Superintendent Reykdal: Districts teaching online must address connectivity gaps, provide meals

School districts across Washington state are making decisions about what learning will look like this fall. Many have already decided to move to teaching fully online, at least until community transmission of COVID-19 is low enough that it will be safe to resume in-person learning.

Districts’ plans for reopening schools across Western Washington

The school districts of Northshore, Kent, Highline, Auburn, Renton and Bellevue in Western Washington are among those that announced an online return, and the superintendent of Seattle Public Schools is recommending the same.

Public Health Seattle-King County said it supports school districts that have made the decision to begin with online learning this year, adding that the current level of transmission is of “serious concern.”

The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction provided guidance in early June in partnership with the state Department of Health and the Department of Labor & Industries for schools to safely reopen in the fall for in-person learning. The guidance included a health and safety framework that state Superintendent Chris Reykdal says is the “most stringent statewide framework we have seen in the nation.”

“With that large kind of framework, the message is do your best to get planned up for school,” Reykdal said previously.

Each district was responsible for adopting the framework to best fit the needs of their community and then make the final choice on what a fall return would look like for their district.

School districts to follow state’s reopening framework, adopt local plans

“Over the past few weeks, however, we have seen the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations increase in many of our communities, which has understandably caused concern among some of our educators, students, parents, and guardians about our ability to safely reopen schools this fall,” Reykdal said in a written statement Wednesday.

As several school districts have already announced a plan to return to online school, Reykdal says he recognizes a lot of factors went into these decisions and he respects the board members, administrators, educators, staff, parents, families, and community partners who landed on these “tough decisions.”

These decisions are made at the local level, and Reykdal said are within the bounds of the OSPI’s reopening guidance provided in June.

“Taking learning online presents challenges that districts will need to face,” Reykdal said. “The methods of teaching and learning that were implemented across the state this spring will need to improve substantially. Every student and family needs to be better engaged and supported in student learning as well as the other supports that our schools provide.”

For districts who do choose to move online this fall, Reykdal says they will need to have plans in place to:

1. Work with community partners to identify child care options for school-aged students whose families do not have the option to stay home
2. Address gaps in connectivity and technology access so each student has sufficient opportunity to continue their learning outside of the classroom
3. Continuing providing school meals to the students who rely on them
4. Utilize local data to determine which of their students need additional intensive learning supports, and provide those supports remotely, or in-person if that’s the only effective delivery method

All school districts, whether they’re teaching online or in-person, are required to provide weekly schedules for each student, daily engagement or assigned work, and requirements for daily attendance. Districts must also meet the number of instructional days and hours as required by state law.

“We knew in June that school this fall would be different than usual,” Reykdal said. “We are likely to see many school districts decide to take most of their instruction and supports online, while many others will provide in-person learning within the health and safety guidelines.”

“As a parent of two students in public school, I know the fall planning decisions are gut-wrenching, but each school district remains focused first and foremost on the safety of their students and staff,” he added. “We all have a part in that by wearing our face coverings, frequently washing our hands, and maintaining physical distance from others. The better we do together in reducing the number of cases and hospitalizations, the sooner we can return to more effective, in-person learning environments.”