The kids aren't alright

MSN.com ^ | February 7,2021 | Salena Zito

[Hojczyk]

PITTSBURGH — One year ago, Lena Carson was pulling straight A's at the city's Creative and Performing Arts School across the river from her parent's home. She also swam every day at the local YMCA in preparation to compete at the annual state competition and enjoyed the everyday social life of a teenager.

Today, she is sitting at home. Again.

It has been nearly a year since she walked into CAPA, a magnet school she had to earn admission to through a portfolio of her work, and interacted with her teachers or friends.

Her daily swims are gone, along with her social life. Her outside activities have diminished to walking the dog around the block.

In the beginning, like most teenagers, she thought of it as an extended snow day. When days turned to weeks, what started as an escape from school went from fun to dread. "In the beginning, I was like, I have this time off, it's going to be so fun, and now going to school is all I want," she said.

A bright student who skipped a grade, her straight A's have dipped to D's, and Lena says she struggles to complete assignments, not because she can't but because of the lost will. "I have nothing to look forward to," she said

Lena says online school is not challenging in the same way, "It's not pushing me at all the same way that regular school does."

Her voice drops when asked how much she wants to go back to school, "Very badly. That's the main thing I want. I think it would make things a lot better. I think I would just be happier in general, probably."

[packagingguy]

Welcome to Uncle Joe’s “dark winter”.

[Jamestown1630]

I’ve actually enjoyed telework (in a month, I’ll have been doing it for a year.)

I don’t have distractions when I telework, and I get more work out in a more timely way than I ever did before. And I think that over the past year, a lot of institutions and businesses have probably realized the various benefits - economically, environmentally, and in terms of space usage - of allowing many people to telework.

(The one problem I’ve had with it is that,for various reasons, you feel an obligation to be always ‘ON’. I’ve worked more overtime in the past year than ever before - and I don’t get paid for it.)

[rxh4n1]

Same here. It’s like camping out. It’s fun at first, but then it gets old.

[dfwgator]

Title of a song by The Offspring. Definitely one of the most underrated bands there is.

"You don't gotta keep 'em separated!"

[Newtoidaho]

It’s also a lot of the cowardly morons who run the big companies such as the one I work for. Going on nearly a year since these fools locked us all out and forced us to work from home. Scumbags.

[ThunderSleeps]

Yeah, I did the home office consultant thing for about 10 years. Loved it then. Now, it’s me that has changed. Now when I’m working from home I’m just surrounded by things I’d rather be doing. My job right now is in most respects the coolest, best one I’ve ever had. But there are just other things I’d rather be doing. That’s how I know it’s time to think about retirement. 35+ years and a great job, yet I’d really rather just go hiking with my dog, chase the horizon on my Harley, build a camp fire...

[digger48]

35 miles north of Indy and we went back to business as usual as soon as our asshat governor lifted our restrictions

First day re-opened, I got the biggest hug from one of my favorite gal pals as soon as I walked in

No more social distancing for me in the pub

I’ll take my chances

[Jamestown1630]

Unfortunately there are thousands of kids who are now 2 and 3 grades behind

Those are the ones I'm worried about - and I'd put it in the TENS of thousands.

The discipline of the classroom carries some weight, even though the public education classroom isn't at all as old people like I am recall. The socialization that happens among school kids interacting with one another and their teachers/authority figures matters, too.

[Mariner]

How on earth did kids develop into productive, sane adults before 150 years ago?

That was before public, compulsory education. And a period that lasted for millennia.

This whole concept of kids being harmed because they can’t go to school is ludicrous on its face.

It’s lies promulgated by the state, and the fools that fall for it.

[SuperLuminal]

"We're destroying the lives of an entire generation of school-age kids."

BS! It's the best thing that has happened in the last 50-years of the government's control of education...

They were being destroyed while in government schools by the government schools for the past 5 decades...

The mess we are in today is, in large part, due to the communist indoctrination that parents have willingly subjected their children to since the 1970's...

[Mariner]

“and the schools have two groups of kids - achievers and non-achievers.”

So, no change then.

[Jamestown1630]

I’ve always thought that sitting at a table was a lot more comfortable. (I”m rather short in stature...)

Invite someone to sit at the table with you. Tell the establishment that He/She/IT is your ‘spouse’.

(Or buy a bottle and sit together on a curb outside. You’ll probably have a lot of compatriots sitting with you in a very short time :-)

[Fiji Hill]

The USC Trojan Marching Band regularly performs its version of The Kids Aren't All Right at football games.

[goodtomato]

Exactly what Poland went through, hence the jokes, they lost a generation or two of education. We are them currently. And nobody, as before, call's out the travesty! Wake up citizens.

[Jamestown1630]

What about all of the ones who can’t educate their children at home, and don’t have the resources to supply them with all the electronics that are needed for online learning?

I don’t disagree with you that government control of education has made a mess of it. But I often recall the situation I was in when I was very young. My parents couldn’t even afford to keep a television set working routinely.

When I think of the costs involved in supplying kids with all the *stuff* they need today to keep up, my folks could never have afforded it, in a relative situation.

We lived in very different times, back then; and we had a much better public education system. But many kids would have suffered as they are suffering today, if an event like this Covid Lockdown had happened.

There are people who live under similar economic strictures as I did as a young child, today; and over the past year, their kids haven’t even been getting the minimum of instruction, discipline, and socialization that schools and classrooms afford.

I think that anyone who can homeschool or get their kids into private or religious schools should do so. But what about the ones who don’t have the resources, and can’t???

[TheWriterTX]

My son struggled towards the end of last year.

Back in school this year and rocking the Honor Roll again.

We lost so much due to the China Virus. My middle child’s prom, Senior Trip, and graduation were all cancelled. My eldest son’s graduation from college. My youngest son’s graduation from Jr. High.

Thank God Texas opened up the schools.

[ladyjane]

“and the schools have two groups of kids - achievers and non-achievers.” So, no change then.

But the gap is much wider now.

[Truthoverpower]

Exactly. Screw this. Fock Demoncats and their stupid shutdown crapola

It’s LONG TIME TO REVOLT AGAINST IT

now mind you , Most things. Scoops. YMCA. Etc are community

So unfortunately we have to WAIT WAIT WAIT WAIT

FIR THESE COMMUNIST ASSWIPES TO WAJE THE HRLL UP

[toothfairy86]

I work in a dental office in Pittsburgh. The kids aren’t handling things very well. Some schools are doing hybrid learning...2 days at school, 2 days at home. Many kids can’t be bothered to wake up to log in for classes. Come to think of it, the parents aren’t handling it well either. I’m constantly telling people to take off their masks, so that I can work on them! On the one hand, they’re afraid to be here. On the other hand, it’s like a big social event for them.

[Faith Presses On]

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