Survey: Teachers say they still feel unsafe in school
Schools may be on winter break, but the state’s two largest teachers unions continue to push for more safety protocols as long as the COVID-19 pandemic persists.
A survey from the Connecticut Education Association and American Federation of Teachers/Connecticut of 4,000 teachers from Dec. 14-17 released Monday finds educators continue to say schools are not the safest place for children, or them, to be.
It is a stance teachers have had since the summer.
Survey-takers also report that COVID-19 safety guidelines and protocols on reporting and contact tracing vary widely from district to district and sometimes school to school, with the most significant concerns in urban districts.
Before schools broke for the holidays, about 40 percent of school districts and 30 percent of the state’s public school population were still offering in-person learning.
Nearly half of teachers responding to the survey say they are required to teach both in-person in the classroom and to students remotely at home simultaneously.
They called the situation unsustainable and said it is having a negative impact on student learning.
“Educators want the same thing everyone else does — for the pandemic to be over,” said CEA President Jeff Leake. “They want to be back with their students, safely teaching in the classroom, but we are not there yet.”
In response, the state Board of Education released a statement outlining a litany of steps they said have been taken to reopen schools safely and tailored to individual school district needs.
“Connecticut's approach to increasing connectivity, access to technology, a focus on a safe return to in-person learning and never wavering on safety for students and educators has been validated at the highest levels of our country,” read the board statement.
And during his afternoon press briefing, Gov. Ned Lamont said he wants to keep schools open unless something dramatically changes in the metrics.
“We are going to watch this very carefully emphasizing public health,” Lamont said. He added it would be up to local superintendents if they want to delay the reopening of school for in-person learning by a week.
AFT Connecticut President Jan Hochadel called the whole process extremely difficult on educators who are concerned about getting sick and spreading the virus to their families.
“This survey highlights the need to move to remote learning through midJanuary if the virus continues to spread and further jeopardize the safety of our communities.” said Hochadel .
this month, the unions presented a 20-footlong petition to the office of the governor urging schools be closed to inperson learning until it is safe.
According to the survey, 58 percent of respondents do not feel safe in their school buildings and are concerned about contracting the virus. In urban districts, that rises to 66 percent.
Despite assurances that schools are the safest place for children during the pandemic, 69 percent of respondents — 82 percent in urban districts — don’t
buy it.
Most teachers say their schools are not adhering to the 6 feet social distancing rule in classrooms.
Seventy percent of teachers in urban districts and 60 percent in non-urban districts say ventilation in school buildings is a problem.
More than 8 in 10 teachers say teaching should be all remote for at least one week after the holiday break to limit the spread of the virus.
Nearly half of respondents are delivering inperson and remote instruction simultaneously
and three out of four say students are suffering as a result.
One teacher, whose comment was provided by the unions but who was not identified, called it exhausting. Another said they are constantly switching from in-person to full virtual to hybrid to virtual again.
“The lack of consistency is slowing student growth and confusing them and their parents,” the teacher wrote.
More than 9 out of 10 say their workload is greater than before the pandemic.
Some say they feel like
they are playing Russian roulette.
“I am immunocompromised, and my employer refuses to honor my doctor's recommendations,” one teacher wrote.
What about snow days? Teachers are nearly evenly split between those who want to keep the learning going remotely now that students have devices to work from, and those who say they want to protect the sanctity of a snow day.
Nearly 9 in 10 teachers taking the survey say the vaccine should be available to them in Phase 1-b. Three quarters plan to get the
vaccine when available.
In November, both teachers unions and other school unions released the Safe and Successful Schools Now plan, with specific recommendations to improve safety.
“We urge the state to listen to the concerns of educators, follow the science and guidelines it has established, and move to all-distance learning through the holidays, and at least to the middle of January, to prevent further spread of the virus,” said Leake. “Educators, students and their parents deserve nothing less.”