What will schools look like this fall?

2 days into my summer break finds me thinking (whether I want to or not) about what school is going to “be” this coming August. On June 11th the state of NC released a guidebook for reopening schools. This blog post will attempt to cover my overall thinking and feelings regarding each of the 3 proposed plans.

Plan A

Minimal Social Distancing 

This is the least restrictive of the 3 plans and raises the most concerns. Social distancing would be required in spaces where individuals congregate, the school facility would be open to all students, and there would be a mix of instructional approaches. What concerns me most about this plan is it doesn’t seem to acknowledge what the data is saying.

Plan B

Moderate Social Distancing

This plan is of course most restrictive. Social distancing would be required. School facilities would be limited to no more than 50% occupancy. Health protocols would be enhanced and blended learning would be required for all. While this plan seems to take into consideration what the data is saying it is fraught with a different set of concerns; mainly, the logistics that would be required to pull it off. Schools are historically human resources “poor” and to expect this plan to go over well, without an increase in human resources to support its successful implementation seems like a risk to all involved. This plan is broken into 6 different scheduling options.

Option A

One thing I did find encouraging to see was, within the scheduling options, option A could see that grades 4-5 be remote while K-3 would be on-site. I had a very, overall, positive experience with remote learning and would feel very comfortable working under this model until the data showed that we could move towards a plan A model. 

Options B and C 

Both propose alternating days and weeks respectively, splitting the students into cohorts, spending differing amounts of time both on and off campus. The writers of this plan seem to think that these alternatives would better support families for child care and employment. I’m not a parent so I cannot comment on whether I would prefer option A; where I would know that my child would be home throughout (or at school throughout) depending on her/his grade level or option B/C’s alternating timeframes. 

Option D 

This option works from the premise that would include a 1/2 day rotation. Like B and C before it, D would put students into cohorts; this time an AM cohort and a PM cohort. Like option A, I think option D provides opportunity for more stability (for all stakeholders) versus the seemingly logistical nightmare of options B/C. But, then how would you support families with nutritional needs? If I’m a family whose child comes to school in the afternoon and learns from home in the morning, how does my child get breakfast and lunch?

Option E 

This option involves synchronous teaching; teachers would stream all day, remote learning. On-site and off-site teaching would happen at the same time for students at home or in the building. When I read this option I felt that it was not suited for elementary school aged students. 

Option F 

This option proposes a hybrid approach. This option gives autonomy to the schools based upon their local needs. Meaning, a school could implement a combination of the above mentioned options. My opinion on this is that “we” the institution of school are not fully qualified to make this decision. I say this because there are too many variables that are health related that would make it impracticable for schools to determine the best course of action. Think about it, “we” the institution of school did not make the decision to go into lockdown back in March, that decision was made for us by others who are qualified and have our best interests in mind. I have to imagine that our school district, when the time comes, is going to look at all of the options within plan B and make a unified decision, with the support of other agencies, for the entire district as this hybrid option seems the most challenging to implement.

Plan C

Remote Learning Only

Under this plan, schools would be closed, as they have been here in NC since March 16th. Remote learning would be mandated for all students based on a plan the state is putting together that would ensure for a remote learning experience that would meet the needs of our students.

My Thoughts

If you cannot already tell, I am in favor of plan C. Right now, it keeps us safe until the data shows that we can “release” to one of the other plans mentioned here. We have been told that one of these plans is going to be initiated by July 1st. I have a hard time believing that the data is going to be positive enough 3 weeks from now to warrant anything other than plan C. Plan C is in line with what we’ve already been doing. Sticking with it would give the state more time to refine plans A and B along with the infrastructure needed to implement either of them successfully. 

One thing our students have shown us throughout this historic moment in time is their resiliency. They’ve met the challenge and, in doing so, provided us an opportunity to rethink what school could look like moving forward. I know that we are not going to teach and learn from home permanently; at least not in my lifetime. We will have to go back at some point and when we do, plan B’s considerations of what “go back” should look like provide us with a template of what school could “be” in the not so distant future. I am nearing the end of my teaching career. What if the institution of school used the pandemic as an opportunity to re-design itself so that these options were available. What if, in the future, families had the option to choose from the different models proposed in this plan? 

It is my plan to continue reading the guidebook as it will inform my future as a teacher and the future of many others.