Clark County School District needs more options than two-day hybrid plan

This school year, in New York, Michigan, Utah, Iowa and Ohio, students experienced upheaval as districts flip-flopped between in-person and digital learning.

If the Clark County School District Board of Trustees had voted for the two-day hybrid learning plans presented to us twice, our students also would have bounced in and out of school buildings at a time when they are already enduring trauma and need as much structure as possible. Not to mention their working parents’ schedules would have been disrupted — again.

As a trustee, I hear from parents and educators, some begging us to resume in-school learning and some begging us to keep a stable, if not ideal, distance-learning structure the rest of the year.

I can’t speak on behalf of my colleagues, but I want to see an in-person learning plan that ensures safety for employees and students, provides stability for children and maximizes quality instruction time.

I believe a two-day hybrid learning plan provides all of the risk of returning to classrooms with little of the reward.

In that model, the district would create three student cohorts: one that attends school on Mondays and Tuesdays, one that attends school on Thursdays and Fridays and one that learns entirely online. On days they are not at school, students would learn virtually.

This two-day hybrid learning plan provides students with less live instructional time than they’re currently receiving with all-online learning, and it significantly increases possible coronavirus exposure — for example, students would eat lunch inside small, poorly ventilated classrooms with their masks off.

Most people don’t realize that switching to a two-day hybrid plan in January would mean almost every student, even those who choose to remain 100 percent distance learning, would change teachers halfway into a school year that has already thrown them many curveballs.

Clark County is the country’s fifth-largest school district. We already provide in-person learning options for a handful of our rural schools with different needs than our urban schools. I don’t believe a one-size-fits-all solution will work for such a large, diverse district.

First, there are many people who will want to continue distance learning once we reopen schools. I have spoken to some students and teachers who are thriving, including students who have been bullied and students who lack reliable transportation to school. Let’s give them the option to continue doing what works best for them.

We then need to identify students struggling with social isolation or to keep up academically with virtual instruction and find solutions for them.

Why is the district talking only about a two-day hybrid model when we’ve had months to watch other districts and create our own solutions to meet student needs?

There are other options. Other districts have created online home-schooling programs that work with families’ differing schedules. Working alongside community volunteers, I also have extensively researched prerecorded instruction options that could be accessible at “distance-learning hubs,” where students in smaller “pods” could be provided adult supervision as they watch online lessons in office buildings or even churches.

If they work well, these ideas could create long-term positive change, offering more choice for parents and easing school overcrowding.

The two-day hybrid approach takes what schools normally offer and adjusts around the edges to meet basic COVID-19 safety requirements. Can we talk about other options and use this time to look at new models of learning that better serve students?

Also, instead of laying off 1,500 custodians, bus drivers and school police officers, as has been suggested, can we keep them on staff and use their time and skill sets to support student needs? What percentage of those employees speak Spanish, and could they help English learners and their families? Could these employees help students feeling socially isolated by connecting them with virtual after-school clubs and activities? Let’s get creative — we need more adults supporting students now, not less.

The Board of Trustees is about to experience a seismic shift. In January, we will swear in three new members, almost half of our seven-person board. While the current board has been unable to unite to ask for different options that work for our kids during this crisis, I have confidence the newly constituted board can bring about viable new ideas.

Our situation provides an opportunity to reinvent learning, so let’s not waste it. Let’s find solutions to enhance the district with more options for families that will work best for their kids — all while keeping our students and educators safe.

Danielle Ford represents District F on the Clark County School Board.