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We hear from many (primarily white) ppl that equity is a problem when schools stay closed. There's also limited data on where parents of color stand on this issue today.
Well...Chelsea Public Schools is only 6% white and we did a parent survey! Let's listen to POC.
#maedu
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Well...Chelsea Public Schools is only 6% white and we did a parent survey! Let's listen to POC.
#maedu
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2,276 parents surveyed, representing 38% of students in the district. 68% of survey responses were taken in Spanish. So even if we assume that ALL of the white parents replied, the sample would still be over 80% POC. (English is not the 1st language for 83% of our students)
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Caveat: Chelsea Schools are 87.5% Latinx, 6% Black. While many Latinx students are also Black, these results are more attributable to Latinx than Black ppl, even though in other datasets they have had similar responses.
Anyway, on to the data!
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Anyway, on to the data!
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Q1: How satisfied are you with remote learning since September?
Turns out over 80% of parents are at least somewhat satisfied with remote this year, and 59% are quite or very satisfied.
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Turns out over 80% of parents are at least somewhat satisfied with remote this year, and 59% are quite or very satisfied.
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Q2: Given what you expected in September, how has your remote learning experience gone?
The caveat here is that many could have been expecting the semester to be a disaster, but even in that case, 2/3 of parents think it has gone somewhat or much better than expected.
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The caveat here is that many could have been expecting the semester to be a disaster, but even in that case, 2/3 of parents think it has gone somewhat or much better than expected.
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Q3: How difficult is it for your child to stay engaged in remote learning?
So it's not like everything's going perfect. This is a pandemic, after all, and remote learning is still only a yr old for all involved. Even then, only 22% of parents say it's quite/very difficult.
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So it's not like everything's going perfect. This is a pandemic, after all, and remote learning is still only a yr old for all involved. Even then, only 22% of parents say it's quite/very difficult.
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(This is a big one!)
Q4: How concerned are you about your child’s academic progress due to remote learning?
31% are not concerned at all, and another 27% only slightly concerned. And only about a quarter are quite or very concerned. A note here...
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Q4: How concerned are you about your child’s academic progress due to remote learning?
31% are not concerned at all, and another 27% only slightly concerned. And only about a quarter are quite or very concerned. A note here...
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One quarter of parents are expressing significant concerns, and that is not negligible. However, i's v different from what we see in more privileged communities with lower COVID rates and more wealth. By and large, our community seems to be behind our decision to stay remote.
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Ok, so Q5: How concerned are you about your child’s mental health due to remote learning?
While certainly encouraging, we gotta take this with a grain of salt. As many committee members noted, acknowledging mental health problems is still highly stigmatized in Latinx culture.
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While certainly encouraging, we gotta take this with a grain of salt. As many committee members noted, acknowledging mental health problems is still highly stigmatized in Latinx culture.
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That means that likely these numbers skew more positive than they actually are. There could also be positive cultural impacts, such as the stronger family connections due to multigenerational households. I'll take the positive results, but...grain of salt!
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Q6: Since September, how satisfied are you with the amount of time your child has spent on zoom?
Interesting to see that only 15% want less or much less (3%). I assume that latter group are folks who want remote now no matter the cost. Not all of them but some.
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Interesting to see that only 15% want less or much less (3%). I assume that latter group are folks who want remote now no matter the cost. Not all of them but some.
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Q7: Do you have consistent, reliable internet access in your home? (Don't include cell phone internet)
The digital divide has been thoroughly documented but still grim to see that 15% of parents surveyed don't have reliable (or at all) internet. Also, this is an undercount.
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The digital divide has been thoroughly documented but still grim to see that 15% of parents surveyed don't have reliable (or at all) internet. Also, this is an undercount.
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Because you need internet to access this survey, many folks likely were not able to complete this survey because of lack of internet access. Even with Comcast and the district trying to bridge these inequities, we still have a lot of work to do.
Federal gov't, help please?
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Federal gov't, help please?
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Q8: What have been the most difficult parts of remote learning? (Pick up to 4)
Remote is difficult for many, but for different reasons, some of which are systemic beyond school (balancing work). However, the key takeaway here is that no response was overwhelmingly chosen.
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Remote is difficult for many, but for different reasons, some of which are systemic beyond school (balancing work). However, the key takeaway here is that no response was overwhelmingly chosen.
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Q9: What have been the best parts of remote learning?
On the other hand, 62% of parents think the best thing about remote is that they know their kids are safe. And this, folks, is my #1 takeaway from this presentation.
Yes, it's been hard. Yes, it's not perfect. But...
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On the other hand, 62% of parents think the best thing about remote is that they know their kids are safe. And this, folks, is my #1 takeaway from this presentation.
Yes, it's been hard. Yes, it's not perfect. But...
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...parents feel that their kids are safe because they are home. And that is validating, because my #1 concern has been to keep our children and our community safe.
We all want schools to reopen, but my community appears to be ok with full remote. You may wonder why...
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We all want schools to reopen, but my community appears to be ok with full remote. You may wonder why...
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Chelsea was the epicenter of the pandemic when it all started and we haven't been anything but red since we started tracking infection rates (even after the goalposts were moved).
We have seen firsthand the death and destruction the pandemic has caused.
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We have seen firsthand the death and destruction the pandemic has caused.
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Even though many in privileged communities have seen friends/family be seriously ill or die, it’s also much more likely that they’re isolated serious cases/deaths, which makes it seem like an individual failure rather than a system failure.
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In communities of color, it’s far more likely that if you’ve lost one person you’ve lost MANY ppl. Those people know how real it is and worry more.
This pandemic has been SUPER real to some and not at all to others, and that affects how ppl want gov't to respond.
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This pandemic has been SUPER real to some and not at all to others, and that affects how ppl want gov't to respond.
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I want to take a moment to thank the educators, staff, and admin of @CPS_Chelsea and @CTU1340MA. Your tireless efforts have allowed us to provide as much as we can for our students given the meager resources we have. Many responses shouted you out and you deserve that.
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Moving forward, please stop making the equity case for reopening unless you're actually impacted by the inequity. By and large, those who are being impacted by this pandemic mostly agree with staying remote. It's not perfect, but it's safer.
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Per @skoczela’s request, here’s the link to the presentation: https://drive.google.com/file/u/3/d/1D0q0n-HZzCZGDCA4tOAod7LDhYOr6-rm/view?usp=sharing
And here’s the presentation and discussion at our School Committee meeting on Thursday. Presentation/discussion starts at 29:27.
