Jonathan Halabi wrote the survey for his HSAS Chapter. We printed it here and a reader turned it into a Google Form. We sent it out and got 156 responses so far.
At first glance, the numbers below represent only a tiny fraction of the UFT membership or even our readership. However, consider that companies say medium size surveys will normally get an under 10% return rate unless they offer an incentive which we didn't offer so 156 is a decent sample size. Thanks to everyone who took the time to answer the questions. Please fill it out and spread to UFT contacts if you have not yet done so.
These results might not be a scientific representation of the UFT membership but they have as much validity as one of those focus groups Michael Mulgrew constantly refers to.
Reopening NYC Schools Survey
The results below are from a voluntary survey in which teachers of the New York City Department of Education shared their thoughts regarding reopening. The following information is based on 156 responses. Below is a question by question analysis.
Question 1: I would prefer not to work in the building until…
155 responses
● 41.3% stated until there is a vaccine
● 36.8% stated until medical experts say it is safe
● 8.4% stated they are okay going back as soon as it is opened
● 7.1% stated until they get the sense that there are many fewer people getting sick
● Other responses include until a vaccine has worked for at least 6 months; proper ventilation; regular cleaning;
smaller class sizes; reliable, semi-weekly testing.
Question 2: Necessary safety measures include…
The five main choices were everyone is tested; masks; shields for adults; shields for kids; gloves; temperature testing; all
of the above.
153 responses
● 60.1% stated all of the above
● 41.8% stated masks
● 38.6% stated everyone is tested
● 35.3% stated temperature testing
● 25.5% stated shields for adults
● 24.8% stated gloves
● 21.6% stated shields for kids
● Other responses included not opening until there is a vaccine, social distancing is possible in the building, less
people in a building, regular and extensive cleaning, ventilation.
Question 3: When it comes to cleaning, I am more concerned with…
155 responses
● 69% stated how thorough the regular cleaning will be once we return
● 11.6% stated specific training for cleaners
● 5.8% stated how thorough the cleaning will be before we return
● Concerns that were voiced were whether they would be an adequate amount of cleaning supplies, realistic
expectations in regards to the frequency and time required between classes to clean classrooms.
Question 4: I would prefer not to return to work in the buildings until social distancing (six feet)...
154 responses
● 60.4% stated is possible at all times
● 14.9% stated is possible at most times, including the classroom, but not all times
● 13% stated is possible at all times, but less than 6 feet is okay
● 6.5% stated that social distancing is not important to me
● Other responses voiced concerns over social distancing not being possible in schools due to logistical matters
such as transitioning between classes, lockdowns and evacuations.
Question 5: If we could see our students, in our classrooms, once a week, but remote teach at other times, and
maintain social distancing (a hybrid model)...
153 responses
● 33.3% stated I would not want this - wait until we could open properly
● 24.8% stated I would want this
● 19.6% stated I would not want this - too complicated.
● 17% stated I would not want this - sounds rushed/don’t trust the distancing
● Other responses emphasized social distancing, washing stations, distancing with younger school children, and
having a larger portion of the week remote.
Question 6: There has been talk about other hybrid models. Which of these might make sense:
150 responses
● 51.3% stated alternating A and B days
● 14% stated separate AM/PM groups of kids
● 6% stated more face to face time with younger students (9th, maybe 10th)
● Other responses included alternating A/B/C or A/B/C/D for overcrowded schools, alternating bi-weekly, waiting
until a vaccine is available to return to schools, and concerns about teachers with school-aged children
themselves.
Question 7: While we are remote, which live methods do you use?
152 responses
● 52% stated Live tutoring/Review sessions/Extra help
● 50.7% stated live office hours
● 45.4% stated live discussions
● 34.9% stated live lessons - recorded for viewing later
● 27.6% stated live lessons - mandatory
● 14.5% stated none of the above
● Other responses included at teacher’s discretion, online HW and enrichment, narrated powerpoints, posted
lessons, Google Meet.
Question 8: Which live methods would you choose for your classes, if we teach remotely next year?
153 responses
● 58.2% stated live office hours
● 51% stated live tutoring/review sessions/extra help
● 49% stated live discussions
● 47.1% stated live lessons - recorded for later viewing
● 30.1% stated live lessons - mandatory
● 11.8% stated uncertainty
● 11.1% stated none of the above
● Other responses included narrated powerpoints, recording videos and no live meetings, required face interactions
through platforms like Flipgrid
Question 9: The DoE should…
153 responses
● 47.7% stated the DoE should make plans for either contingency
● 29.4% stated the DoE should make a decision (presumably remote) now, to take away the uncertainty
● 19% stated the DoE should plan as if we are teaching remotely in September
● Other responses included opening schools with set guidelines, reopening schools and enough of the hybrid
blather, and making a decision soon as larger schools require time to plan
Question 10: Live Teaching approaches...
149 responses
● 40.3% stated I am okay with what others do, as long as I can do what is best for my classes
● 22.8% stated it is good if each teacher / class has its own best approach to live teaching
● 16.8% stated I would like time to be set aside for each teacher to use for live teaching, and then let them choose
how to use it
● 16.8% stated it is good if the school has a school-wide policy on live teaching
● Other responses include live office hours at teachers discretion for what is best for their class, no live teaching,
and concerns regarding student accessibility to internet, special needs students, directions and knowledge of using programs and technology
Question 11: If we are remote...
149 responses
● 30.9% stated the way we are now is fine.
● 22.8% stated I would like a set daily time for each of my classes
● 21.5% stated I would like a set weekly time for each of my classes
● 13.4% stated I would like a set weekly time, but don’t expect kids in regular classes
● 9.4% stated I would like a set daily time, but don’t expect kids in regular class groups
● Other responses included live office hours and self-paced learning, setting times 2-3 days a week for live lessons, and concerns about creating regularity for the new school year in a virtual space where it is harder to ensure
student attendance and participation
Question 12: Where do you fall on the question of remote tests?
146 responses
● 37% stated not worth doing them
● 19.9% stated they should be untimed
● 14.4% stated they should be timed
● 10.3% stated has to be essays
● 3.4% stated no multiple choice
● Other responses included a combination of the above choices, focus on mastery based and performance tasks, project-based learning, formative and pre-assessments, classwork for special needs student is enough, open
book exams, concerns on tests assessing one’s knowledge and understanding
Question 13: How have you modified deadlines?
151 responses
● 38.4% stated barely maintain any deadlines
● 29.8% stated usually give a few more days
● 16.6% stated give about double the normal time
● 4.6% stated late the same day is okay
● Other responses included no deadlines, accepting work whenever it is turned in, weekly deadlines, no penalty for
late work, no penalty for late work if it is of quality, accept late work if students reach out, and deadlines used for
pacing purposes only.
Question 14: How important is it to get students back into the building?
154 responses
On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being not important and 5 being very important:
● 35.1% stated 5
● 14.3% stated 4
● 20.8% stated 3
● 11% stated 2
● 18.8% stated 1
Are there compromises we would make to achieve that?
Out of 85 responses, 43 stated a no and that the safety of staff, students, and families is priority. 7 stated we shouldn’t go back to school until there is a vaccine. Multiple stated that social distancing, masks, temperature checks and guidelines are crucial.
70 comments:
We have no say. When school is open, decided by mayor and governor, we will not change the decision.
We have to assert ourselves to get what we need.
Councilman Mark Treyger
The mayor doesn’t solely decide budget terms. SYEP is vital, but social workers, teachers, counselors, nurses, & cleaners are also part of the budget discussion, especially for a safe reopening of schools. There’s no reopening of NYC without a safe reopening of NYC schools.Period
Fred Smith, a former DOE test analyst, said the test-score gains were neither record-breaking nor impressive.
Richard Carranza deputy makes bogus claims on test scores in Georgia job bid
nypost.com
Treyger is wrong. If schools are open on sep 8, they are open. We go or get marked absent. We have no say.
If you stick together as a chapter, nobody is getting docked if they leave or refuse to enter an unsafe school building.
We have no say.
The UFT will throw us under the bus.
They DOE will fire anyone who does not show up to work.
Increase your life insurance face amount and that there is no exclusion for corona virus/pandemic.
Make sure you have a will and a living will that are in order.
Do not rely on anything the DOE says about building safety, especially if they reopen all buildings.
The DOE track record on building safety is appalling.
Be realistic, teachers have a tendency to being gullible.
Finally, returning to work might be like playing Russian roullete.
5:46 pm
I did not know that the calendar is our. Are schools re-opening on September 8th?
Sept 8 is the day after Labor Day.
“I prefer a prison full of criminals than a graveyard full of innocent people.”
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro Flag of Brazil
Question...What has all the monumental funding for schools in nyc accomplished?
James, I'm not so confident that a Chapter that walks out of a building will be supported by the UFT. You say that any chapter that walks out of an unsafe building will not be docked but you don't know that because we are not dealing with the kinds of unsafe conditions that we've walked out on in the past. If a Chapter walks out on a gas leak, on smoke, chemical odors, debris falling from the ceilings, brown liquid seeping from the walls, mold, uncontrolled pests or vermin or insects, bedbugs ....crumbling asbestos cascading from exposed pipes and duct-work, and so on, all things most of us have seen and some of us have walked out on, closed buildings for, though sometimes we have to wait for the UFT hygiene crew (and they are very good) to show up with their fancy and expensive equipment (another reason to pay dues) and run tests that take time, or meet with contractors, super superintendents, city agencies and so on, but, Corona Virus is different because the DOE and UFT have deemed the schools safe, that is why we are there and we are walking out and saying no the building is not safe. Now walking out of a building filling with smoke is easy enough. A building that supposedly had a complete abatement of asbestos or pests or that had its gas leaking pipes or systems replaced, when, we can see that this has not been done is one thing, but how we make that determination and defend it with Corona Virus is very different, I say. Moreover, just as we need to weigh the risks of vacating an unsafe building (see your safety plan) against the risks of where we take shelter, the DOE might argue that we placed ourselves and students at even greater risk by taking them out of a building they have certified as safe.
James, I'm not quite sure it is as simple as you depict it and that your experiences are good precedent for walking out on a building a CL decides is unsafe because of Corona Virus. Unless there is evidence that the building is obviously unsafe, and that won't be easy to come by in all circumstances, and unless what is deemed unsafe by the CL can't be fixed, by one or a combination of measures the DOE and UFT agree to, I wonder how much support a CL will get from the UFT, or even from Chapter members.
There is an excellent OP-Ed in the Newspaper of Record today on this topic. Worth reading, I say.
How to Reopen America’s Schools
The Op-Ed calls for public discourse and dialogue, with teachers, who teach now, and with students and families. And for specific definitions of safe and what to do once a building is not safe.
We need this before we walk in because walking out is not a simple as you suggest.
Shelley
Lol. Is this not bowing down to the criminal? Inmates running the asylum?
PEOPLE: It is really happening. The Minneapolis City Council *just* announced their intent to disband the Police Department & replace it w/ a new community-led system that truly prioritizes the safety & health of community. Transformation. Not “reform.”
I hope everybody really enjoyed that 1968-1980 period, because we're about to repeat it.
We don't walk in if it is not safe. We walk out if it is not safe. Read the doctrine of self help. We have every right to walk out of an unsafe building. Burden of proof is on us and if there is a COVID-19 case, easy to meet. Nobody in their right mind would question it.
There's safety in numbers too so it will be a lot easier if chapters, not individuals leave.
What happens when someone in the building tests positive for Coronavirus?
Is evereyone in the building required to quarantine for 14 days?
Or perhaps, the DOE gets to cover it up and keep the building open without any consequences?
Of course, the DOE did that in March when they had committed to close the building for 24 hours. Zero accountability, zero consequences, zero liability.
8:54, If everyone in that school could be considered to have been in close contact with the positive case, then what is wrong with shutting the building down for two weeks and going to remote learning? That's how you stop community spread.
I don't know about zero liability unless Mitch McConnell gets his way.
No accountability for DOE 8:54 because no school chapter or PTA or School Leadership Team said we're out of here and walked. It could have led to many fewer people getting sick.
Class size matters is doing a meet on this. Why not UFT?
Class Size Matters and NYC Kids PAC are holding a conference on Saturday, June 20 from 11 AM to 1 PM called Sharing Ideas & Solutions for Reopening Schools: The Path Forward. The conference will be co-sponsored by CEC 4, CEC 8, CEC 14 and CEC 28. Please save the date!
During this conference, we will seek ideas from parents, guardians, teachers and concerned New Yorkers about the reopening of our schools. If schools reopen this fall, it must be done the right way to ensure health and safety of students and staff and to maximize academic and emotional support. We will present our proposals at the end of the conference to city and state decision-makers.
The Governor and the Mayor have appointed advisory boards on reopening schools, but with few parents or educators as members.
We want to gather ideas from you before the conference, to collect questions, concerns, and suggestions to help frame our discussions. To do so, please fill out our brief
Kneeling groveling democrat voting teachers should stay home.
Lets be real here: We are talking about the DOE. If the schools are open and teachers "walk out", they will be brought up on charges and they will most likely loose their jobs.
NYC will not spend the necessary money to keep us safe. Proper ventilation with air purifiers in classrooms. Kids in rows with desks that have trifold plexiglass. Half the class size. UV germicidal ceiling lamps. Working sinks with plenty of hot water. Plenty of hand sanitizer and wipes. Masks or face shield for Everyone. Immediate home suspensions for kids who refuse to wear masks. One warning on social distancing then suspension. It can all get done but NYC will not prioritize and put the money wear it needs to go or hold parents and kids responsible for not following rules.
If everyone walks out, the DOE does not have the number of lawyers necessary to charge whole chapters. They have to do it one person at a time. They will be wrong if you can show your health and the health of the students is at risk.
June 8th.
No calendar, no word on ratings, observations, sbo votes or open market positions. No word from the UFT on anything either.
I would say we are getting back to normal.
They will not suspend kids who refuse to wear masks.
I asked five friends that are still teaching (at the HS level) how their distance learning is proceeding. Out of the five, only one has one student that checks in twice a week. After the looting, and seeing the ages of the some of looters, there will be classes in September and Mulgrew is on board with whatever deBlasio tells him. If teachers really want a guarantee of safety they have to call chapter meetings this month - even if it’s done via Zoom. If all teachers in your school come together now you will be able to thwart deB and Moldgrew in September.
Their racist theatrics are sickening. Did one of them mention the 18 people slaughtered in Chicago in 24 hours this last weekend? The systematic violent crime and murder happens to be in most of the communities they represent, yet they are diverting the attention elsewhere.
Congressional Democrats take a knee as they observe a nearly nine minute moment of silence for George Floyd at Emancipation Hall at the U.S. Capitol. https://abcn.ws/3f25yF1
Before police were tough on crime in NYC, there were around 2,000 murders every year! After Mayor
@RudyGiuliani
took over that number dropped to around 650. Does NYC really want to go back? Countless lives have been saved because of the police in our city. Thank you #NYPD!Blue heart
WHO warns most people still at risk of coronavirus infection as mass gatherings resume worldwide
Murders and shootings in the Big Apple skyrocketed last week compared to the same period last year, law enforcement sources said.
From last Monday to Sunday night, there were 13 murders in the city, compared to five killings during the same week last year, sources said.
The city reported 40 shootings last week — the most in a week since 2015. In the same time period in 2019, there were 24 shootings, sources said.
Back on topic please.
Doctor Gotlieb
Nationally, average daily hospitalizations for Covid19 increased last week. There's been a persistent level of infections and hospitalizations for weeks; without showing a clear direction lower. This graph shows average daily hospitalizations for 34 states that report daily data.
This is going to be with us in September.
@12:02 pm...take 5 deep breaths before you pass out. Are you planning to contact anyone about the 18 slaughtered in Chicago? Do you have plans on what you will do in September? Hopefully we will all be safe,right?
Remember, cops go to the crime. The black kids you all claim to care so much about will be hurt the most if police stay home.
POS Rudy? He's really fallen off the sane train. The grad rates have really improved too. Countless teachers have put their foot down and demanded respect from their boss. #BLM
Who shall i contact? Is this not public news? Is it not being ignored? Why is it being ignored?
Haaretz- Israel
"Five schools and kindergartens were closed Friday due to coronavirus infections, according to the Ministry of Education. In total, 92 educational institutions have been shuttered since students and teachers went back to school last month. More than 13,000 students and staff are in self-isolation, and 304 people have tested positive for the virus."
New infections=school closed. This shouldn't be negotiable in NY unless there is a vaccine, an effective treatment (a cure) or the virus mutates into a much less serious disease.
We are the epicenter of a global pandemic in NYC. The Israel position should the UFT's first and final negotiating position. Insist on it cowards. If you won't grow a spine to save your life, you need help.
Opt out. I did. Make a statement, cowards.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has lifted the majority of the country's economic and social restrictions after announcing that it no longer has any active cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Ardern announced the milestone during a press conference on Monday, saying that the government is confident that community transmission of the virus has been eliminated.
Does this woman have a sister who can run for mayor of NYC?
Walk out. Better statement. UFT will have a legal obligation to support you.
Blm? This extreme violence and murder happens every single weekend in Chicago. Young people are being systematically slaughtered on a weekly basis and no one in the Democratic party and main stream media says a damn word about it.
18 black men were killed Sunday in #Chicago by other black men. It was most violent single day in 6 decades, per Chicago Sun Times.
Will #BlackLivesMattters speak out? Will anyone kneel for them? Will #NYT allow an Op Ed denouncing the Ghetto Civil War? 25 total dead over weekend
40 people died yesterday from COVID-19 in NY and another 45 died on Saturday. The first wave hasn't ended yet although it is way down. Let's concentrate on reopening schools safely. Community spread is still occurring.
What is worse?
The Brevard County Fraternal Order of Police is advertising for racist police officers who buck authority to come to Florida
or
The NYCDOE having job fairs for black males only
On Tuesday, June 9, we invite you to wear black and take a knee in George Floyd’s honor and post messages and images that underscore our common humanity on social media using the hashtag
How about take a knee and dont go to work when uft sends us into infected buildings?
The WHO giving us good guidance in 2020 is also “very rare”
Quote Tweet
CNBC
@CNBC
Correction: Asymptomatic spread of coronavirus is "very rare," the WHO says. https://cnb.cx/2BE4oBc
Guys,
Can we have conversations on the end of this school year? M
Has anyone heard anything on a calendar, sbo votes, end of year expectations, open market, ATR ratings(how will they be done?) and the many other issues that probably won’t get resolved by June 26th.
To date,
@washingtonpost
fatal police shootings database shows for 2020, 23 "unarmed" people fatally shot by police. Doesn't mean they didn't attempt to disarm officer.
Demographics: 10 white, 6 black, 3 Hispanic, 1 other, 3 unknown.
Facts (not tropes) matter.
Stay on topic. You're concerned about Chicago? You won't even speak up for yourself. You're about to be lead into a possible dangerous environment in September by your boss and you're fake concerned about stuff that you know you could care a pizza rat's azz about. Live up to your own expectations. What are you going to do if a colleague or student starts sneezing coughing or not wearing a ppe?
blm?
Valerie Jarrett was just asked about the violence in Chicago, and refused to put any blame on the city's Democratic leadership over the years.
She blamed society.
Yes. Do both.
Duh...who wants racists police officers. That was easy.
From the article you linked to
Government responses should focus on detecting and isolating infected people with symptoms, and tracking anyone who might have come into contact with them, Van Kerkhove said. She acknowledged that some studies have indicated asymptomatic or presymptomatic spread in nursing homes and in household settings.
More research and data are needed to “truly answer” the question of whether the coronavirus can spread widely through asymptomatic carriers, Van Kerkhove added.
I will ask one more time to stay on topic please. I let it go but answer the question on reopening.
Questions about closing out in June are valid too. I don't have answers.
When I surveyed my members, I agreed not to share results. But I can say that they were quite similar to what your survey found, even though participants were self-selected.
My take-away: teachers want to teach, and "remote teaching" is way short of what we want to do. So we want to go back. But by an overwhelming majority: not until it is really safe.
Jonathan
What is the question? The uft shouldn't let us into those buildings. Any chance of infection in building OR by traveling to or from a building is unacceptable.
The open market is always a fraud. Just check it once a week and see what is posted.
Simple, if you like paying dues so much simply email and ask, they should have the answers, it is mid June...The least they can do for 100 million dollars a year in dues is return an email, right? Why ask on a blog if you have the bes union in the country repping you and working for you?
mmulgrew@uft.org
jhinds@uft.org
msill@uft.org
lbarr@uft.org
From a principal in a newly reopened school in England
This was really nice for us to see. As you can imagine, before we opened, everyone's anxiety level was very high, including my own – there is so much to think of and so much to do. The structure of the day is incredibly different and there are a whole new set of rules and expectations to follow. We were concerned about how children were going to remember to do everything.
We shouldn’t have been. We’ve seen time after time how incredibly resilient children are. They slot in. Most cope with changes very well and they constantly remind you about the routines and what they should be doing.
Hi james, if one resigns, does he lose medical coverage on date of resignation?
"911."
"Yes, someone is robbing my house."
"The police no longer exist."
"But someone is robbing my house!"
"Check your privilege."
CAMEROTA: "What if in the middle of the night my home is broken into. Who do I call?"
BENDER: "Yes, I hear that loud and clear from a lot of my neighbors. And I know — and myself, too, and I know that that comes from a place of privilege."
Who here has checked out on this school year?
I have! Lol
Make it effective after the summer.
Understood. But whenever one resigns from the doe, does the insurance disappear immediately?
Exactly why change will happen. The beautiful rainbow of diverse people are not deterred. True warriors.
There were several Jersey Shores parties which has been linked to rise in COVID cases. The protests may have the same result.
Wapo
Americans overwhelmingly support the nationwide protests that have taken place since the killing of Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis, and they also say police forces have not done enough to ensure blacks are treated equally to whites, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll.
President Trump receives negative marks for his handling of the protests, with 61 percent saying they disapprove and 35 percent saying they approve. Much opposition to Trump is vehement, with 47 percent of Americans saying they strongly disapprove of the way the president has responded to the protests
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