The End of the Mask Mandate

March 14, 2022 The state mask mandate was lifted for school settings as of last Friday night at midnight, and to be honest, I debated all day on Sunday whether or not I would continue to wear mine in my classes. It is still highly recommended, and in fact I am still required to wear one in class for my community college classes. Like everyone else, I am tired of wearing masks all the time, but I also believe they have done a lot of good in mitigating the spread of the virus over the course of this pandemic. On the other hand, the variants seem to have minimized devastating results in Covid patients for those who are vaccinated, which I am, so I feel pretty safe on the whole without one these days. Ultimately, I know that many of my students will rejoice in being able to take off their masks as will many of my colleagues. However, a significant number of my students will continue to wear masks either because they have medical conditions that make them more vulnerable, or someone in their family does, or they have a family member in the medical field, or they might just be more cautious. Regardless, I have decided that at least for now I will continue to wear a mask in my classroom even though I feel safe without it in order to support my kids who have chosen for various reasons to continue wearing theirs. I want to support them and keep it normalized to wear one if that is what makes them more comfortable.

A Little Restored Faith

March 3, 2022 Last week I wrote about how disheartened I was when I had students choose to disregard my request that they wear masks in my class, at least until the mandate was lifted. Today in class my students were working on drafting a research paper, and kids could get my individual attention if there were questions or confusions as they worked. I noticed one of my students who had chosen last week not to wear a mask, looking around the room. I didn't have a chance to ask him what he needed before his eyes landed on what he was looking for--the extra stack of masks in my classroom. He walked over to the table where I keep them, and he donned his before approaching my desk to ask his question about citations for his paper. It definitely restored my faith a little that he was thoughtful enough to put one on before approaching me, even if he doesn't wear one while sitting at his desk. I know he was listening when I made my request last week.

Mask Mandate

February 24, 2022

Our school board decided to call an emergency meeting at 3:00 yesterday afternoon to discuss the current mask mandate that is in place.  The meeting was announced on Tuesday afternoon.  Wednesday at 3:00, of course, teachers are still within their duty hours and are still at work, therefore teachers would not be in the room discussing the mandate that daily affects us within the scope of our classroom.

This is absolutely par for the course.  The meeting was called because our 'task force' of board members had been meeting regularly about whether or not we could play around with semantics and get around the state-mandated requirement that all students and teachers in school settings must be masked.  They did not ask for teacher input, nor did they actually think about the practical application of their slippery definition of the mandate--which they determined they could 'faithfully' uphold through education, rather than enforcement, since the language of the mandate says that schools have some flexibility in enforcement.  In their emergency meeting, our board voted unanimously (by the board members in attendance) that our district could uphold the mask mandate by 'educating' students/staff with the posters already plastered throughout our school buildings.  However, enforcement of masking was effectively shut down.  Even though the state mandate is still in place, which means masking is a requirement, our board decided that as of today, students who refuse to wear a mask can do so with no penalty or consequence.  As teachers, we are still required to tell them that masking is the expectation and still required, and we are to offer them masks, but if they refuse nothing happens.  This puts teachers (and site administrators) in the untenable position of asking students to follow rules, but having absolutely no recourse should they choose not to do so.  What could possibly go wrong?

The sad thing about this is that the governor is set to make an announcement on Monday, and they knew that.  The assumption was that the governor would eliminate the mask mandate, so their Wednesday meeting is nothing more than grandstanding--an attempt to appease a very loud minority group who has been begging the board to ignore the state mandate that was oppressing the 'freedoms' of their children.  Making a move a handful of days before the governor's decision allows them to claim that they are acting on behalf of those people to whom they are kowtowing, and enables them to take credit for being 'forward-thinking' and 'trailblazers' ahead of the other schools and the state.  It's a transparent move--a non-decision decision--that is a desperate attempt to mimic action without actually taking any.  The problem is that they are also still beholden to the state for funding, so their non-decision actually asks us, in the classrooms, to send the message that we must uphold the mandate, but must not in any way actually ask the kids to adhere to the requirement.  Even a brief conversation with even a handful of teachers in the classroom would have let them know how difficult this would be in implementation.  And if the messaging to students is that we have rules, but you only have to follow some of them, how could it possibly not occur to some of those students that the other rules are 'suggestions' as well?  How are we not sending the message to the parents that if you yell loudly enough, our board will eventually get tired of fighting the battle and lay the issue down at the feet of the teachers in the classroom to uphold on their own, without support?  How does it not occur to any of them that we are, in fact, sending a pretty strong message through example that we only have to follow the state rules if we like them, and if we don't, all we have to do is look for a loophole?

Because we are still required to remind students that the mandate is still in place, I decided to handle it in my way in the classroom (as did all of the teachers, since we were given no guidance, direction, or plan for implementing this).  I simply reminded my students that the mandate was still in place, and that it was still the expectation that students would wear masks.  I added that as a cancer survivor, and one who is immunocompromised, I would ask them respectfully to continue to wear the mask in my class, at least until the state mandate was lifted.  The response?  I still had four students in each of my classes simply stare at me blankly, silently drawing their line in the sand.  I don't have to, and I don't want to.  Honestly, it was disheartening.  I get that not everyone believes in the efficacy of the masks, and that no one actually likes to wear them, but here's the thing: When I asked them, as a human being, for my benefit (and for the benefit of others in the class who might be reluctant to speak up about their own fears or health issues) to wear them anyway--even for just a couple more days--the stance for breaking free of the rules superseded empathy and kindness.  These are kids who are wonderful people--kids I really like and who like me.  But at the end of the day, what we have now taught them is that their individual desire is more important than concern for anyone around them.  That they are justified in not considering others- righteous, even.  That individual choice doesn't carry with it social responsibility.   And I think those lessons are ones that will take a very long time to unlearn.  It was one of my saddest days in education.

Still Not Out of the Woods

 January 27, 2022

For my night job, I've been back on campus three times so far.  For the first week, I wasn't allowed on campus at all, because I had been in close contact with Nicholas, who then took a Covid test which turned out to be positive.  Within those three visits to campus, I've now gotten notified twice that I 'may have come into contact with someone who tested positive' who was in the same buildings/rooms as I was.  They have also now told us they are so far behind with contact tracing that they are essentially just sending out mass letters to people telling them if they don't feel good, they should stay home.  Two and half years in, and it's still ever-present, and we still haven't figured out how to handle it.  (This doesn't even begin to address the winter formal we held at my high school, where we had 800 students in attendance and no mask enforcement at all.  I am holding my breath to see if there's going to be a delayed fallout from that petri dish of a dance.)

And They Wonder Why We're Still Having Problems

 January 12, 2022

Yesterday we got an email from our principal, reminding us in stern language that it is incumbent upon us to be diligent about enforcing mask-wearing for the students.  Parents had complained, he said, and students were feeling uncomfortable about how many teachers weren't following the required mandate.  I agree, frankly, that the mandate should be uniformly enforced. However, just last week we sat in a faculty meeting where several staff members remained unmasked or improperly masked for the duration of the meeting, despite a blanket reminder by both the principal and the deputy principal.  Those not in compliance were never directly addresssed.

I get it; enforcing the mandate can be uncomfortable.  It's uncomfortable for us in the classroom or in the hallways to speak directly to a student who isn't wearing his or her mask appropriately, but we are required to do so, just as we are required to enforce the dress code withinn our classrooms--also not a comfortable topic (and often far more distracting to the curriculum than the actual infraction), but one we are required to address.  So why does this not happen when our supervisors see our staff blatently disregarding the mandate?

Tonight our district held its board meeting.  And guess what?  Although there is a government mandate in place that masks shall be worn indoors at all times if there are other people present (in effect as of now until February 15), there were several in attendance who did not wear a mask.  No one addressed those individuals, nor were they turned away.  One of our deputy superindendents, when asked, merely said there wasn't enough time to check everyone, so they assumed anyone who was unmasked had a medical waiver.  Did our principal assume anyone unmasked in our faculty meeting had a medical waiver because it takes too much time from the task at hand to check?  What if I said in my own classroom that I didn't have time to check, since it would take time away from the curriculum?

No, I can't do that.  Nor would I, since that is one of the protocols in place that is designed to help stop the spread of this particularly transmissible virus.  And yet if the other adults in the rooms are 'too busy to check' and pass off the obligation of practicing the same diligence that is expected of me in my classroom, is it any wonder not all of the kids are taking it seriously?  Our kids are smart.  Our kids are watching.  They look to all of us to be role models.  It's time all of us are.

Omicron At Home

 January 8, 2022

Yesterday I wrote about how many of my students are out at school due to the rampant variant.  Guess what?  This week I will join their ranks.  My son is staying with me for a couple of weeks before his new job starts, and yesterday he started feeling under the weather.  Today I had him take an at-home test, and he tested positive. Fortunately, because he is vaccinated (we both are) his symptoms are totally knocking him for a loop.  Because the CDC has recently changed their guidelines (and because different work places apparently interpret and/or implement them), I had to check in with both my high school and my college to clarify the protocols.  Turns out I am not able to go to either campus until Friday.  While I am thankful that everyone is taking protocols seriously, this is especially bad timing because tomorrow is the first day of the semester at the college--and I can't be there.  At least I'm not feeling sick while I am putting together all the lesson plans....

In Which the Omicron Variant Continues to Wreak Havok

 January 7, 2022

We went back to school this week after winter break.  I wasn't quite ready; no one I know was.  I know everyone keeps saying this year is the hardest year ever in education, and people are tired of hearing it.  But Y'ALL--it is the hardest year ever.  I mean to-your-bones-weary-without-really-being-able-to-put-your-finger-on-why hard.  It's not just one thing; it's ALL OF IT.

Just one of those reasons?  Omicron is digging its heels in deep here in the valley (and everywhere).  CDC's newest guidelines are clear as mud, making them sound like a terrifyingly complex sixth grade math word problem. (If Sally went to a New Year's party and her neighbor who was there for 14 minutes later tested positive for Covid, how many days does Sally have to quarantine if she has only 3 of the 15 possible symptoms but her asymptomatic brother, who didn't attend the party, tested positive 4 days after New Year's?) The fallout?  Upon return to school, I have had approximately 20% of my class absent in every single class every day this week.  You know what that means?  Not only am I teaching my classes, but I will also be fielding emails and Independent Study contracts and scheduling make up quizzes and catching up on absent work turned in at all times of the day and night on Google Classroom for the next couple of weeks at least.  That's if I'm lucky.  It could go longer, obviously.  

I'm used to helping my absent students play catch up, but when it's 20% of your kids, all of that extra behind the scenes (read: after hours) work feels like an extra part-time job.  Because it is.  Kids who miss out on initial instruction will need more support, more help.  And they deserve it.  Covid isn't their fault any more than it is mine. Or the school's.  But yeah, it's hard.  Whew.  

Focusing on the Positive

January 4, 2021

Much as I think it's still not a great idea for us to go back to school just yet, I really wanted to focus on the good today.  I love my job because I love my kids, but I also love that my co-workers are my friends--my family.  And I've missed my family. (I know that's a huge part of what the kids are missing, too.)  Seeing the faces of my friends through the windows of their classrooms made my heart smile.  Being back in the classroom I've occupied for decades was like coming home.