Sunday, November 15, 2020

THAT MANDATORY SCHOOL COVID-19 TESTING IS VOLUNTARY FOR IN-PERSON STUDENTS

We got in writing that COVID-19 testing for students is not mandatory. Results of what is not random testing can't be taken to show that COVID-19 is not widespread in schools. 

I copied below part of the letter announcing that COVID-19 testing is coming this week to the middle school my daughter attends. The letter confirms that the testing is voluntary and not random for the small percentage of students who show up for in-person learning. (2.57% NYC positivity rate so buildings are open for the few who attend for another day at least on Monday.) My daughter is all remote by the way.

DATE______November 13, 2020

Dear Families, 

As part of New York City’s ongoing effort to stop the spread of COVID-19, and ensure the health and safety of our community, COVID-19 testing of staff and students will be conducted in our school once a month from now through the end of the school year. We have been notified that the testing provider will be at our school within the next week. Please note that only New York City public school students from grades 1-12 are eligible to be tested.

Further down:

Only students and school-based staff members with signed and submitted consent forms are eligible to be tested (schools.nyc.gov/covidtesting). Your child will not be tested if they are uncomfortable or become distressed at any point during the process. If that happens, we will work with you to address any potential concerns so that your child is comfortable participating in future testing. 



31 comments:

Anonymous said...

Keep paying dues and reporting to infected buildings, suckers...

Anonymous said...

Is there legal recourse of breaching the testing agreement?again, why are maskless d75 kids without masks not tested. Or any d75 kids?most vulnerable and easiest people to pass covid w/o mask.do we have no recourse or are we sold out again?nothing from Moldgrew...

Anonymous said...

What about staff?

Principle says staff must test weekly.

I thought it was random?

Medical staff come in and there are very few staff members on that day. Principle just scrambles to get anyone tested so it looks like he is doing his job.

The result is people that come in all the time are being forced to over test! I feel this is unfair and against the rules that were set!

Anonymous said...

So if the testing isn't mandatory, then their data collection and analysis are not random.
Since their data are not random, the testing rates are pure propaganda and are therefore meaningless.

So much consideration for the DOE and its perpetual claims to "data driven decision making"
in all matters related to education in their schools.

Rather, their decision making in all aspects of school administration have been
drive by "ideologically driven data collection."

Shelley said...

The Devil's Advocate for Cuomo can argue that, after the disaster that was "wave one" his state, which had the worst record of fighting Covid in the world, yes worse than Peru, worse than Brazil or Spain or France or Belgium even, has now the best record of fighting Covid, not just in the USA, but in the world. That's not Trumped up political hyperbole, that's the data from the best data sources in the world, the WHO, Johns Hopkins, CDC. So, the idea that he would close schools was based on the data then and the science then and the social and political policies then, but things have changed significantly so we now know more and are fighting it much better, no place better than in NY. We still live in high density, though a little less dense, we still travel on packed transportation systems, we still don't have safe buildings as agreed to, all true and valid points but if Cuomo can be accused of moving the goal posts here we may have to concede that the field is now a pitch, wider and longer and that the science of how you score has improved. And there are now two vaccines moving to warp speed approval in the US.

Just as you won't lockdown or shutdown the economy again, you won't stick with your old data points and strategies. You got to be nimble here and adapt. Data and numbers are useful tools, vital, sure, but beware the tyranny of numbers, especially goals and projections that you set in a very fluid environment.

Cuomo has a lot to overcome. His disastrous management of Covid, especially his decision that caused the deaths of hundreds of our elderly will haunt his political ambitions forever, so he's trying to erase that with his book and his tough love press talks and interviews, but the only way to patch that over is to be the best in the country on Covid and right now he is.

Anonymous said...

I'm not getting tested either. How quickly the doe changes its tune when they realize they would have no students left if they made all those who refused to get tested switch to remote learning.

Anonymous said...

In my school, they just announce that the testers are here and that anyone who wants to test can go get tested. No one has told me that I have to get tested at school. This seems to be a waste of everyone's time and not gettingresults that would be anything close to useful information.

Anonymous said...

Legal remedy? Are you serious? You must be a new teacher. The remedy is you refuse to show up. Oh, you mean...What is the uft gonna do? Oh, that would be...Nothing.

annon said...

5:39 princiPAL... we are "teachers".

Anonymous said...

Count on Cuomo to move the goalposts on the infection rates using bogus non-random data.
That is what he does 2nd best.

His first best achievement is sending Covid infected seniors back into their nursing homes
so as to infect and kill thousands of nursing home residents.

Anonymous said...

As the mayor is now saying "it is still early in the school year." We will soon be done with 30%. LOL. No wonder the kids are so dumb.

DAVE said...

I'm glad I'm at home so i can listen to the mayor talk bullshit everyday. The teachers are working hard, the students are working hard, they are crunching the numbers so they can figure out attendance numbers and opt in numbers...These guys are comedians.

Bronx ATR said...

I finally got half of my retro at a 50% tax rate. I went on the Uft Michael Mulgrew song and dance videos on YouRube to leave another comment. Guess what? My comments had been erased as well as the vast majority of negative ones. The Uft cannot allow any type of dissension to be be discussed openly. It really is a sham of a union. Exactly what forum does the Uft have for people to legitimately criticize what’s happening with the Uft and the schools? None. I suppose you could go down once a month and get the mic for a few minutes, but does that really create a conversation with the vast majority of disaffected union members? Or is it a way to control those voices in the least public way possible? June will come around before you know it, and I have never seen the amount of anger and disgust from the rank-and-file ( and retirees) as it has now. Mulgrew will blame it on deBlasio, but it’s all on him and his abysmal leadership. Retirees don’t have to wait until June and I know a few that are dropping out now. That’s an incredible occurrence on many levels.

Joe said...

Joe here,

Good afternoon,

Wanna hear a funny one? A student emailed me and asked me about his grade. He has completed 2 of 15 assignments and has 7% attendance. I told him to check his attendance and missing assignments. How sad. Shame on the other teachers for allowing this.

Anyway, what is the UFT doing about this fake testing? Nothing. Are you shocked? I am.

Dow Jones up 399.

Watching Outnumbered on Fox News. Emily Compagno is pretty. Talking about Gov Newsom imposing Covid restrictions while having parties with large groups. How rude. I'm glad I'm allowed to work from home. Safer that way.

I hope everyone is bundled up like Mulgrew demanded. That guy cares about your safety. We have the most robust testing plan in the country. We test, what, a couple % of staff memmbers and no students? Pretty robust. I know James thinks it is pretty great. Certainly worth $62 per check.

I'll check in later, ya know, like how the students check in anytime and get marked present. I'm getting a snack. Judge Milian is on at 3 PM and Judge Judy comes on at 4 PM.

Back on topic, you mean the testing the DOE and UFT promised isn't happening? Wow? How many of you didn't show up today or opted out or started the decertification process? None? Really? Oh, I guess changes are coming anyway. In Unity.

Anonymous said...

BRONX ATR, the forum is opt out of paying dues.

Anonymous said...

Once again, I believe the goal of the Mayor and Governor with Mulgrew as a passive enabler—has been to keep NYC schools open for kids as a glorified day care center with about 30% attendance—till at least the Friday before Thanksgiving. That’s why Cuomo is bending the rules of September—along with unreliable school testing numbers—as he trying to reach that goal. However, he can’t blame the disinformation this time as he did with nursing homes back in March. At the last hour, CNN showed NY State at a 50% increase in Covid—along with NJ and Connecticut.

Bronx ATR said...

Opting out isn’t a forum - it closing off all discussion. The UFT has prepared itself for it and seem to prefer it to open discussion.

Anonymous said...

Great, you keep trying to get that discussion, see if Mulgrew cares.

Great, keep schools open as long as I can stay home.

Steve said...

This is how it went today

An assignment was due today. It was a very difficult assignment. The students, who are all at home, had to choose ANY PE article in the world. They had to submit the article and write a short summary via google classroom and then speak about the article for 30 seconds in remote class today.

Wanna guess how many did it? An avergae of 1 per class. Out of 250 students.

Nah, not lowlife behavior. They are working so hard.

But I should break my back lesson planning?

Joe said...

Joe here,

Steve,

I know how it is. Good assignment, nice and easy, not much strain on you. What did you expect? Don't worry, your favorite letters will soon be NX. This is why GOD invented summer school.

People will keep complaining on this blog and nothing will change.

Give the work, they won't do it, fail them.

I'm watching Judge Judy now.
Dow went up 472 today. That is good news. It is almost Thanksgiving. Then a few weeks till Christmas, then the a month later the term will end.

Retire or resign or figure a way through it.

Anonymous said...

Yeah, give lots of NXs. I want to teach summer school. Per session for doing next to nothing. Yeah!

Anonymous said...

Haha, Steve had deadbeat students. What a shocker.

Anonymous said...

This is called safety by Mulgrew.

I had a student today with no fever but a persistent cough. After alerting the nurse she was sent back to my room and told to stay in the back until mom picked her up.
I asked that isn’t she supposed to go to isolation. I was told no because she has no fever. Is this correct protocol? Who should I contact about this?
Thank you

Anonymous said...

Excellent news!!! Back to school, bitches!!!

Daily COVID-19 hospitalizations hit nearly 2,000 in NY — highest since May https://nypost.com/2020/11/16/daily-covid-19-hospitalizations-hit-nearly-2000-in-ny/?utm_source=twitter_sitebuttons&utm_medium=site%20buttons&utm_campaign=site%20buttons via
@nypmetro

Anonymous said...

Ps152 closed tomorrow at least 24 hrs
Covid

We knew all day there was a problem.
Got the email around 3:30

This is a joke, we knew at 9am there seemed to be a problem.

UFT is not protecting us even when they know they wait

Anonymous said...

Ps152 in the Bx

Anonymous said...

Pay dues ps152?

Anonymous said...

Mulgrew: "If Cuomo opposes school closings we will do what we need to do."

If you believe Mulgrew, you are dumber than I thought.

Anonymous said...

Roosevelt Campus in Bronx closed today and tomorrow. What type of parent will be sending their child to this infected building on Wednesday?

Anon2323 said...

lol Joe you are on fire today.Emily Campagna is very cute she used to be a raiders cheerleader.

NX them up Steve! That is really sad how bad that is. I need my summer school PE gig! It's unreal how lazy they can be, this generation could be the worst and dumbest ever see.

Anonymous said...

You all better watch out.

"I totally agree that this is an opportunity for an 'educational new deal,' if you will. Imagine the new normal post-COVID-19 ... What will that look like?" Did you miss
@DOEChancellor
in last week's Post-Election 2020 webinar? Watch now: https://fb.watch/1KE3R8sdpO/

@Hunt_Institute