Public schools are in flux as COVID-19 spread creates wide variety of learning options
In Mid-March, the governors of Ohio and Kentucky ordered schools to shut down as governments scrambled to contain the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The schools stayed closed until the end of the school year, with teachers and staff learning on the fly about teaching virtually.
As the 2020-2021 school year started, with the virus still spreading, the states adopted a more hands-off approach, leaving decisions to local school district leaders. The result has been a wide variety of learning options.
In Ohio, according to the state Department of Education, 245 districts are operating with in-person teaching five days a week, 185 districts have adopted a fully remote model of teaching, and 177 are using a hybrid approach that combines in-person and virtual learning.
According to a district-by-district map created by the state department, fully remote learning is generally in and around the big city districts, the hybrid model is generally being used in the suburban districts, and the in-person approach is generally seen in the rural districts.
But many districts have been in flux throughout the school year as local conditions changed. The Cincinnati Public Schools Board of Education in mid-November voted to return to a five-day-a-week distance-learning model, districtwide. The change became effective just before Thanksgiving. The students will remain in distance learning through the winter break, and they may return to blended learning at the end of January.
“This is primarily a result of staffing shortages that have occurred through the district due to the high rate of COVID-19 spread in the Greater Cincinnati community,” Superintendent Laura Mitchell says.
In the Sycamore Community School district, all students moved to remote learning between Nov. 30 and Dec. 4 as a preventive measure following Thanksgiving break. Face-to-face learning returned on Dec. 7. The district says it anticipated an increase in COVID-19 related absences following Thanksgiving due to the likelihood of increased exposure through gatherings and travel.
“By giving ourselves a week buffer, we minimize the risk and keep the community spread from entering our schools,” says Superintendent Frank Forsthoefel. The district may consider another preventive week of remote learning following its winter break. Students who have already opted for virtual learning continued with that option.
In the Fairfield City School District, the school board voted to return to full in-person instruction beginning with its second quarter at the end of October. However, the district on Dec. 12 announced that it was moving all 10th through 12th graders to remote learning beginning Tuesday, Dec. 15, through Friday, Dec. 18. High school students will return to in-person learning after winter break on Jan. 4, it says.
In Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear announced that all Kentucky schools must cease in-person instruction and transition to remote or virtual instruction beginning Nov. 23.
He ordered all middle schools and high schools to not resume in-person learning before Jan. 4. “Virus levels in our community are making normal school operations impossible, and we also have to consider the increasing risks to our students, families and staff members,” Beshear says.
Covington schools are currently planning to return to a hybrid model in which one group of students attends in person on Mondays and Tuesdays, another group on Thursdays and Fridays, with Wednesdays remaining a day for teacher planning and communication with those students and families who have opted to stay at home and learn remotely.
