{"id":146231,"date":"2021-01-03T05:32:59","date_gmt":"2021-01-03T02:32:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/nyc-teachers-worry-about-school-safety-as-covid-19-cases-spike\/"},"modified":"2021-01-03T05:32:59","modified_gmt":"2021-01-03T02:32:59","slug":"nyc-teachers-worry-about-school-safety-as-covid-19-cases-spike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/nyc-teachers-worry-about-school-safety-as-covid-19-cases-spike\/","title":{"rendered":"#NYC teachers worry about school safety as COVID-19 cases spike"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#NYC teachers worry about school safety as COVID-19 cases spike<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

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NYC teachers are worried about the safety of students and\u00a0staff as city schools remain open\u00a0 amid rising COVID-19 rates.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that community spread is the main driver of school cases, so the risk is increasing and there\u2019s no threshold to close schools amid rising rates,\u201d said Annie Tan, a Sunset Park teacher whose school is located in a zip code where the positivity rate over the past seven days has hit a steep 15 percent.<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s highest infection rate was 17 percent in Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park, data compiled by The City<\/a> show.<\/p>\n

Citywide, the positivity rate on a seven-day average rose to 9.39 percent on Saturday, Mayor de Blasio tweeted<\/a>. He cited 3,648 new cases and 201 new hospitalizations. He did not mention the 32 new deaths.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou cannot open schools on Monday \u2014 it will be over 12% by Monday January 4. Save lives!\u201d teacher Lisa Pines tweeted in response.<\/p>\n

The mayor agreed with the teachers\u2019 union to close all schools for three weeks starting Nov. 19 when the citywide, 7-day positivity rate hit 3 percent.<\/p>\n

But now he sees no reason to shut down completely again.<\/p>\n

\"Mayor
Mayor Bill de Blasio <\/figcaption>
Charles Wenzelberg\/New York Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cBased on all that I know, and conversations I\u2019ve had with our health care leadership, we all agree that schools should stay open throughout the remainder of the school year,\u201d the mayor told NBC New York\u2019s Andrew Siff on New Year\u2019s Eve.<\/p>\n

Asked if he would guarantee that, de Blasio replied, \u201cI don\u2019t get to make the final decision, the state does.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

A spokeswoman for the United Federation of Teachers did not ring any alarm bells.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOur experience so far has been that the actual infection rate in schools has been very small, including in hard-hit neighborhoods, but we will be monitoring results closely as in-school testing begins again Monday,\u201d a spokeswoman said.<\/p>\n

DOE spokeswoman Miranda Barbot expressed no reservations:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have the gold standard in safety measures including weekly testing and mandatory face coverings, and don\u2019t hesitate to temporarily quarantine a classroom or building in order to keep schools safe,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cElementary\u00a0and District 75 schools will return for in-person learning on Monday as we continue to closely monitor metrics across the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

Barbot would not give the number of students showing up in schools.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On Dec. 31, the DOE reported 140 new infections \u2014 15 students and 125 school staffers, bringing the total since mid-September to\u00a07,017.\u00a0 The cases\u00a0include children and employees who have worked or studied remotely as well as in-person.<\/p>\n

It was the highest one-day infection tally since Dec. 23, when the total hit 145 \u2014 62 students and 83 staff, according to DOE data.<\/p>\n

On that day, the last before the Christmas break, 1,049 classrooms were closed due to coronavirus cases. Nearly 300 buildings \u2014 some housing multiple schools \u2014 were closed: 249 buildings shut for 14 days, and 43 buildings for at least 24 hours.<\/p>\n

Untold scores of students and staff exposed to those infected are told to quarantine,<\/p>\n

In one Brooklyn school, where 19 teachers recently were quarantined, school aides were assigned to supervise students in the building while they took classes taught remotely.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you quarantine like that, there\u2019s no guarantee of substitutes for those in-person teachers and that creates more instability,\u201d Tan said.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\n <\/p><\/div>\n