Delta parents are getting a few more details today of what the school district’s back to school plan will look like.
Noting that the health and safety of students, families and staff remains the district’s top priority, superintendent Doug Sheppard, in an open letter to parents Wednesday, provided information on Delta’s plan, which has been approved by the Ministry of Education, as well as learning options available for kids.
Maximizing in-class instruction for all students within current health and safety guidelines is important to minimize learning gaps and to provide the academic, social and emotional supports which are essential for every child, noted Sheppard.
He said the majority of students learn best in a classroom with direct contact with teachers, other professional staff and their fellow learners.
As a result, Delta students will attend school every day on their return to school in September.
Starting Sept. 8, staff will receive instructions about how the updated guidelines will work in their school.
It’s to allow time for staff to adapt the plan to their school’s needs, adjust to new routines, finalize plans for learning groups and confirm lesson plans.
Students will be welcomed back to class for orientation starting Sept. 10.
During that time, they will be assigned to their class, find out who is in their learning group, practice their new routines and familiarize themselves with how to safely move from the class to outdoor and common areas.
“Our back to school plan aligns with the province’s operational guidelines for Stage 2, which delivers full-time instruction for all students for the maximum time possible within cohort/learning group limits and enables self-directed learning that supplements in-class instruction. Density targets are not applicable for Stage 2,” he said.
The district notes ‘a comprehensive suite of safety measures is being implemented at our schools to help protect students and staff from the risk of COVID-19’
The learning options do not include online learning provided by the school district.
The options include face-to-face, in-class instruction, distributed learning such as Home Quest, or home schooling for the entire school year in which parents assume all responsibility for their child’s learning.
If parents choose home schooling or Home Quest, the earliest that students would be able to return to their home school is September 2021.
If a student who is currently attending a Delta school registers for Home Quest or homeschooling for the upcoming school year, the district is committed to holding a student’s place at their home school for the following school year, stated Sheppard.
In order for the district to create student learning groups, parents will need to let the district know which learning option they choose for their children at some point in the week beginning Aug. 31.
“We understand some parents may not be ready to send their children back right away, so we will work with them to help their children transition back to full-time schooling,” said Sheppard.
Regarding elementary students, they will be back at school for in-class instruction, full time from Monday to Friday.
Under the ministry’s guidelines, learning groups may include up to 60 elementary students, however in Delta, learning groups will usually be based on class-size limits. That means learning groups in kindergarten will have up to 20, while the number moves up with the grades with grades 4 to 7 to have learning groups of up to 30.
At some elementary schools there may need to be staggered times for arrival, pick-up, recess and lunch breaks.
Secondary students will be at school each day and will be taking two, full-time courses on a 10-week quarter schedule. This means students will still take eight courses over the year, but only two courses within a quarter.
Parents will receive more information from their local school shortly as well as ongoing updates.
See more on the Delta School District website: https://www.deltasd.bc.ca/news-events/news/information-for-parents-guardians-novel-coronavirus/.
The Optimist will have more coverge on the back to school plans in the coming days on-line and in the Sept. 3 print edition.
