Additional guidance was released Monday for school districts regarding the 2020-21 academic year — including planning for intermittent closures and considering how to implement certain safety aspects.
Intermittent closures
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) released a document Monday that encourages districts to plan for intermittent closures that could become necessary.
The document identifies three types of closures:
- Short-term (1-2 days)
- Mid-term (3-10 days)
- Long-term (11+ days)
For each type, the document provides guidelines on the use of non-traditional instruction (NTI), student submission of work, and food services.
The document recommends the following common elements regardless of the type of closure:
- Integrated instructional design — In order to keep instructional continuity during closures, all instruction should be designed using available technology platforms. Designing all instruction in a tech-enabled way makes transitions smooth.
- Use of school-owned technology — It is highly recommended that if students have been assigned district-owned digital devices, they take those home with them every night in order to avoid being without them due to a sudden closure. If the district-owned devices are not assigned, it is recommended that the district plan include the process for swift deployment of those devices.
- Limited storage of instructional materials — Due to the sudden nature of intermittent closures, it is highly recommended that students take instructional materials (i.e. books, other materials) home in the evenings.
The document recommends the following various elements depending on the type of closure:
Short-term Closures (1-2 days)
- NTI — A plan for short-term closure could simply be to close school and not take advantage of NTI. If NTI is used, the district should have a plan for continuation of learning.
- Submission of work — Student work and calculation of participation can be done when students return to school.
- Food service — The district’s plan for food services during a short-term closure could be to not provide meals or to follow feeding plans implemented in the spring of 2020.
Mid-term Closures (3-10 days)
- NTI — It is recommended that if your closure lasts 3 days or longer, you should implement NTI.
- Submission of work — Student work and calculation of participation can still be done when students return to school.
- Food service — The district’s plan for food services during a mid-term closure could be to not provide meals or to follow feeding plans implemented in the spring of 2020.
Long-term Closures (11+ days) (Presumes there will be public health restrictions)
- NTI — It is recommended that if your closure lasts 3 days or longer, you should implement NTI.
- Submission of work — Student work and calculation of participation needs to be done digitally for those with digital access as it occurs. The district should have an identified process for material collection for offline on at least a weekly basis.
- Food service — It is recommended that the district’s plan for food services during a long-term closure would be to follow feeding plans using similar as was done in the spring of 2020.
Implementation of five safety aspects
The Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH) joined in the KDE June 15 Education Continuation Task Force meeting to provide five aspects for districts to consider as they plan for reopening schools in the fall.
For the 2020-2021 school year, DPH asked districts leaders to consider:
- Social distancing
- Cloth face coverings
- Screening and temperature checks
- Hand and surface hygiene
- Contact tracing
These aspects will be included in DPH’s Healthy at School document, which will be released at a later date.
Social distancing
According to DPH, up to 40% – or more – of the individuals who contract COVID-19 have no symptoms. These infected individuals will continue to spread the infection to others without knowing they have the virus. DPH recommends maintaining 6 feet of distance when possible.
The possibility of schools utilizing plexiglass has been brought up, but officials said they do not recommend using it in the classroom.
DPH says that social distancing does not need to be enforced on school buses if students are wearing masks, are practicing proper hand hygiene, and have had their temperature and symptoms checked.
Cloth face coverings
DPH recommends that schools require both faculty and students to wear masks when in the school building and when social distancing is not possible.
Several task force members suggested that adults within the school should “be an example” for students by wearing their masks during the day in the hopes that students will follow their lead.
Screening and temperature checks
DPH Commissioner Steven Stack said districts could have families screen for symptoms at home before entering school property.
Stack said DPH has required an employee’s temperature to be checked at least once every 24 hours.
He added that while there may be multiple ways to screen for symptoms, it may be best for them to be checked at home before students and staff head to school.
Hand and surface hygiene
DPH recommends frequent hand cleaning and sanitizing to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19.
Contact tracing
In a May 21 call with Kentucky’s 172 superintendents, Gov. Andy Beshear spoke of the importance of accurate and efficient contact tracing as a way to manage the transmission of the COVID-19 virus.
The contact tracing program is an online tracking system that allows public health workers to record individual information of Kentuckians who have been exposed to COVID-19, conduct outreach and monitor wellness.
DPH officials also recommend that when planning to prevent exposure of students and staff to COVID-19, districts should include preparing to assist contact tracers with their investigations.
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