Posts by Nicholas King

If the school claims they "lack the disciplinary authority" to mandate that kids wear masks, then I suppose they also "lack the authority" to stop people from smoking during class time.

I can already see the principal and the faculty lounge refusing to deal with the mask issue altogether—half of them are probably convinced that everyone just overreacted over a common cold.

stormymarlin12 said:Hmm... patient, or just unemployed?

Your little predictions (or "ramblings," if we're calling them what you call them) aren't exactly hitting the mark here.

The people posting on this forum are either parents with kids in school or they're educators themselves.
By definition, they're writing based on actual experience. Then you've got that third group—people who don't fit either category and just show up to drop a comment or play philosopher.

Do you even grasp the difference between making an actual claim (like saying a lockdown starts on April 1st) and just offering a "prediction"?

BTW, what exactly was I "predicting," and when did I do it? Regardless of whether my prediction turned out to be "right" or not.

Matthew Jackson2 said:I am sincerely hoping you're just paraphrasing this in your own words, because if this was actually drafted by some bureaucrat working in the Department of Education, then we are truly in a state of total absurdity...

It’s entirely possible that the colleague in question is also part of the academic establishment.

Now she'll probably claim she doesn't even teach the English language and insist she's exactly where she belongs—which is basically saying she's fucking illiterate.

stormymarlin12 said:April Fools!

You sat there counting down the twelve days, waiting with such incredible patience just so you could finally post this, didn't you?🤦

Look, I’ll admit it: I am a patient man.

But honestly, I am absolutely fed up with these catastrophic "it's going to be amazing, I swear" announcements—those instances where people aggressively insert themselves into "expert" or "informed" roles, only to shamelessly act like nothing happened once their big reveal turns into a total disaster.

If you were—and I'm assuming you were—prepared to indulge in some "I told you so!" self-congratulation if your supposed "insider info" actually turned out to be true 🙄, then you really ought to be prepared for someone to call you out on your nonsense when it inevitably turns out to be nothing more than baseless rambling and empty hype.

Is that somehow an issue for you?

Susan James said:anyway, lockdown starts April 1st.

anyone who needs a haircut better get it done before then

Susan James said:we need to save the season
and this info came straight from the county office

get to the barber while you still can😒

Tomorrow is April 1st.

So, what are we supposed to do with this "reliable chatter... oops, I mean reliable information from the county"? You aren't actually planning to hide behind these announced measures—which, frankly, have nothing to do with a lockdown...

Honestly, when will people get tired of hearing about the end of the world being constantly announced?

Betty Gonzalez912 said:Why was there never any massive testing done for the flu?
Kids need to stay in school. If a kid gets sick, they just stay home. Why is that such a huge issue?...

Well, they don't even perform mass testing for COVID-19.

Hold on just a second.

Are you seriously taking my sentence literally? Like, actually, word-for-word???

So, I wrote "It isn't the teacher who forces kids under masks, rather, it’s the collective decision of the Task Force, medical science, and common sense—the very things you and your crowd seem so eager to cite," and your takeaway was that it’s somehow not the teacher's responsibility to ensure everyone in the classroom is wearing a mask?

Good grief.

BTW, you still haven't addressed what the teacher should actually do about Peter from 7th grade B.

Isn't that out of the teacher's hands?

Let’s look at it this way: there is an official mandate requiring masks in the school building. Now, Peter—who happens to be in seventh grade—is sitting right there in his desk without one. How exactly is the teacher supposed to handle that?

Whenever I dare to suggest that wearing masks doesn't actually cause physical harm—which, in my view, is a perfectly reasonable point to make—I am immediately met with this absurd, condescending retort: "Oh, so you're saying masks are actually beneficial! How enlightened of you! 1!"

And now, apparently, I am expected to sit here and provide some sort of earnest, deep-dive response to such a ridiculous accusation? Honestly, I can't say that even crosses my mind.

Honestly, it’s just exhausting—this colleague drops three different links, and what do we get? The first one is some tedious comparison of various mask types, the second dwells on FFP2 masks that absolutely nobody is forcing on children, and then the last two just wander off into subjective side effects—purely matters of perception, really. There isn't a single word mentioned regarding actual, severe health threats or any genuine psychological distress in kids.

I don't even see the point in going into a long-winded explanation here; I suppose she feels she has Robert Koch on her side, along with heaven knows who else.

velvetskipper11 said:People like this definitely shouldn't be working in schools.

My mom’s been teaching at her school for 30 years—30 years—and I don't think she's caught so much as a sniffle once. So, honestly? This isn't about anyone else; it's a "you" problem. If you're getting sick every single year, your immune system is clearly struggling—God knows what kind of lifestyle you're leading if that's the case. And then, on top of that, you want to force kids into masks just so you can feel safe? We already know the science shows that's harmful both physically and mentally. It's just a weak excuse to shield yourself at their expense. Good grief. 🤦

People should definitely be required to pass a psych test before landing a job at a school. They ought to start on fixed-term contracts for the first few years—just enough time to see if the role actually fits their mental state and emotional intelligence levels.

Oh, please—why don't you do us all a favor and actually post a link to these "scientific proofs" you're so confidently citing?

Teachers aren't the ones forcing masks on children; rather, it is a collective decision made by the CDC, medical science and common sense—the very things you and your crowd seem to love invoking so enthusiastically.

And it isn't about protecting themselves, either—it's about protecting everyone as a whole.

In schools, and honestly everywhere else, we really shouldn't have to deal with people who casually toss out those "oh, that's just how it works in a marriage... excuse me, I mean school" type of nonsense—claiming it's somehow impossible for kids to follow epidemiological protocols because, well, kids are just... unpredictable or whatever.

copperpuma11 said:"...Accessing the SAT during the current epidemiological situation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, only applicants who show no signs of acute respiratory illness may take the SAT. Symptoms can include: fever, coughing, difficulty breathing, loss of taste or smell, etc. Additionally, anyone under a self-isolation order or those confirmed to have COVID-19 are barred from testing. Students denied access for either of these reasons must be allowed to test during a makeup period according to instructions from the Department of Education.
..."

Please go bark at someone else's tree.

In quite a few instances, you’ve proven yourself to be part of that quiet majority of educators who—unlike the loud minority—actually love their profession and the kids they teach.

That is precisely why your statement is such a massive fail.

The reason for all this "barking" 🙄 isn't because anyone actually believes teachers are the ones who can or should change the system. The reason for the "barking"—to use your own colorful phrasing—is that so many teachers here feel the rules set by the Department are perfectly fine and truly the only way forward, and they're using comparisons between the SAT and getting a haircut to dismissively shrug off the idea that someone might (quite unnecessarily) get easier access to their preferred college major.

mellowskipper said:Look, let’s just be honest—Meta shouldn't be trying to act like they're launching rockets to Mars. It would be much more decent if they just admitted they don't actually care and have zero intention of doing it. That might be a bit more transparent, I guess.

Sent from my iPhone using Reddit

Well, actually, that is exactly what they are saying—loudly and clearly.

If there is any dissent at all, I honestly can't recall a single record where anyone admitted, "Yeah, I agree with you, but someone at the Department or the National Center for Educational Assessment decided it had to be done differently." No—it just doesn't happen. It seems the only way they know how to maintain the SAT is by blindly mimicking the pre-COVID-19 protocols. Refusing to take the SAT is essentially the same as deciding not to visit your barber or your local stylist—you just suffer the consequences, while everyone else maintains this constant, albeit unspoken, attitude of, "Do you have any idea how much this is costing me?"

Look, I’m all for ensuring those suffering from COVID-19 receive the same official recognition and support that people dealing with any other infectious disease have had over the last decade.

But comparing students stuck in isolation to kids who happen to be sick with something else on exam day? Honestly—it’s just pathological. As far as I can tell, we don't bar an entire class from taking their SATs just because someone is dealing with PMS, a stomach bug, or a broken arm.

If it weren't for the fact that this would end up punishing children who aren't even responsible for their parents' sheer stupidity—to everyone who is so dismissively waving a hand and saying, "so what? missing a year is no big deal, why the fuss?"—I would truly love to see you experience this exact situation with your own child. Since I am not (quite 😁) such a malicious person, I genuinely want these kids to have every advantage and every possible success.

Drew Johnson2 said:Has there really been absolutely no way to pivot or adjust this over the course of the last year?
It is just your classic American bureaucracy... endless red tape, a thousand different complications, yet not a single coherent solution in sight.

Look, things can be updated and adjusted in much less time than what's left before prom season hits. It seems frankly absurd to claim it's impossible, and honestly, it feels pretty heartless to tell these students that we shouldn't bother making any changes or adaptations at all.

Drew Johnson2 said:But what if that person happens to be on vacation the day the high school seniors take their exams? Does the entire national testing schedule just get canceled? Is there really no backup plan?

Why are you even starting this?

We’re still two months out from the exams, but honestly, I don't see much being done to adapt the testing environment to current circumstances. It’ll likely just go on exactly as it has for the last decade—business as usual.

BTW, looking back at last year, the infection numbers during the exam period were negligible.

"It’s just impossible."

"Absolutely impossible."

"Simply out of the question."

Lock this thread already. You people clearly have no clue what you're talking about, and frankly, nothing here is even remotely possible.

Sean Stewart said:I find all this dramatic fuss over missing the state exams a bit ridiculous, honestly. We’re essentially conditioning kids—or rather, students—to believe the world will bend over backwards for them, constantly accommodating their every whim. Then, once they actually step out into the real world, they hit the pavement hard.

Look, regardless of COVID-19, there are plenty of other ailments that might sideline you, and frankly, nobody cares. If you end up with a stomach bug right before a massive exam at a university like NYU, do you really think the professor gives a damn? They’ll just tell you, "Better luck next year, buddy." They aren't going to reschedule an entire midterm just because one student is feeling under the weather. If you're late to a job interview that could have been a career-defining moment—well, sorry, but they’re just going to hire whoever actually showed up. If you miss your flight for any reason at all? Too bad. Catch the next one.

Adult life isn't filled with sympathetic homeroom teachers or principal figures who collect excuse notes and hand out tenth chances to someone like Mark, who has spent nine consecutive history exams dealing with sudden nausea.

Don't get me wrong—it’s unfortunate when a student gets hit by COVID-19 right during finals, or during any major life milestone—be it a sister’s wedding or a driving test. But who exactly is going to organize a secondary testing window for everyone? It’s unmanageable. My mother’s friend spent weeks quarantined in her house, barely leaving to go to work, just to ensure no one in the family caught it—all so her daughter could test negative before traveling abroad to find a better life. If that girl had tested positive, do you really think anyone would have offered her a second chance? Or take my acquaintance who couldn't even attend her grandmother's funeral because she was stuck in isolation.

Personally, I've had quite enough of the panic surrounding the virus—this whole idea of locking people down while, on the flip side, everything seems fair game if you happen to be a celebrity or a loyal voter for Bloomberg's crowd.

In my view, the solution would be simple: allow students in isolation to take a test before their exams. If they're negative, let them sit for the test alongside everyone else. And it shouldn't just be for students; if you're stuck in quarantine, pay for your own test and get back to your life.

Well, I suppose that’s exactly why this is such a heated debate—people are practically fighting tooth and nail against any possibility of letting quarantined students sit for their exams.

BTW, comparing this to missing a flight is a massive reach, and claiming that you have to wait an entire year to retake an exam just because you were sick? That's simply not true.

William Nelson4 said:There’s a protocol for when people from places like the Rust Belt can go out, work, and move around normally. It's just that the whole area is under heavy surveillance.

And you think that isn't living normally? Come on, don't be dramatic. A lot of us have dealt with lockdowns before, not just you.

Of course saying "there is a protocol where people can still go out, work, and move about normally" doesn't exactly equate to "living a normal life."

urbantinker8 said:You really don't have a clue what you're talking about. Not even a little bit.

Feel free to keep rambling away in your usual high-brow style; you've clearly got your followers, and I guess that's all you really need anyway.👍

Is it actually "condescending" to state an elementary fact—namely, that high school graduations weren't exclusively held on high school campuses back in the day—or is it just your way of reducing your entire "argument" to "you don't know anything, I know everything, but I simply refuse to explain it"? Because, naturally, if one isn't part of your enlightened inner circle, one is completely ignorant...

And please, let's get to the inevitable parade of mindless emojis and "hehehe" replies; I assume that isn't considered "condescending" either. Good grief, it’s as if your very existence depends on being unable to actually defend your claims.