monster! I’m a high school math teacher and I NEVER would teach 5th grade.

A3: Great. You should teach HS online. I was not suggesting that all HS Ts be reassigned to ES. Only that creative staffing would be necessary to manage the risks to faculty.

Q4: Had we handled the virus in the first place, we wouldn’t have to do this!

A4: Sigh. Yes.

Q5: If we handle the virus now, we won't have to do this!

A5: Sigh. Yes.

Q6: Great plan, never going to happen. The Feds are going to blow it and no education system is going to coordinate in this way!

A6: I’m pretty depressed about this too. But our decentralized system means that some states or school districts could lead the way.

A6 continued: I’m hopeful that some states/districts will. A lot of this takes money, but some of it takes leadership -- and some districts are already planning on similar reopenings to what I propose.

Q7: Where is the $ going to come from???

A7: Some of what I propose can be done by reassigning current resources. But frankly, P-12 already needed a federal bailout due the reduction in tax revenue. Need an infusion of funds even with no transformative policies.

A7 cont: There are lots of proposals out there for tutoring corps, similar to AmeriCorps. These are fairly low-cost programs in Fed terms, & would also be economic stimulus in poor job market. Think of it as extending the federal unemployment support.

Q8: But what about [thing that is unique to my school district or personal situation or other thing you didn’t think of]?

A8: You're right, I probably missed it!

A8 cont: The plan I proposed may not be right and may not be right for your [fill in the blank]. My goal here was to lay out a framework of assumptions & tradeoffs. Even if I didn’t (or can’t!) address your particular situation, you can still use the same tools in your situation.

A8 cont: Take what works for your situation, and use the rest to provoke creative solutions that are a better fit. No plan is going to work for everyone. Even if had the exact same system across states, case counts will differ.

Q9: Are you going to write this up for a blog post or op-ed?

A9: I’m trying to! Turns out it’s harder to write a tight article than to write a Twitter screed.

Only 17 tweets!