An informed guide to the global outbreak, with the latest developments and expert advice about prevention and treatment. |
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 | | The New York Times |
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Chicago, the nation’s third-largest school district, will begin the academic year remotely, after teachers and parents opposed a hybrid plan that would have sent children into classrooms two days a week. |
“When we announced the potential for a hybrid model some weeks ago, we were in a very different place in the arc of the pandemic,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. The city’s reported coronavirus cases have steadily increased in recent weeks, to more than 250 a day. |
There are not yet enough nurses to staff schools, and ventilation systems in aging buildings are in urgent need of upgrades. There may not even be enough teachers available to offer in-person instruction. Some teachers are threatening to stage a sickout — teacher strikes are illegal in New York — and their union has indicated it might sue over reopening. |
“The entire country is watching how New York City handles this,” Eliza Shapiro, who covers education for The New York Times, told us. “If the city can pull off a safe reopening, it could provide a blueprint for scores of other districts trying to figure this out. But if the city halts or delays its plan, or has to close schools quickly after they open in September, it could be a warning shot to other districts.” |
Are you a student or teacher? We would like to hear what coronavirus measures your school or college is taking this fall. Please tell us here. We will feature a selection of the responses in an upcoming newsletter. |
Kenya’s radical school solution |
“It was a sweeping move that surprised many students, parents and educators but came as a relief to others who were worried that their children might fall behind,” Abdi Latif Dahir, the East Africa correspondent for The Times, told us. |
For most students, particularly those from poor and rural households, following lessons was not possible once schools started teaching online. “By the time they go to class next year, a lot of these kids who were at home and didn’t have access to these facilities will just not be able to compete,” Abdi said. |
A cautionary tale. When Israel reopened schools in May, after largely containing the virus, the number of new infections quickly increased and rippled out to students’ homes and neighborhoods. The resurgence eventually forced some 240 schools to shutter and more than 22,500 students and teachers to quarantine. |
With cases on the rise in Maryland, public schools in the state’s most populous county decided to begin the school year online. Officials told private schools, including some of the country’s most elite institutions, to do the same. But then this week, Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, abruptly overruled the order, saying that private schools should be able to make their own decisions. |
Public schools, which educate about 90 percent of U.S. children, tend to have less money, larger class sizes and less flexibility to make the necessary changes to prepare for the virus. They must also negotiate with teachers’ unions, many of which have pushed for schools to remain closed. |
What else we’re following |
| We signed up for Spot The Station alerts so we’d know when the International Space Station would pass by. My family and I would go outside to the front yard and look for it. We’re envious of those on the ISS, and wonder what they think when they see Earth from so far away. |
| — Diana Yen, Santa Clara, Calif. |
Let us know how you’re dealing with the outbreak. Send us a response here, and we may feature it in an upcoming newsletter. |
| Amelia Nierenberg and Adam Pasick contributed to today’s newsletter. |
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