Memo to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education: We’re relieved your recent memo to school superintendents and other educators concerning guidance for reopening schools in the fall isn’t your final say on the matter.
Because this effort gets a failing grade.
The missive included health and safety guidelines for reopening, as well as required supply items like gloves, hand sanitizer and masks, with recommended quantities sufficient for the first 12 weeks of school.
The document also makes several questionable assumptions, one of which that expects students to supply their own face coverings or masks while in school; those items will be provided for all teachers and staff who do not bring their own.
The DESE guidance also calls for school classes of no more than 10 students, who must adhere to physical distancing. For now, class sizes are limited to a maximum of 12 individuals, including students and staff.
Given the in-school class restrictions, the education model will rely on a combination of in-class and remote learning, with students revolving between both options.
Other pre-emptive subjects covered included:
• Staying home if sick; isolation and discharge protocols for students who get sick in school: frequent hand washing and hand sanitizing; maintaining six feet of separation; and regular cleaning, sanitizing, disinfecting, and disposal protocols.
Missing from all these precautionary measures is the one most of us would deem the most important: temperature screening. At this time, DESE isn’t recommending taking students’ temperatures when arriving for school due to the unreliability of those tests.
While the state expects to release its complete rollout plan in mid-June, school districts bracing for massive budget cuts must be wondering what’s circulating through the ventilation system at DESE headquarters.
It’s obvious these mandates would require a substantial increase in education spending.
But increased education funding as the state slowly recovers from a devastating economic downturn qualifies as the most unlikely scenario of them all.
And apparently one the state education brain trust hasn’t considered.
Merrie Najimy, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, told the Boston Globe her membership expects to take a significant financial hit in the next school year, which will especially affect low-come, urban districts hit hard by the pandemic.
Najimy realizes schools would need increased resources to do all that DESE expects of them.
But just the opposite will likely occur. “You can’t reopen on a shoestring budget,” Najimy added.
Instead of retaining or boosting staff in the face of this new education reality, school districts must deliver pink layoff slips to teachers, paraprofessionals and other support personnel to prepare for spending shortfalls.
Based on based on reports from its members, the MTA disclosed that dozens of school districts have already issued layoff notices. More will surely follow, since many schools face a June 15 deadline to notify those in jeopardy of losing their jobs.
Tom Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, said his members have prepared for various realities, including the possibility of reductions of 10 to 20% in their budgets.
The financial burden inherent in the DESE’s hybrid education model of course extends to parents and guardians, who must provide day care during times of remote learning.
We suggest state educators return to the chalkboard and arrive at an education re-entry plan that reflects the funding reductions school districts will likely face in the next academic year.
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June 10, 2020 at 12:11PM
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DESE’s school re-entry proposal misses the mark - Lowell Sun
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