"We Have to Get Kids Back in the Schools" - Wrong! (PART ONE)

I don't know of a single person who doesn't want schools open - not teachers, not students, not parents, not elected officials, not medical and science experts, not the community. 

But just saying kids have to be back in school is not helpful and not a plan. Any type of return to school with the pandemic still raging involves a level of risk and requires changes to what we envision when we hear "back to school." That means we have to face the reality that "getting kids back into the schools" is not what our goal is. What we do need is plan for how we can educate all our children during this current crisis, with or without using our schools. 

Instead of saying that we have to get kids back in the schools, try saying this:

How can we redesign education during a dangerous pandemic so we can meet high safety standards, support the social/emotional needs of adults and children, and provide the best learning experience possible in a time of crisis?

Here's what we are looking at for many of our in-person classroom experiences at the elementary level:

• Less than full classes to meet safety guidelines - with some kids possibly connecting remotely and/or with kids coming to school every day or on alternate days. 
• Coordination of in-person along with the remote learners, which could look different on different days and throughout the year based on the degree of illness in the community.
• Distance - should be 6 feet but I am seeing some say 3 feet (makes me very nervous).
• Masks (hopefully masks and not just face shields) for part or all of the day.
• All students facing the same direction. No face-to-face interactions.
• No small group work (unless you can do it via computers as kids sit at their desks).
• No or limited hands-on experiences.
• No shared equipment. This could significantly impact science, math, art, music, and physical education experiences.
• More time devoted to hand washing, desk cleaning, mask breaks. Wash hands when you arrive and before and after eating (so that's lunch and snack). Do this while maintaining distance among all students and adults.
• Time outdoors (weather permitting) to stretch and this can also be a mask break - make sure kids stay apart though.
• Recess: keep distance, no shared equipment.
• Lunch - I have no idea - probably in the classrooms and not the cafeteria - at a distance, facing the same way, so no face-to-face socializing. Let's face it, how do you even socialize while eating all facing the same way at a distance of 3 feet or more?
• Transportation:  Buses with fewer kids each trip - so we might need two rounds through the community to get everyone? Will that mean a later start to the day? Longer time getting home?  I'm not sure. Maybe more kids will walk or get picked up. The transportation issue alone keeps me up at night, and I can only image how those who have to plan it out must be feeling!
• Possibility of no assemblies, live guest presenters or volunteers, field trips, few or no before/after and recess clubs simply because they won't meet safety guidelines.
• Increase in absences - adults and students. Plan for needing more substitute teachers. Plan to support students who might be sick or quarantined for long periods of time.
• Increased use of computers. Prepare for technical difficulties, fatigue, distractions.
• Challenges in hearing the teacher and students who are speaking through a mask. Challenges in reading facial cues. How does this impact those tuning in from home?
• Passing out papers - probably not. Convert to a paperless classroom if you don't already have this.
• Schools without air conditioning will likely need to start with virtual learning. There will be so many who fall ill if they are in a 90+ degree room with a mask on for hours. I know from experience in unconditioned classrooms how unproductive this can be, and that was without wearing a mask. 
• Less time devoted to curriculum. Plan for transitions to take longer and for the time it will take for a full class hand washing and room cleaning throughout the day. Plan for more review, troubleshooting, safety reminders, breaks. Many modifications will need to be made to adhere to safety guidelines which will limit some experiences.
• For many rooms, only desks and chairs will fit. Any flexible seating, comfy furniture, small group table, etc. will need to be removed; otherwise, the distancing won't work.

So when I hear some saying we have to get kids back to school, is this what they mean? Because this is what it will be. We need to be realistic if we are going to try to make this work. So back to my question:

How can we redesign education during a dangerous pandemic so we can meet high safety standards, support the social/emotional needs of adults and children, and provide the best learning experience possible in a time of crisis?

We need to work together to figure out if there IS an answer. Can we find tools, resources, strategies that will support in-person learning with current conditions? If the environment we are putting our children into is a terrible, stressful, dangerous, boring, learning environment, and we have no idea how to make it better, then we need a new plan. The last thing we want to do is make things worse. We aren't only thinking about the education of our children now, we are potentially going to have an impact on the physical and mental health of our school communities and their families. So if what we are offering for in-person learning is terrible, can we really say it is worth the risk? Do we really HAVE to get kids back into the schools if we can't ensure a good education and a safe and welcoming space for all?  

Continuing to think of in-person learning, can you fill in either of these answers to my question?

Yes, we can redesign education during a dangerous pandemic so we can meet high safety standards, support the social/emotional needs of adults and children, and provide the best learning experience possible in a time of crisis, and here is how we can do it.... 

After brainstorming and considering all possibilities, no, we can't redesign education during a dangerous pandemic so we can meet high safety standards, support the social/emotional needs of adults and children, and provide the best learning experience possible in a time of crisis and so we need to...

I don't have all the answers, but I do know we need to face this before we move forward. I have been discussing possibilities with colleagues, reading all I can from our health and science experts, trying not to follow toxic dialogue on social media, and doing all I can to help prevent the spread of the virus.

If we cannot plan an in-person scenario worth risking our health for, we need to spend the weeks we have left before school starts putting all our effort into designing a virtual experience that will answer the question I pose.

In my district, we have an amazing community, staff, administration, school board, and families. We have a lot of really, really smart people who have proven in the past that we can work together to do what is best for our community, and especially for our children. We are not all going to agree on what the best options are, but, if we commit to sticking with it, stay honest with our reality, agree to being respectful in our words and actions, and open our minds to some creative changes in how, what, and where children learn, we will surely find a plan that keeps us safe and inspires our children to learn and grow.

In "We Have to Get Kids Back in the Schools" - Wrong! PART TWO I will share some ideas I have for how to create meaningful learning experiences for students during the upcoming school year that will also bring us closer to a modern learning environment even after the pandemic has passed. (coming soon)