Elyse Arrington: Students do an astonishing job of learning during pandemic
We have failed our students if they think education only happens in a classroom.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Meadowlark Elementary School teacher John Arthur interacting with his students on Zoom, in Salt Lake City on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. Arthur is working through the kinks of teaching his 6th grade kids, many of which don t have internet access, online. He was named the Utah Teacher of the Year.
By Elyse Arrington | Special to The Tribune
| Dec. 17, 2020, 10:00 p.m.
Dear students of the Salt Lake City School District,
I would like to offer a most sincere, depth-of-my-soul, kind of apology to you. I fear we have failed you. And for that, I am sorry.
Maggie Cummings: Salt Lake City teachers working hard in pandemic conditions
While lawmakers meet over Zoom, Meadowlark Elementary teachers and staff are in school.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Meadowlark Elementary School teacher John Arthur interacting with his students on Zoom, in Salt Lake City on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. Arthur is working through the kinks of teaching his 6th grade kids, many of which don t have internet access, online. He was named the Utah Teacher of the Year.
By Maggie Cummings | Special to The Tribune
| Dec. 18, 2020, 7:56 p.m.
On Wednesday, while Rep. Brad Wilson and the Utah Legislature’s Executive Appropriations Committee met via Zoom to craft an education funding package to deliberately punish Salt Lake City School District teachers for providing “remote” education, the Meadowlark Elementary parking lot had teacher and staff cars in it from before 7 a.m. through past 5 p.m.
This week s Behind the Headlines episode.
Utah records its highest single-day increase in COVID-19 deaths. Frontline healthcare workers become the first residents to receive vaccine doses in the state. Lawmakers plan to give $1,500 bonus to Utah teachers, but may withhold the bonus from educators in the Salt Lake City School District. And federal land managers pull the plug on a Utah tar sands lease after the revelation that the applicant was a contractor with the Bureau of Land Management.
Credit Salt Lake Tribune
Utah records its highest single-day increase in COVID-19 deaths. Frontline healthcare workers become the first residents to receive vaccine doses in the state. Lawmakers plan to give $1,500 bonus to Utah teachers, but may withhold the bonus from educators in the Salt Lake City School District. And federal land managers pull the plug on a Utah tar sands lease after the revelation that the applicant was a contractor with the Bureau of Land Management.
At 9 a.m. on Friday, Salt Lake Tribune reporters Brian Maffly and Sean P. Means, and news columnist Robert Gehrke join KCPW’s Roger McDonough to talk about the week’s top stories. Every Friday at 9 a.m., tune in to Utah Public Radio for the broadcast. Join the live conversation by calling (801) 355-TALK.
There s always another side to any story, right? There’s been quite an uproar over the Utah legislature talking about a proposal to pay teachers and staff and additional $1000 to $1500 - except for Salt Lake City School District teachers. Teachers have been doing incredibly heavy-lifting since March. They are heroes.
The blame for this impasse lies squarely at the feet of the school board. The Salt Lake City School Board, you might recall, is the one where one member of the board called teachers “lazy” and could be seen playing Solitaire during board meetings, another sent profanity-laced texts to the board chair when a meeting ran long and there seems to be repeated violations of the state’s Open and Public Meetings Act. Clearly, the board is divided and not able to function as they should.