Roadmap for reopening Arizona schools: Students might need masks, temperature checks

Educators and school leaders now have a roadmap to reopen in the face of a global pandemic. 

The Arizona Department of Education on Monday unveiled guidance for schools to reopen. It suggests that schools, families and educators approach education through a much different lens in the upcoming 2020-2021 school year as concerns over the coronavirus persist. 

The document offers only suggestions. It does not require schools to implement anything. That will be left to local school leaders. 

Schools may decide to run on intermittent schedules, check student temperatures, and possibly even require students to wear masks.

The guidance also cautions that teachers may have to address learning differently, catching students up on learning lost after school was closed in March and making room for trauma the pandemic may have caused. 

The document is the product of a task force Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman convened. More than 100 people participated, according to the document. Many of the participants work for the state's public district and charter schools.

"As the entire world grapples with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, I take heart knowing that our schools will continue to be bedrocks of support, comfort, and stability," Hoffman wrote in a letter to school leaders.

But the document leaves many questions.

For example, it recommends schools try to reduce class sizes. But with current class sizes as high as 40 students and a statewide teacher shortage, it offers no ideas on how leaders could accomplish that.

The guidance also calls for changes to school finance law, which could only happen if Gov. Doug Ducey calls a special session of the state Legislature to address issues created by the pandemic. School leaders have called for changes to funding laws, but the governor has not yet called a special session. 

School schedules could be shifted

The guidance anticipates four different scenarios for reopening: 

• All students attend school in person. 
• Some students attend in-person classes while others attend from home. 
• All students begin the year distance learning, then resume in-person classes later in the school year. 
• In-person classes are held and canceled intermittently. 

Schools are separately planning for such scenarios.

Two districts, Alhambra Elementary School District and Cartwright School District, will hold in-person classes for four days a week and use the fifth day to deep clean while some students engage virtually.

Health and safety precautions

Some hallmarks of school might be put aside if in-person classes resume in the fall. The guidance recommends that schools take a number of health and safety precautions, including: 

• Screen students and employees for illness, which could include symptom checks and temperature checks. 
• Enhance deep cleaning and disinfecting procedures.
• Consider modified layouts for classrooms, including spacing desks six feet apart. 
• Try to limit physical interaction between students. 
• Students more vulnerable to the illness should have virtual or other distance learning options. 
• Stagger drop-off and pick-up times to further limit interactions between students. 
• Students should sit apart on buses. 
• In lieu of bigger gatherings including assemblies and field trips, schools should create virtual options. 
• The guidance recommends convening sporting events in a way that mitigates risk to those involved, but does not detail ways to mitigate such risk. 
• Keep groups static: Children and staff should interact with each other in the same groups. 
• Designate a staff person to be the point of contact for COVID-19 related concerns. 
• Individual belongings should be separated by child. 
• Officials should develop disinfecting protocols in schools and buses. 
• Cloth face coverings should be worn by students and staff when "feasible," particularly when physical distancing is difficult. 
• Communal spaces including cafeterias and playgrounds with shared equipment should be closed if possible, or use of those locations should be staggered with enough time to clean between uses. 

The guidance also recommends "decreasing class sizes when possible to allow for more physical space between students in classroom setting." But that might be a challenge for schools: The state's student to teacher ratio is one of the highest in the nation and teachers frequently say they teach crowded classes. 

Guidelines for learning 

The guidance also anticipates losses in learning due to the school closures that began in March and continued through the rest of the school year. 

A separate document considers what students may need emotionally and academically when they return to school.

For example, the guidance recommends teachers immediately work to identify any learning gaps in material from the end of 2019-2020 school year. Educators should also monitor students working from home and learning gaps in those students. 

Students with disabilities and English Language Learners should also be monitored closely, according to the guidance.

The document emphasizes that students with disabilities should be served equitably. It suggests committing more resources to offer one-to-one or small group instruction for students with special education needs.

Health experts have warned that COVID-19 cases could spike again this year, particularly in the fall and winter months.

The document anticipates further disruption, recommending schools address technology shortfalls encountered when schools were closed in the spring. Districts and charters should, according to the guidance, assess what technology individual students might need to work from home, such as additional devices or better wireless internet access. 

Reach the reporter at Lily.Altavena@ArizonaRepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @LilyAlta.

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