Springfield Public Schools to reopen fully remote this fall

When Springfield Public Schools reopen this fall, classes will be held fully remote.

The Springfield School Committee voted Thursday evening to start the 2020-2021 school year with remote learning, joining a growing number of school districts in shifting away from a push to return to in-person learning.

“Of course, we want to get our children back in schools as soon as possible, but our decision must be based not only on educational aspects, but also public health, medical aspects and the science of COVID-19,” Mayor Domenic Sarno said.

Schools may transition to a hybrid model after the first marking period. A hybrid model developed by district officials proposes assigning the majority of students into two groups: one to attend class in person Mondays and Tuesdays, and the second group to attend class Thursdays and Fridays. Days out of the classroom, students would learn remotely.

Siblings living in the same household would be prioritized to be in the same group.

Some students - special education and Level 1 English Language Learners - would be scheduled to attend class in-person Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Wednesdays would be reserved for buildings to be deep cleaned.

Due to the number of students in district and space available, Springfield - like the majority of Massachusetts school districts - could not implement required social distancing protocols if schools reopened fully in-person.

The Springfield School Committee voted last week to push back the start of the school year this fall by two weeks. The school year will start on Tuesday, Sept. 15 for students in grades 1 through 12, Sept. 21 for kindergarten and Sept. 28 for pre-kindergarteners.

“Given the incredible number of moving parts that are necessary to safely open schools, an extra two weeks for educators to prepare is greatly needed and will be extremely valuable,” Springfield Superintendent of Schools Daniel Warwick said of the decision last week. “To try to think we could come back before that would be a mistake.”

Warwick said families should expect to hear more details about school opening in coming weeks.

“We will make sure parents know what to expect and how to make sure their student is equipped with the technology they will need,” he said, adding that schools will reach out directly to families.

The district will provide laptops to students by the start of the school year. Springfield is entering into a sponsored service agreement with Comcast to offer internet access for families with limited to no current access. For families living outside the city, T-Mobile hot spot devices will be offered to provide internet access, if needed.

Remote learning for school-aged children this fall will look significantly different from remote learning offered by Massachusetts school districts this past spring.

“We’ve had time to write a plan that is much more streamlined, accountable and accessible for families and students,” said Warwick. “We were thrust into remote education in the spring, and we know the experience was more disjointed than we would have liked. We’ve worked hard to address that.”

Following statewide school closures this spring, districts could chose two educational models for the remainder of the school year: resources and supports, which included sending packets and assignments home to students; or instruction and services, which included structured learning time, teletherapy, and video conferencing.

For the 2020-2021 school year, schools must offer only the latter learning option, offering remote students a regular and consistent schedule of classes, interventions, services, and therapies including frequent interactions with teachers and other staff members to ensure participation.

“The consistent schedule of classes, interventions, services, and therapies must include time students spend interacting directly with teachers and related service providers on a regular basis, as well as some independent work time, as appropriate, and opportunities for interacting with classmates,” state guidance on remote learning reads. “Synchronous remote lessons or tele-therapy sessions can be provided via telephone or video conferencing. Students might also benefit from asynchronous pre-recorded videos of lessons to follow at home. For students receiving the majority of their daily instruction through special education, teachers and therapists should assign supplemental work (beyond lessons taught synchronously or asynchronously) during the school day that can be accomplished independently with guidance from and accountability to the teacher or therapist.”

As part of ensuring students are engaged, attendance will be taken daily for in-person and remote classrooms. For remote schooling, attendance may be traced by students submitting assignments online, logging onto online learning platforms or attending virtual check-ins. Parents and guardians are responsible for ensuring their child attends daily for both in-person and remote learning.

Grades are back, as is state testing. While many schools transitioned away from offering a letter grade this past spring, student performance will be graded across in-person, hybrid and remote learning.

State education officials urge schools to consider exemptions for students experiencing extreme circumstances - such as family members severely ill due to COVID-19 - and ensure they receive additional supports.

All students will be required to take the MCAS tests in the spring, according to the state guidance issued Friday.

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