Plan is to have students in on alternating days
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
LINWOOD — “We’re trying to get students in school more as soon as possible,” Chief School Administrator Mark Marrone told The Sentinel last week.
Marrone presented the administration’s plan to expand the instructional schedule Tuesday, Feb. 23, to the Mainland Regional High School Board of Education, which voted unanimously to approve it. Students will begin the Transitional Schedule on Monday, March 8.
“We think it’s the right time to start to bring students back based on the numbers decreasing, the guidance from the CDC and recommendations from a Health Advisory Committee that we use made up of doctors and infectious disease people,” he said, noting the committee recommended the district take the month of February to plan for an increase in in-person instruction starting in March and moving forward.
On the first day back, Cohort A would be in person while Cohort B and those with an all-virtual schedule would attend classes remotely. All students would be logged in at the same time for the assigned periods through Microsoft TEAMS, the platform the school has been using since last spring when the school was suddenly shut down to help stop the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s the right thing at the right time,” Marrone said, noting the administration took a measured approach to the process.
Marrone said teachers would work from their classrooms five days a week, delivering instruction to all three cohorts at the same time.
The schedule with alternating cohorts would repeat after the eighth day. Cohort A and B students will be at the school for in-person instruction four days during the eight-day cycle. Students also will attend each class, whether remotely or in-person, six times in the eight-day cycle. Students will receive a grab-and-go lunch and breakfast for two days when they leave the school.
Marrone said if the number of coronavirus cases continues its downward trend, and barring any other unforeseen circumstances, the district would begin its full-day schedule, again alternating every other day, when the students begin the fourth marking period April 19.
That schedule would be from 8 am. to 2 p.m. with all six classes being about 52 minutes each. It also would include lunch in the building for a half-hour, compared with the transitional schedule that provides only a 10-minute break.
“That’s what we are planning to do if the numbers continue to trend in the right direction. If we have an outbreak or something causes the school to close, of course we would have to reconfigure that, but our plan right now is to transition in March and go to a full day with longer periods of 52 minutes at the beginning of the fourth marking period,” Marrone said.
“Again, the full-day schedule is tentative and will continue to be modified throughout the month of March,” he said, adding that the full-day schedule would be released before spring break.
The district also has scheduled an open block of time for MTSS (multitiered systems and supports), offering students extra help, enrichment and intervention virtually or in-person.
Under the transitional schedule it would be from about 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. and under the expanded full-day schedule it would be from 2:02 to 2:42 p.m.
“If virtual students had any issues at home while they were online or needed clarification they could reach out to the teacher during that period of time after school as well as the in-person students just to keep them on track,” Marrone said.
Students that have chosen a completely virtual instructional schedule may remain completely virtual until the end of this school year, but they will be expected to attend all classes remotely online Monday through Friday by assigned class time/period.
Those who want to switch to the Transitional Schedule from the virtual schedule should contact their case manager or guidance counselor to request the change.
“Please understand that schedule changes may take up to a week depending on the number of student requests the district receives,” Marrone said, adding that a return to the hybrid instructional model from an all-virtual schedule may also require alterations to a student’s existing schedule or cohort assignment.
The Northfield resident said the transitional schedule would ease students back into a more regular routine without overwhelming them.
“We have to take into account their mental health and social and emotional states, and we think a transition is a smart way for a month and then to have full day in April,” he said.
Marrone said the administration researched other high schools across the state and “tried to create something that increased our instructional time, noting that the expansion would be “an exponential increase of instructional time per week.”
He said the student population of 1,260 prevents the district from having everyone in the building at the same time due to space restrictions and social distancing requirements.
He said nearly every high school in the state that has expanded instructional time is using the alternating cohorts to allow for a 6-foot distance between students, adding that PPE and disinfecting sanitizer will be readily available and masks will continue to be required. There also are some desk shields available in every room but not one for every desk, he said, adding that “the ventilation is right where it needs to be based on state guidelines.”
“We are in good shape and prepared facility-wise to bring people in more often than two days a week. We are going to bring them in five days a week, just alternating days,” he said.
A student would attend three days one week and two the next except when the school is closed for a holiday or other reason. In that case, the pattern would pick up where it left off so that all students would get an equal number of days in person.
Marrone said he used Ocean City High School’s schedule as a start and modified it to suite Mainland’s needs.
Marrone said buying a laptop for every student really paid off.
“Having those laptop computers makes a huge difference both in and outside the classroom in how we share course content, how we assess students and all of those things,” he said, noting that the one-to-one computer program “is going to be a cornerstone in most districts.”
Marrone also feels that teachers have learned on the fly how to deliver instruction virtually and “I think as we continue over the next couple of years it’s going to continue to be an effective way of meeting student needs.”
Marrone said the district is working with staff members to allow them time to get vaccinated and that as that process continues, conditions will keep improving.
“The sooner I can get the staff vaccinated, the sooner we can get even more students back and to another level of normal,” he said.
Marrone said everyone would be happy to have the students back in the building more often.
“I really think this meets the needs of the kids based on the trends heading downward and the concerns from the public asking about getting their kids in school more,” he said. “Even though I can’t provide every day, I can provide every other day and access to new content, old content and anything the students need to be successful.”
