Students will be remote learning on other days
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
LINWOOD — Students at Mainland Regional High School will be attending school in person just one day a week this fall as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the nation.
The district released its back-to-school plan during a virtual Board of Education meeting Monday, Aug. 10. School is set to begin Sept. 10.
Chief School Administrator Mark Marrone said the district’s No. 1 goal would be to have students back in school five days a week.
“This plan does not have that,” he said. “But we will offer the best learning experience that we can.”
The plan includes three different schedules — a hybrid schedule in which students attend virtually and in person, an all-virtual schedule and a contingency schedule. Parents must notify the school by Aug. 16 whether they prefer the hybrid or virtual schedule for the first marking period.
Marrone said the plan was crafted from information gleaned through surveys, state guidelines and a steering committee of stakeholders.
Board of Education President Jill Ojserkis said they have been working in uncharted territory and the plan is the culmination of hundreds of hours of effort.
“The pandemic has affected our whole community and created the greatest challenge in my 11 years as a board member,” she said. “Some will not be happy with the plan but it’s the best we can do at this time. Our goal is to keep students and staff safe and continue to provide an excellent Mainland education.”
Marrone said there were three main factors driving the plan based on a survey of parents and guardians.
— Ensuring academic growth
— Protecting physical health
— Identifying and closing learning gaps
Dorsey Finn, coordinator of planning, instruction and evaluation, outlined the three schedules. He said the hybrid schedule focuses on maximizing real -time face-to-face instruction, both virtually and in person.
The hybrid schedule would have students attending remotely from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, as well as either Thursday or Friday. Wednesday would be set aside for remote independent learning.
“Students will have four sessions with teachers — three virtual and one in person,” Finn said. “It also allows us to maintain social distancing while doing in-person instruction.”
The virtual days would start with 90 minutes when students can work with teachers getting extra help on assignments. Two courses would follow, then a 10-minute break followed by two more courses and then lunch. Two courses would follow lunch, then a 10-minute break. Two more courses would wrap up the day.
Students will be split into cohorts A and B, with one group attending in person Thursday and the other Friday. When not in school, the group would have another virtual day.
“We believe we can get half of the students into school in a day,” Finn said.
The in-person schedule would last from 8 a.m. to 2:35 p.m.
The virtual schedule would be all remote, with the same parameters as the hybrid schedule.
The hybrid plan allows for classes of no more than 15 students, allowing for social distancing and less contact.
Finn said the cohorts will be created alphabetically. The school will then look at households, transportation and enrollment, and then adjust when needed, keeping students from the same family or household together. Students will not be able to choose their cohort or change, except with proper notice and only between marking periods.
The contingency schedule is for an all-virtual learning experience if conditions worsen, preventing any in-person instruction.
Students with special needs may have a different schedule and be in the building more frequently. Their counselors will notify them individually of their schedules.
Finn said the school will be offering a different online learning experience than the one quickly thrown together in March.
“We got a lot of feedback through the school closure and paid attention to what we learned,” he said.
MRHS will be providing more structure to lessons, more support for technology use and clearer expectations for students.
There will be real-time, face-to-face synchronous learning time such as labs and hands-on work and teachers will avoid lectures, note-taking or assessments that are self-paced. The district will focus on essentials in the curriculum with a condensed syllabus.
Safety precautions include the requirement for masks all day except when eating or drinking. Marrone was unwavering in his comments on masks, saying anyone breaking the rule would be sent home and required to begin the all-virtual schedule.
“If you are not wearing a mask, you will be sent home to protect the health, safety and welfare of everyone in the building,” he said.
Face shields will be available for those students who have a legitimate reason why they cannot wear a mask.
There will be disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizer in every classroom, in common areas and on buses, and the plan calls for limiting the motion of students by keeping them in one classroom as much as possible and having the teachers move. That will not be possible for things such as gym and labs.
The school will use multiple entrances and exits to keep students away from one another and ramp up cleaning and disinfecting the facility.
MRHS staff members will be visually screening students for symptoms of COVID-19, and those considered sick will be examined by a nurse to determine the next steps. Parents are asked not to send students to school if they are sick.
Lunch will be served and students can bring their own lunch but are discouraged from sharing. The school is considering delivering lunch to classrooms.
Students will not be using lockers, either in the hall or in the locker rooms. They are encouraged to wear comfortable clothing for physical education.
Clubs and activities will be held virtually but sports teams and the marching band will be able to meet in person with limitations. The pool will remain closed.
The school will be offering new laptops for every student, as well as internet hotspots to those in need.
MRHS also hired a wellness counselor to help deal with the social and emotional needs of students.
“We are concerned about them not being in school for a number of months and how we can support them,” Marrone said.
