Schools sticking with hybrid despite shift to ‘red’ status

Amid a recent surge in COVID-19 cases in Canton and with the town having moved into the high-risk (red) category, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Derek Folan said at the January 7 School Committee that the Canton schools would remain in the hybrid learning model for now, but that could change either week to week or even day to day.

Folan said he continues to be concerned about the town’s rising positive test rates, which have climbed from 2.88 percent to 6.2 percent over the past four weeks. He is also concerned with the increase in the number of Canton households with multiple positive COVID cases.

However, Folan said he felt comfortable at this time remaining in the hybrid format after consulting with public health officials and taking into account the “strong safety protocols in place” in the schools and the lack of transmission seen in the schools based on available evidence. He added that CPS leadership will continue to work with the town’s Health Department and the School Committee to monitor the local data and make decisions on learning plans accordingly. But, Folan said, “We can’t be afraid to go to remote.”

Canton is currently one of 219 municipalities in the commonwealth considered to be in the high-risk category for COVID-19 with an average daily incidence rate of 54.3 per 100,000 people as of January 7. Fire Chief Charles Doody, in his weekly message to residents, noted that the town saw a 400 percent increase in positive cases in December and that “post-holiday cases continue to sure,” with an additional 142 new cases seen in the first week of January.

In other news from last week’s School Committee meeting, Folan shared the results of the district’s most recent parent/guardian survey and said responses were generally “consistent” with the responses given in the previous survey in October. The newest survey, administered in December, drew nearly 1,200 responses, representing more than a third of all CPS students.

In addition to asking many of the same questions included on the initial survey — pertaining to safety, teaching and learning, social-emotional learning, structural supports, and technology — the new survey also asked parents to share their level of comfort with additional in-person learning, increasing from two to four days per week and utilizing a 4.5-foot social distancing protocol. Approximately 72 percent of respondents said they would send their child to school under this model, while 13 percent said they would request that their child be moved into the Remote Learning Pathway.

As for current conditions, Folan said most respondents felt positively about the district’s safety measures, educational support for students, the structure of learning days, and access to technology resources. Some families indicated that their children could be challenged more academically and there were concerns expressed about their children feeling disconnected from the school community and about the amount of screen time they are receiving …

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Posted by Mike Berger on Jan 15 2021. Filed under News, Schools. Both comments and pings are currently closed.