I am sick and tired of dealing with students who come to school with a cold instead of missing a day and getting rest.
It’s simultaneously saddening and frustrating because most of these students attend school even if they need extra rest to recover. This is a problem that I normally would shrug off, but there is a possibility others might get sick from just one person’s selfish decisions. If I can’t take my test because someone decided to infect their entire Chemistry class to take a quiz, I’m going to be mad.
Did anyone ever think they might be infecting students who need to attend school more than they do? If it’s serious enough to get others terribly ill, you shouldn’t be attending school, period.
The biggest reason people stay in school sick is to keep up on assignments. However, California Education Code 48205 states that students who are absent from school are allowed to complete all assignments and tests missed during their absence. This means that if a student is ill, they are allowed and encouraged to stay home to rest. Wouldn’t it be easier for sick students to stay home and finish their assignments with the comforts of blankets and chicken noodle soup rather than come to school ill for the same amount of work?
Unfortunately, many of us have parents who urge us to go to school no matter how sick we are. Some people could have late-stage ebola and their parents would still pressure them to attend school, assuming their child’s school day is more important than other students’.
School would be less stressful for everyone if we didn’t have to worry about getting sick. Because students can get notes and assignments from their peers with no penalty, there is no reason to chance a sick day. Your day at school is not more important than other people’s education and health. Don’t be the over-achieving student who unthinkingly spreads the next Spanish Influenza to the whole San Gabriel Valley, just to take that in-class essay.