Parents Unhappy with School Choices Gather Learning 'Pods'
2020-08-10
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1On a farm at the edge of Everglades National Park in Florida, Timea Hunter trains people to ride horses.
2There, she has held plenty of horse-riding classes, parties, and other events.
3So, with her children's school building closed, she asked herself: Why not also use the farm as a classroom?
4This year, her son and daughter will have distance learning through their usual school.
5But Hunter and four to six other families also plan to hire a teacher who can provide in-person classes on the farm.
6The farm has a very nice outdoor eating area, Hunter told The Associated Press, or AP.
7It also has a small play area for children and big tables where they can study under the trees.
8"We are not educated [in how] to do this," she said.
9So, everybody is saying, "What are we going to do? How are we going to do it?"
10In the United States, the coronavirus health crisis has hurt hopes of quickly reopening schools nationally.
11Now, some parents are hurrying to hire private teachers for small groups.
12The race to set up these "learning pods" threatens to worsen educational inequities.
13In some cases, parents are paying thousands of dollars each to include their children in pods.
14They are promising teachers $40 to $100 an hour or more.
15Three weeks after a Facebook group on learning pods formed, it has more than 30,000 members.
16And it has launched several smaller groups in states and cities.
17New websites have been born, offering to connect families with teachers.
18Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has called learning pods "luxuries" that are not a choice for parents who earn low wages.
19"We hear these different things about some parents are going to create their own learning pods and all this other stuff," DeSantis said at a recent discussion on education.
20He said that such programs are going to depend on the bfinancial means of parents.
21"When you have working-class parents," they really do need to have a choice, he added.
22Hunter said distance learning was extremely hard on her 9-year-old son - and on her.
23She said the teacher met with the class once a week.
24Parents were responsible for the rest of the teaching.
25Now she also worries about a younger daughter who is entering her first year of school.
26Among those considering work as a pod teacher is Jeanette Matas who, like many, has concerns about going back to her job as an educator.
27The 42-year-old works as reading teacher in Miami.
28While teaching online classes, she has seen her 6th-grade and 7th-grade students taking care of younger brothers and sisters.
29Matas says such situations give students from lower-income families an unequal deal.
30Her grandmother died of COVID-19 after her caregiver infected her.
31And her own third-grade daughter has suffered from lung infections that kept her away from school for weeks.
32So Matas is thinking of taking a year away from her job, getting hired to teach her own pod and bringing her children.
33Matas said the coronavirus has deeply affected her family and she does not want to go back to the usual classroom.
34Some see the pods as a necessary and even creative solution to the crisis facing the U.S. educational system.
35"It is civil society in action," said Lindsey Burke.
36She directs the Center for Education Policy at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative policy organization.
37The Center pushes for school choice policies that permit use of public money in private or alternative schools.
38Tina Cheuk is an education researcher at California Polytechnic State University.
39She says she is troubled by the move toward learning pods and the push to pay for them with money meant for public schools.
40That decision will have consequences for public education, Cheuk said.
41Not only would it take money from public education.
42But the pods threaten to replace teachers with college students or retirees, she noted.
43Cheuk added that choosing to be in a pod may seem innocent but ignores the effects on public education.
44A group of Oakland, California school administrators wrote about their concerns in an open letter.
45It told parents that health experts suggest limiting in-person contact.
46The school officials also noted the possibility of causing some students to feel left out.
47That is especially true for those who may see or hear of others learning together while they remain alone, the letter said.
48Some parents are forming learning pods with neighbors they already know.
49Others are contacting social media groups to help identify wider choices.
50This raises questions about the safety and quality of such schooling.
51Melissa Cedeno works as a digital marketer in Miami, Florida.
52The 37-year-old is also a parent with two young boys in grade school.
53Cedeno is seeking to put together a small learning group.
54On Facebook, she wrote that she is searching for other children and a teacher to help students with their local school's online programs.
55Her Facebook ad said parents would be able to observe the classes through the camera inside her home.
56That way, they know their children are safe.
57And Cedeno said she would do background investigations on the teaching candidates.
58Atlanta, Georgia, parent Nikolai Pizarro de Jesus has homeschooled her 12-year-old son since he was very young.
59Recently, she has been helping families plan more socio-economically accessible pods by connecting them with experienced homeschooling families.
60She is hopeful that discussions about learning pods will increase people's understanding of inequalities that have long existed in public education.
61I'm Alice Bryant.
1On a farm at the edge of Everglades National Park in Florida, Timea Hunter trains people to ride horses. There, she has held plenty of horse-riding classes, parties, and other events. So, with her children's school building closed, she asked herself: Why not also use the farm as a classroom? 2This year, her son and daughter will have distance learning through their usual school. But Hunter and four to six other families also plan to hire a teacher who can provide in-person classes on the farm. 3The farm has a very nice outdoor eating area, Hunter told The Associated Press, or AP. It also has a small play area for children and big tables where they can study under the trees. 4"We are not educated [in how] to do this," she said. So, everybody is saying, "What are we going to do? How are we going to do it?" 5In the United States, the coronavirus health crisis has hurt hopes of quickly reopening schools nationally. Now, some parents are hurrying to hire private teachers for small groups. The race to set up these "learning pods" threatens to worsen educational inequities. 6In some cases, parents are paying thousands of dollars each to include their children in pods. They are promising teachers $40 to $100 an hour or more. Three weeks after a Facebook group on learning pods formed, it has more than 30,000 members. And it has launched several smaller groups in states and cities. New websites have been born, offering to connect families with teachers. 7Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has called learning pods "luxuries" that are not a choice for parents who earn low wages. 8"We hear these different things about some parents are going to create their own learning pods and all this other stuff," DeSantis said at a recent discussion on education. He said that such programs are going to depend on the bfinancial means of parents. "When you have working-class parents," they really do need to have a choice, he added. 9Hunter said distance learning was extremely hard on her 9-year-old son - and on her. She said the teacher met with the class once a week. Parents were responsible for the rest of the teaching. Now she also worries about a younger daughter who is entering her first year of school. 10Among those considering work as a pod teacher is Jeanette Matas who, like many, has concerns about going back to her job as an educator. The 42-year-old works as reading teacher in Miami. While teaching online classes, she has seen her 6th-grade and 7th-grade students taking care of younger brothers and sisters. Matas says such situations give students from lower-income families an unequal deal. 11Her grandmother died of COVID-19 after her caregiver infected her. And her own third-grade daughter has suffered from lung infections that kept her away from school for weeks. So Matas is thinking of taking a year away from her job, getting hired to teach her own pod and bringing her children. 12Matas said the coronavirus has deeply affected her family and she does not want to go back to the usual classroom. 13Some see the pods as a necessary and even creative solution to the crisis facing the U.S. educational system. 14"It is civil society in action," said Lindsey Burke. She directs the Center for Education Policy at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative policy organization. The Center pushes for school choice policies that permit use of public money in private or alternative schools. 15Tina Cheuk is an education researcher at California Polytechnic State University. She says she is troubled by the move toward learning pods and the push to pay for them with money meant for public schools. 16That decision will have consequences for public education, Cheuk said. Not only would it take money from public education. But the pods threaten to replace teachers with college students or retirees, she noted. 17Cheuk added that choosing to be in a pod may seem innocent but ignores the effects on public education. 18A group of Oakland, California school administrators wrote about their concerns in an open letter. It told parents that health experts suggest limiting in-person contact. The school officials also noted the possibility of causing some students to feel left out. That is especially true for those who may see or hear of others learning together while they remain alone, the letter said. 19Some parents are forming learning pods with neighbors they already know. Others are contacting social media groups to help identify wider choices. This raises questions about the safety and quality of such schooling. 20Melissa Cedeno works as a digital marketer in Miami, Florida. The 37-year-old is also a parent with two young boys in grade school. Cedeno is seeking to put together a small learning group. On Facebook, she wrote that she is searching for other children and a teacher to help students with their local school's online programs. Her Facebook ad said parents would be able to observe the classes through the camera inside her home. That way, they know their children are safe. And Cedeno said she would do background investigations on the teaching candidates. 21Atlanta, Georgia, parent Nikolai Pizarro de Jesus has homeschooled her 12-year-old son since he was very young. Recently, she has been helping families plan more socio-economically accessible pods by connecting them with experienced homeschooling families. 22She is hopeful that discussions about learning pods will increase people's understanding of inequalities that have long existed in public education. 23I'm Alice Bryant. 24The Associated Press reported this story. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 25________________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27hire - v. to give work or a job to someone in exchange for wages or a salary 28pod - n. a long, thin part of some plants that has seeds inside 29luxury - n. a condition or situation of great comfort, ease, and wealth 30grade - n. a school in the U.S. for young children (or) a level of study that is completed by a student during one year 31alternative school - n. a school with a curriculum and methods that are nontraditional 32consequence - n. something that happens as a result of a particular action or set of conditions 33open letter - n. a letter, often critical, addressed to a particular person or group of people but intended for publication. 34background investigation - n. a process a person or company uses to verify that a person is who they claim to be. 35accessible - adj. able to be used or obtained