Lynn: Remote

By Gayla Cawley

New metrics that list Lynn as a “higher risk” community for the coronavirus have caused a shift in the school district’s reopening plans, said to Superintendent Dr. Patrick Tutwiler.

The data shows that Lynn has an average daily case rate of more than 8 per 100,000 residents, which has led to Tutwiler’s recommendation that all students begin the year with a remote learning model.

His original plan had recommended the potential of a shift to a hybrid model — a mix of in-person and remote learning — later in the school year.

In-person learning would have been offered to certain groups of students during the initial remote learning proposal, including special education students, English language learners, and those who attend Fecteau-Leary Junior/Senior High School.

But, said Tutwiler, “given the seriousness of the current context in our city and our commitment to safety, I plan to propose that all students begin the 2020-21 school year in remote learning.”

On Nov. 20, Tutwiler said district leadership will determine whether it is safe to shift to a hybrid model on Dec. 1. He has ruled out a full return to in-person instruction this year.

Tiffany Magnolia, whose daughter will be a third grader at Sisson Elementary School this fall, said she supports Tutwiler’s decision, but acknowledges that it could be challenging for a lot of working parents.

“I think most school districts are going to end up being remote anyway,” said Magnolia. “I think it’s sort of cautious, which I appreciate right now.”

There will definitely be some holes in the district’s remote learning model this fall, she said, but “it’s the best we have right now.”

“We have to acknowledge that parents are very anxious right now,” said Magnolia, explaining that she and her husband are both working from home. “It’s just hard.”

Some other parent concerns have centered around a remote learning model that did not work for many families last spring after schools were shut down due to the coronavirus.

However, Tutwiler said the district has purchased enough devices to ensure that all students in grades 3-12 will have a computer, and has secured a grant that enables them to secure devices for all students in grades K-2.

He said the district is also implementing a new learning management system, Schoology, which will provide a robust online learning platform for students and families. The district has also entered into a contract with Comcast to provide Internet access for families that lack a connection at home.

Still, Tutwiler said the concerns that have been raised by families are “well-placed.”

“The research consistently places in-person learning over remote or virtual learning in nearly every measurable category,” said Tutwiler. “Nonetheless, we find ourselves in a historic situation with unique challenges. Our foremost priority has been and will continue to be safety. Therefore, we’re going to put our heart and soul into serving students well through the virtual platform. We have taken giant steps toward doing just that.”

Lynnfield: Hybrid

By Anne Marie Tobin

School will begin with a hybrid model but with  a full remote option for those uncomfortable with in-person learning.

Superintendent Kristen Vogel said the district determined it cannot safely meet physical distancing requirements with all students and staff in the buildings.

“Ultimately this is what we believe is best for our students,” she said.

The plan splits students into four groups. Cohort A includes students in specialized programming (meaning substantially or partially separate special education students) will attend school four days a week with remote learning taking place on Wednesday.

“These are the students that DESE has specifically asked us to prioritize four four days of school and will give these students priority in our cohort of students who attend school in-person and face-to-face,” said Vogel.

Cohorts B (“Blue”) and C (“Gold”) will have in-school learning two days a week and remote learning three days. “B” will be in school Mondays and Tuesdays, while “C” will be go  Thursdays and Fridays.

“D” will have remote learning five days a week for thos .

Students will come into their respective schools Sept. 9-15 to collect essential school supplies, including Chromebooks. The schools will be cleaned every day with deep cleaning occurring every Wednesday, the day when all students in the district will have remote learning.

The district  has added about 80 seats in a childcare program for students on remote learning days at the Senior Center. The program will be administered through Lynnfield Community Schools and will be offered five days a week during normal school hours for  grades K-6.

“We will be sending out information this week about cost and exact hours,” said Vogel. “We will be following very strict safety guidelines in terms of cohorting students and every effort will be made to cohort by grade so they can do their school work.

“It will be very supportive of an academic environment,” she said.

Vogel said she will be sending out more building-specific information in the next couple of weeks.

“We had a lot of questions from parents during the parent forums we conducted recently, they have specific concerns, so it was terrific to be able to provide answers to their questions,” she said.

Incoming freshman Maeve Kennedy said she is confident that Lynnfield has come up with the right plan.

“I know that a lot of thought has gone into this plan and that Lynnfield will do a great job of keeping us safe,” she said. “It will definitely be nice to see my school friends again after not seeing most of them since March.”

The School Committe  voted last Thursday to approve the Lynnfield Teachers’ Union Memorandum of Understanding approved by the union the day before.

The committee also approved several policy changes that give Vogel more discretion in being able to implement emergency changes as conditions change. Areas include assignment of students to schools; graduation requirements; attendance protocols; school calendar; student absences; grading and retention; disciplinary protocols; student privacy; attendance and participation in sports, and large groups and assemblies.

Marblehead: Mix of remote and in-person

By Gayla Cawley

Superintendent Dr. John Buckey’s reopening plan calls for three weeks of remote learning to begin the school year, but said certain students will be learning in-person during that time.

“All of our students will be back in the hybrid — in-person instruction — on Oct. 5, but we will be bringing our youngest and most vulnerable students back sooner.”

Buckey said he opted to start with remote learning to allow students more time to re-acclimate to school.

“School will look a lot different. I want to give teachers and students time during that three weeks to reconnect, build relationships and to understand what it’s like to be in school now.”

Buckey noted that some parents opposed to starting the school year remotely have cited the public health data, which has been favorable in Marblehead, as a reason to bring students back sooner.

“But again we’re not bringing children back to schools they know and understand,” he said. “We need to take that time to re-educate them on what it’s like to be a student during this time.”

He said the district also needs to take the time to make sure it gets remote learning right, as it did not work for some families last spring when schools were shut down due to the coronavirus.

“I think everyone agrees we’re going to have a period or periods of the school year where we’ll be in remote learning,” said Buckey. “It’s important to me as a superintendent to get it right and establish that this will not be the remote learning we did in the spring.”

Despite the shift, students can opt to remain in remote learning only.

Under the hybrid re-entry model, students would be separated into two cohorts across the school district. Each cohort would receive two days per week of in-person learning for four hours on a Monday/Thursday or Tuesday/Friday schedule with an additional four hours of in-person instruction every other week on Wednesday.

A full in-person learning model was ruled out by a district reopening committee consisting of administrators, teachers and parents, that, like the superintendent, recommended a phased approach with remote learning to start and a shift to a hybrid model.

Kate Thomson, a member of the reopening committee who has two elementary-aged children in the Marblehead Public Schools, is supportive of the district’s reopening plan.

“I think we’d all really love to have our kids back in school, but at this point there’s so many things stopping us that are out of our control,” said Thomson. “We need to be remote a whole heck of a lot better than we’ve done it in the past. Last spring was tough for a lot of people.”

Thomson said she credits Buckey for taking the time at the start of the school year to put the focus on “getting it right out of the gate.”

Buckey said the district is providing devices to any students who need one, and has purchased computers for all staff members as well.

He said the uncertainty surrounding a fall return to classes will remain a challenge.

“I think the unknown is one of the greatest challenges. As educational leaders and teachers we like to have answers and now the questions outweigh the answers.”

Nahant: Hybrid

By Elyse Carmosino

The Johnson Elementary School’s hybrid reopening plan looks somewhat different from most other districts.

Thanks to a small student population and ample classroom space, Nahant families have been given the flexibility to choose for themselves whether they want their child to have full-time online or full-time in-person instruction.

“Our building is actually able to accommodate many more students (than it currently has), so we have the luxury of space, which is wonderful,” said School Committee chair Lauren Sherlock. “Our building was also renovated within the last 20 years, which provides a much better system for ventilation.”

There are 130 children currently enrolled in grades K-6 at the Johnson School, which Sherlock said was originally constructed to hold up to 250 students. Roughly 80 percent of parents opted to send their children back for in-person lessons on Sept. 21.

From Aug. 31 to Sept. 15, teachers will be in training to prepare for remote instruction and to learn infection control protocols. Once classes are finally in full swing, desks will be spaced six feet apart and all students, regardless of grade, will be required to wear a face covering of some kind.

Vice chair Tom Tria said he felt the board was ultimately able to work out a plan well-tailored to Nahant’s needs.

“We all believed that this needed to be handled as local as possible. We did take that into account,” Tria said, noting that the town is luckier than many.

“Our school is built for 200-plus students and we only have 100 who want to be in-person, so we have the ability physically space the way that even the most aggressive requirements … ask us to.”

Classroom lessons will be live-streamed to remote learners beginning Sept. 16, which Sherlock said will allow those students easier access to their teachers as they participate alongside their peers.

If families find either option isn’t working out, Nahant’s flexible model will still allow students to switch, as long as the school is given a two-week notice.

“We’re trying to incorporate a more fluid situation for the students in the classroom and at home,” Sherlock said, adding that Nahant’s hybrid plan focuses both on health and safety for children and staff, as well as on providing an equitable, high-quality education for all students.

Because she and her husband both work full-time, parent Regina Laine said the couple chose to send their three children — Mason, fifth grade; Brady, second; and Kiele, preschool — back to school.

Laine added she’s grateful for the opportunity and said she feels confident she’ll be sending her children back to a low-risk environment this fall.

“Our COVID numbers are low, especially in Nahant. We feel very safe sending our kids back to school, and this is the time to do it,” she said. “I don’t doubt that at some point in the future things are going to get worse and we might all be forced into remote learning again, so we wanted to take advantage while the risk is much lower. We’re very happy with what the school has put together.

Peabody: Hybrid

By Anne Marie Tobin

Peabody schools will begin the school year with a hybrid learning model.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Josh Vadala had originally presented a reopening plan that called for a hybrid model for grades Pre- K-8 and a full-remote model for Peabody High after learning that Peabody had been designated as a yellow community under the state’s color-coded risk metric

But with the School Committee deadlocked on the vote at 3-3, Mayor and School Committee Chairman Ted Bettencourt cast the tie breaking vote in favor of adopting a hybrid model for the high school. He said he weighs decisions not only as a mayor and school committee chairman but as a parent with four children, three of them in the schools (one at the high school).

“It gives me comfort that people can opt out and go remote under a hybrid plan,” he said.

At the high school, the students will be split into four cohorts. Students with last names beginning with A-K (Cohort A) will have in-person instruction Mondays and Thursdays.  and asynchronous remote learning Tuesdays and Fridays. Students with last names beginning with L-Z (Cohort B) will have in-person instruction on Tuesdays and Fridays and asynchronous remote learning Mondays and Thursdays. Approximately 712 students will be in Cohort A, while approximately 787 students will be in Cohort B. In-person learning will take place for both cohorts from 7:20-10:55 a.m., followed by a chance to get lunch, grab-and-go style, then go home for remote learning in the afternoon from 11:35 a.m.-1:50 p.m.

Cohort C will consist of approximately 150 special needs students who will receive up to four days per week of in-person learning. Cohort D is expected to include about 30 percent of the total student population and will have synchronous  remote learning five days a week.

Wednesdays will be reserved for asynchronous remote learning for most students, deep cleaning and intervention/support.

At the elementary schools, students in the hybrid model will be split into two cohorts with Cohort A having in-person learning Monday and Thursday and Cohort B having in-person learning Tuesday and Friday. Selected high-priority students at all levels will receive four days of in-person learning to receive necessary supports and services.

On remote days, all students will receive asynchronous instruction as well as opportunities to participate in some synchronous learning. Vadala said every effort will be made to ensure that remote students have physical materials such as reading and math textbooks and journals to record ideas.

At the Higgins Middle School, students will also be split into two cohorts as described for the elementary schools. Groups of 12-13 students will stay together through the school day, attending classes, eating lunch and changing classes together.

Students will begin each day with an opportunity to check in with  homeroom teachers, receive technical or academic support, and connect with their classmates. During instructional blocks, teachers will provide in-person instruction.

Revere: Remote

By Daniel Kane

The Revere Public School district will start the school year under an all-remote model.

Initially the district had planned to start with the year using a hybrid model but with coronavirus transmission rates rising in the city state guidelines made remote learning the safest model for now.

“After weeks of COVID positivity rates above 6 percent, there is strong advice that we, instead of doing a hybrid model, move to a remote model to begin the school year,” Superintendent Dr. Dianne Kelly said at a virtual school committee meeting.

“Our focus was on hybrid and remote was an option but the full in-person was never really an option for us,” Kelly said. “It appears right now that, with the school committee’s vote, we’ll focus on a fully remote start to the school year. However, our intention will be to get back to a hybrid model as soon as it is safe to do so.”

Each remote learning schedule will be determined by each individual school but will all include synchronous and asynchronous learning blocks. Things like attendance (participation), consistent grading expectations, feedback, and direct instruction would be included.

“A couple of the things we’ve been cognizant of in developing remote learning is families need more synchronous learning where students actually log on and engage in a lesson with their teacher and then have an assignment after that,” Kelly said about the remote learning schedule. “These schedules presented have (synchronous) pieces like that, some of which are whole group and some of which are small group instructions.”

Class times will be roughly 40 to 45 minutes each to prevent students from having to hop from Zoom call to Zoom call, Kelly said.

The district also has plans for small in-person instruction for those students who need it most, and an all-remote plan for high-risk students who won’t be able to return at all this school year.

“We know that we will have a group of students who can’t come back hybrid or in-person (when the time comes) and will remain remote,” Kelly said. “We’re working on a separate, system for those kids who are going to be remote all year long where we would have worked with the department of elementary and secondary education to procure an online learning management system. We would have certain teachers, perhaps who are immunocompromised themselves who would instruct that fully remote learning environment which would be seperate.”

Small in-person learning groups will include students who have special learning needs and English Language Learning students.

“We are planning to offer in-person learning to small groups of kids who have special learning needs or who have advanced ELL needs who we would like to see come in fully so that we can make sure that those kids are advancing in their academic program,” Kelly said.

“We want to offer that to parents and for those parents who feel like their child would benefit from in-person learning in a small environment like that,” Kelly said. “But everything is subject to ongoing negotiations.”

Salem: Remote

By Daniel Kane

The Salem school district is set to begin the school year with an all-remote learning model that would include small in-person learning opportunities.

Originally Salem had opted for a hybrid model with students pre-K through third return for in-person schooling while older students worked remotely, but after being designated as a red city by state guidelines, meaning over eight cases per 100,000 residents over 14 days, the district had to adopt the remote model for all students.

Wednesday (Aug. 19) superintendent Stephen Zrike addressed families on Facebook live and gave an update to what this new schedule will look like when school begins on Sept. 16.

“Our remote learning schedule is going to be built to meet (the Department of Education’s) required hours,” Zrike said. “We are expecting students to work the equivalent of that time on a weekly basis which is just over five hours a day. We’ll give more specifics but we are making sure that we’re meeting minimum requirements that the state has for time that students are learning.”

Those days will be broken down into both synchronous and asynchronous remote work while families of prioritized groups will be contacted for small in-person learning opportunities.

For the majority of students an online remote day will be similar to a day at school so that Salem can make a smoother transition to a hybrid or  in-person learning when the time comes, Zrike said.

“For remote learning it will be a full day of learning very similar to the school hours that your child’s school has previously had,” Zrike said. “The hours that you’re accustomed to are going to be very similar. There are some small adjustments we’re still trying to work out. We’re going to provide you with a final start and end times by the start of next week (Aug. 24) but it is not going to be dramatically different.

“The day will be a mix of live and recorded teaching with morning announcements, whole class meetings, specialist times, small group instruction, independent work time and breaks for lunch and breakfast,” Zrike said. “There will also be opportunities for parents, guardians and students to schedule regular office hours.”

The district is focused on having this remote learning model set a higher bar set then in the spring with approximately 50 percent of the day consisting of live learning, Zrike said.

Along with Zoom meetings the district will use two seperate learning management systems. Students in pre-K to fifth will use Google classroom, while sixth and up use a program called Schoology, both of which were used in the spring.

Distribution of chromebook laptops has already been underway with the district’s goal of providing every student with a device.

“Our goal in the coming years is to have a one-to-one device in place for every student in grades pre-K to 12,” Zrike said. “We’ve ordered chromebook spins, which are laptops that double as a tablet with a touchscreen for pre-K and kindergarten and all other grade levels will have the traditional chromebook laptop. During the spring over 600 devices were distributed to pre-K through fifth grades. An additional 300 devices are ready for distribution and many are on backorder and expected this fall. Grades sixth through 12 already have devices and may need to just swap out because they’re broken or other reasons.

“We are going to scrap to find any device we can to ensure that every student who needs one has one before school starts (Sept 14),” Zrike said.

Saugus: Remote

By Elyse Carmosino

Saugus schools plan to return to class using a remote learning model until at least Oct. 12, the School Committee announced last week.   

The new plan is considerably different from the one originally unveiled by Superintendent David DeRuosi earlier this month, which saw the district following a hybrid model of both in-person and remote learning.

The change comes following a state report released two weeks ago designating Saugus to be a high-risk, or red zone, due to a recent increase in COVID-19 cases. The town has since slipped back into the yellow, or moderate risk zone.

“We wanted to have as much in-person time as we could,” School Committee vice chair Ryan Fisher said Aug. 14. “That’s so important. We’re cognizant of the fact that we’re in the middle of a pandemic and we need to protect students and staff, so hybrid was the best approach.”

An 18-page document detailing the plan includes three instructional models — in-person, hybrid, and remote learning — that follow guidelines initially laid out by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) in June.

Under Saugus’ personalized hybrid plan, students would be divided by surname into two cohorts (Cohort A and Cohort B) to attend in-person classes for part of the school week, while learning remotely for the remainder of the week.

Mondays would be devoted entirely to remote learning for both cohorts, during which teachers and staff are expected to check-in with their classes, as well as devote time to individual and grade-level/department planning.

With an outline formally submitted to DESE for approval, DeRuosi added that the district is still in the process of working out all logistical aspects, making sure school buildings are appropriately equipped for their tentative mid-October opening.

“We’re doing a lot of work improving the HVAC systems and looking at bringing in air purifying units in the elementary. We’ll also be looking at additional support for cleaning during the day,” he said. “It’s all logistical. I don’t think there’s any one piece that’s easier or harder than anything else.

“It’s a giant adjustment for educators. It’s a giant adjustment for parents and students. It’s all about adaptability … We’re all doing our best to adhere to the recommendations and standards set in front of us.”

Adaptability may be key moving forward as multiple school officials have repeatedly warned that, due to the extreme unpredictability of the COVID-19 pandemic, reopening plans are always subject to change.

“We said we were going to keep reevaluating,” Fisher said of the district’s red zone classification. “This is something we’re going to need to look at as a group and decide if we need to make adjustments. I don’t know what the rest of the committee thinks, but this is obviously something we need to address.”

Saugus schools are currently slated to begin online classes Sept. 16, and the committee plans to revisit the hybrid model of learning later this fall.

As a parent of a son in seventh grade and a daughter in kindergarten, School Committee Chair Thomas Whittredge said he understands the frustration many Saugus families feel.

“It’s frustrating for (the School Committee), but it’s 10 times more frustrating for the parents because they’re not part of all these conversations,” he said. “We also don’t want to give them false information.

“We’re all parents and we all get it. We’re trying our best to get these kids back to some kind of normalcy, but without risking anybody’s health or wellbeing, including teachers.”

Swampscott: Remote

By Gayla Cawley

Although new health data released by the state has not placed Swampscott in the “higher risk” category, Superintendent Pamela Angelakis has opted to stick with a remote start to the school year.

Under her reopening plan, which was officially approved by the Swampscott School Committee on Aug. 5, the majority of students would be learning online when classes resume on Sept. 16.

Students the district has identified as “high needs” will be learning through a fully in-person or hybrid model — a mix of in-person and remote instruction — during that time period.

If health metrics allow, Angelakis plans to shift the entire student body to a hybrid model on Oct. 26, but families will have the option to continue with remote learning only.

Some may look to health data released by the state, which initially listed Swampscott as a “lower risk” community, to make a case against a remote start, but Angelakis said she considered several factors when making her decision.

“It will give teachers, who have not been in the buildings since March 13, a chance to get situated and fully prepare for the return of students.

“It will also give us the opportunity to continue to monitor the trajectory of the virus locally, complete physical infrastructure, ventilation, and indoor air quality assessments and undertake any remediation that is necessary.”

While some parents and students continue to push back against the superintendent’s decision to start the school year remotely, others may look to the latest health metrics released last Wednesday as validation for a more cautious approach.

Last Wednesday, Swampscott was upgraded from a lower risk to moderate risk community, according to the State Department of Public Health data, which shows that the town has an average daily incidence rate of more than five cases per 100,000 residents over the past 14 days.

Angelakis said the primary challenge this fall will be getting everyone on the same page when it comes to teaching and learning in a new environment, which will include social distancing and face masks when in-person learning is reintroduced.

All students and staff who are in school will be required to wear face masks inside buildings, with hourly “mask breaks” included as part of their daily schedules. Ideally, those mask breaks would take place outside and outdoor instruction will be maximized, according to the reopening plan.

Earlier this year, the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education tasked school districts with preparing plans for three reopening scenarios: in-person learning, hybrid and fully remote. Districts were required to submit their plans to the state by Aug. 14.

As part of its reopening plan, the district has prepared schedules for both remote and hybrid learning at the elementary, middle and high school level.

At a recent School Committee meeting, Keiko Zoll, the parent of an elementary-aged student, said a remote start favors privileged families and will force some parents, particularly those with young children, to make difficult decisions.

“This is a choice between livelihoods and the ability for families to remain in our community,” said Zoll. “Whether they work in or out of the home, it’s asking these parents to make this choice between their jobs and their children.”

Angelakis acknowledges that the concerns about remote learning are valid, but said the district leadership team has spent “countless hours working on the technical aspects of this method of teaching.”