So what happens when a student tests positive for COVID-19 and has no choice but to stay home?
In guidance provided to schools, the New Jersey Department of Health and Department of Education say that when a school is required to exclude a student, group of students, a class, or multiple classes as a result of COVID-19 exposure, while the school itself remains open for in-person instruction, it should be prepared to offer virtual or remote instruction “in a manner commensurate with in-person instruction to the extent possible.”
What this continued instruction actually looks like will vary from district to district. Although many schools are still in the process of finalizing their plansfor this fall, there are a few that have already provided some detail on what to expect.
According to the Clifton Public School District’s 2021-22 safe return plan, quarantining students will be provided with home instruction and simultaneous synchronous offerings. “We have adjusted and amended our existing home instruction policy to allow for online learning for those quarantining students,” said Janina Kusielewicz, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction in an interview with NJ Advance Media.
In most cases, Kusielewicz said this will involve students live-streaming into their regular classroom. However, she added, “if it’s a student who was truly ill with COVID, not just quarantining due to exposure, then we may have to follow a more typical home instruction model, which may be asynchronous or may have a teacher beaming in after school hours. It will depend on the situation.”
“The Road Forward” health and safety guidanceissued by the state in June addresses these more severe cases, noting “students with underlying health conditions that may make them more susceptible to or exacerbate the symptoms of COVID-19 may be eligible for home instruction...or as required by the student’s Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or 504 plan.”
The Lakewood Public School District details its planned procedure for continued instruction in the event a student must self-quarantine. According to the district’s safe return plan for this fall, these students will be given a Chromebook if they do not have one at home and join their classroom remotely using Google Classroom. All classrooms will have a webcam for student/teacher engagement during the 2021-22 school year, it says.
A similar policy has been implemented in Millburn Township Schools, which is rolling out a 1:1 technology initiative this year where all students will receive a school-issued Chromebook. “This allows us to provide equitable access, standardized applications, and cybersecurity protection,” the district wrote in an email sent to community members last Friday. Following state guidelines, remote learning will only be available for students who have been told by the Millburn Township Department of Health that they must quarantine or isolate as a result of a confirmed COVID-19 infection or exposure.
In its reopening plan for fall, Medford Township Public Schools said it would provide “virtual live streamed instruction” to students in quarantine. “Teachers will be provided up to 24 hours to prepare for a students’ transition to remote learning due to a quarantine, which includes communication with the student’s family regarding instructional schedule and expectations,” the document explains.
In the (hopefully rare) case that a district is required to close its schools for more than three consecutive school days due to a declared public health emergency or on the recommendation of the local health department, the days of virtual or remote instruction will count towards the district’s 180-day requirement.
As of this week, all of New Jersey’s 21 counties reported having “high” or “substantial” rates of COVID-19 transmission — rates that have been rapidly rising throughout New Jersey. Last week, Murphy mandated masks be worn in school this fall.
©2021 Advance Local Media LLC. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
