In-person learning creates dilemma for New York's poorest families

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In-person learning creates dilemma for New York's poorest families

New York is the only major city in the United States to offer in-person classes

Published: September 04, 2020 11:25 AFP and Compiled by Christian Borbon, Senior Web Editor

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Copy of 571838-01-02-1599202653172 — As the first day of school approaches, New York's poorest - often uninsured families - face a risky choice: send kids to school where they could contract coronavirus, or keep them home for online classes, potentially compromising their academic progress and preventing parents from working. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571836-01-02-1599202683628 — New York, the largest school district in the United States with 1.1 million students, is the only major city nationwide to offer in-person classes. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571852-01-02-1599202670876 — Maria - a Mexican domestic worker who lives in Queens, who asked for her last name not be used as she is undocumented - decided to send her children aged seven and 14 to class, despite much uncertainty over protocol. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571850-01-02-1599202664304 — "Are schools equipped to safely welcome children? What days will they go? They talk about classes outdoors - what happens when it rains?" asked the 35-year-old mother during a weekly free food distribution in the borough's Corona neighborhood. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571837-01-02-1599202686772 — The city's poorest families, generally black or of immigrant origin, cannot afford to hire tutors to support their online learning, as many children of wealthier families are doing. | A man receives a package during a food distribution in Queens. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571841-01-02-1599202659237 — And, like Maria, most parents of modest means must leave the home to work - if they did not lose their jobs to the pandemic, that is. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571855-01-02-1599202674313 — Many cities, such as Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Miami, opted instead for the virtual model. New York is the only major city to offer a hybrid option, as long as the infection rate stays below three percent. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571857-01-02-1599202676958 — Currently it is hovering at 0.9 percent, far lower than the national average. But after a dispute with a prominent teachers' union - which called for more safety measures and threatened a strike - in-person classes were delayed from September 10 to September 21. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571851-01-02-1599202667520 — Many low-income New York parents - who were disproportionately hard-hit by coronavirus, suffer more from chronic diseases and often lack health insurance - do not want to send their children to school. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571839-01-02-1599202656455 — More than 365,000 public school students, or 37 percent, opted to take classes solely online, according to the city's government. Image Credit: AFP

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Copy of 571843-01-02-1599202661305 — Both the mayor and education experts have urged children from low-income families to attend school in person, to avoid falling behind their wealthier peers. Image Credit: AFP

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