Since the state has not issued a universal directive for what schools should do this fall, the plans vary. In addition to Seattle Public Schools – which finalized more details in a meeting this afternoon (followup to come) – other local schools are making their plans official too. So far this week, we’ve heard from Hope Lutheran School in The Junction, which “plans to begin the school year on September 2nd with an in-class learning model for grades preschool through fourth grade, and a hybrid model for fifth grade through eighth grade. … In addition, any K-8 student may choose to enroll instead in the virtual learning model.” Also from the webpage with full details about Hope’s plan is this explanation:
While we considered opening up with the in-class learning model in all grades, the reason for the difference in models is due to three factors: the ability of older students to manage their work with more independence, parent confidence in leaving older students home without supervision at times, and Hope’s overall higher class sizes in the upper grades. While we have the ability to move upper classrooms around to larger spaces, we feel the current class sizes in upper grades are higher than are safe to be together at one time. On the other hand, educational research tells us again and again of the importance of in-class learning for most students, particularly in younger grades where students’ reading skills are less developed and where students are not able to be as proficient in independent learning.
Hope is asking families who want to opt for the all-remote model to do so by next Monday.
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