State issues rules for reopening school districts amid COVID-19

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  • Oklahoma school districts now have additional guidance while trying to figure out how to proceed with education in the up and coming school year.
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OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma school districts now have additional guidance while trying to figure out how to proceed with education in the time of COVID-19.

On Wednesday, the state Department of Education released its guidelines for districts to reopen for the 2020-2021 academic year after in-person instruction was halted in mid-March across Oklahoma due to COVID-19.

The 74-page document, entitled “Return to Learn Oklahoma,” includes a slew of considerations across four categories for district officials to weigh when making their plans: school operations, academics and growth, whole child and family supports and school personnel. The document was developed using guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Oklahoma State Department of Health. “As they plan for the new school year, our districts are now focused on how to recapture learning and ensure the safety and health of students, staff and families,” Superintendent Joy Hofmeister said. “The details of how that is determined will vary widely, based on the extent to which COVID-19 is impacting local and school communities and what processes are feasible and practical for districts. It is our hope that ‘Return to Learn Oklahoma’ will be a valuable tool as educators work to make decisions that are in the best interest of their students.”

Although the guidelines are meant to be a framework for districts to tweak as needed to reflect local conditions, the document does urge districts to have multiple contingency plans in place, not only for the instructional calendar, but for lesson plans, staffing, building closures and transportation issues as well.

For example, districts are encouraged to develop and implement COVID screening policies for students and staff, which could range from taking one’s temperature at home to not allowing anyone on campus until they’ve been checked via a touchless thermometer.

On the calendar side, suggestions to facilitate social distancing include having built-in virtual instruction days, staggering which grades are in the building and having classes outside or in large spaces like cafeterias or auditoriums as much as possible. Districts are also urged to allow extra time to sanitize places that are often touched, such as doorknobs, light switches or shared electronics. 

To help facilitate staggered instructional time, the state Board of Education approved a one-year waiver at its May 28 meeting allowing school districts the option to count Saturday school days towards the calendar instructional time minimums for the 2020-2021 academic year. Under state law, school districts are required to have at least 180 instructional days or its equivalent in hours and minutes.

Districts also have the option to stretch out breaks at the end of each quarter to provide more time to deep clean buildings or use it as make up time for students who may have missed multiple days due to their own illness or that of a family member.

Additionally, districts are encouraged to amend their attendance policies to eliminate attendance awards and extend distance learning opportunities to students who are either considered high risk for COVID-19 themselves or live with someone who falls into that category.

The plan also encourages the use of cloth face masks by both students and faculty while on schoolgrounds to help minimize further spread.

“Although a facemask offers only limited protection for the individual wearing it, it does help prevent the spread of viral particles from asymptomatic individuals who do not know they have coronavirus,” the report said.