Not one to mince his words, Dave Grohl has unleashed his views on the treatment of school staff in the US in his essay In Defense of Our Teachers.
Quick to jump to their defence, Grohl states school staff “deserve a plan, not a trap” something that is no doubt felt the world over.
Despite being a high school dropout, Grohl has first-hand experience of what it takes to be a public school teacher through his mother, who, he says “she tirelessly devoted her life to the service of others” – not an uncommon sight to those of us who personally know teachers (despite the bad rap they so often – and undeservedly – get!)
Grohl’s mum is quick to point out the barriers that stand in the way of schools reopening effectively. With a teaching career of 35 years, Virginia Grohl lists the concerns she has about the reopening: “masks and distancing, temperature checks, crowded busing, crowded hallways, sports, air-conditioning systems, lunchrooms, public restrooms, janitorial staff.” With school budgets drastically shrinking, both in the US and UK, schools are now having to self-fund PPE from their curriculum budgets as schools are not deemed to require protective measures away from regular cleaning and social distancing.
The crux of the issue is that Grohl pleads with those in power that teachers in the US need a clear return-to-school plan before the end of the summer break because, after all, “Teachers want to teach, not die, and we should support and protect them like the national treasures that they are. For without them, where would we be?”
We completely echo the same view: where would we be without teachers?
Dave Grohl’s essay can be found viewed below, or you can visit www.theatlantic.com
