Washington As the beginning of the next academic year approaches and the coronavirus crisis continues to worsen across the country, a growing number of school districts are choosing to keep students out of the classroom and switch to virtual learning during the fall semester.
The rise of new coronavirus infections and the rise in hospitalizations in many states has left school administrators weighing the best format to educate students for the upcoming school year, whether it be through in-person instruction, virtual learning, or a combined model.
The Trump administration is pressing school systems open for classroom learning five days a week and he has warned that federal funding may depend on whether they do. While the president can’t cut funds Already approved by Congress, the administration can attach conditions for K-12 schools to receive future federal assistance. But that threat has not stopped dozens of school districts from switching to virtual instruction when they reopen in the fall.
A compilation of Education Week reopening plans, a trade publication focused on K-12 education, shows that more than 80 school districts are reopening with remote learning only. Of the 10 largest school systems in the country, five have established plans to start the new school year with online instruction only or their superintendents have recommended doing so: Los Angeles Unified School District, Clark County School District in Nevada, Public Schools of the Broward County in Florida, the Houston Independent School District and the Palm Beach County School District in Florida.
These five districts combined educate nearly 1.5 million students.
The school districts surrounding the nation’s capital, which are among the largest in the country, have also rejected the Trump administration’s call for schools to be fully operational by the start of the academic year. The Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia and the Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland announced that all students will begin the semester with virtual learning due to increased infection rates, while the superintendent of County Public Schools in Loudoun in Virginia only recommended online instruction.
Fairfax County initially provided district parents with the option of receiving full-time online instruction or two days of in-person instruction with independent study, prompting a reprimand from Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos.
DeVos said earlier this month that limiting days of in-person instruction “would fail America’s students and fail taxpayers who pay high taxes for their education.”
But local and state officials. warn that the resources needed to bring students and staff back safely for five days of classroom learning, which the Trump administration is asking for, will likely put pressure on the city and state budgets that are already suffering due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A study by the School Superintendents Association and the Association of School Business Officials International estimated that it will cost the average school system almost $ 1.8 million to reopen safely, with money earmarked for the purchase of hand sanitizers, personal protective equipment for students and bus staff and cleaners, as well as hiring additional custodial staff, for example.
To assist schools as they prepare for the start of the new academic year, Congress is expected to include funds for K-12 education in its next coronavirus relief pack, although the amount has not yet been agreed.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Republican Party proposal will include $ 105 billion “so educators have the resources they need to safely reopen.” Of that, $ 70 billion would go to elementary, middle, and high schools.
“This country wants its children to return to the classroom this fall learning, exploring, making friends,” he said Monday. “Their education depends on it. In some cases, their safety depends on it, and so do the livelihoods of working parents.”
Senate Democrats, for their part, have proposed $ 430 billion for education.
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