Gadfly Bites 12/7/20 – “This invisible thing”

1. It was widely noted on Friday that the new school funding plan that passed the House faced less-affirmative prospects in the Ohio Senate (see what I did there?) due to the complexity of the issue and the time remaining in the lame duck legislative session. Late in the day on Friday, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee elaborated on possible courses of action, including some possible cost studies to be completed relating to the proposal. (Gongwer Ohio, 12/4/20)
    
2. You might not be able to tell this, but I have an undergraduate degree in creative writing. My first job upon becoming a newly-minted Bachelor of Arts was as an office manager at a construction company. (I know, right?!) One of the job duties I assumed—which they perhaps did not realize they needed done before I showed up—was to make sure all their advertising pitch materials were spelled correctly interesting and detailed and grabbed potential customers with the stories being told of problem jobs and successful solutions our company, and our company alone, could have provided. I am taken back to those long-ago days when reading this “sponsored” piece in School Transportation News. It is a national publication which publishes “partner updates”, the most recent of which is a detailed look at how Lima City Schools uses a partner’s technology to help smooth lots of different school busing wrinkles in the district. I include it here because it is an interesting dip into how busing functioned before anyone ever heard of SARS-CoV-2 (note district officials’ references to parents) and how such technology has adapted into the current pandemic. Here’s hoping that some of that stuff (when did bus drivers stop greeting kids by name exactly?) will continue after the rona has been vanquished. (School Transportation News, 12/4/20)
   
   

3. I won’t say that this national story on Covid-related school closures in Montgomery County counts as “sponsored content”, but it does have a narrow focus. And that is the problems of schools – the school district in Centerville and the private Alter High School in Kettering – trying to stay open for some level of in-person learning during these most recent weeks of rona rage. But honestly if you’re going leave 30 Rock and go to the trouble of stopping in Montgomery County, Flyover Land, Ohio, you should probably check in on Dayton City Schools – entirely closed for business until next year. Especially its parents. Or, indeed, any parents. (NBC News, 12/6/20)
    
4. Unfortunately, when most news outlets—even local ones—do stories on how the educational whipsaw is affecting families, they tend to prefer “expert opinions” telling us how it’s going for parents rather than parents speaking for themselves. This piece from the Toledo area is no exception, giving us two “experts” (one of whom I have no idea what she’s on about) and one actual parent. As a side note, check out just how very “school like” is the preacher’s wife’s description of their learning center. (Toledo Blade, 12/7/20)

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