A PAIN IN THE CLASS
Fall COVID plans
A Brooklyn principal has warned just how chaotic next school year is likely to be in a jarring e-mail to families.
Eve Litwack of PS 107 in Park Slope said social-distancing requirements could force the small school to follow an alternating schedule that would split students into three groups.
The schedule — likely to be used across the city — would have kids in the building for one week followed by two weeks of remote learning.
“At maximum capacity, our building can accommodate one third of our students and staff with social-distancing protocols in place,” Litwack wrote on Sunday.
Parents said they had expected disruptions due to coronavirus precautions but were stunned by the scenario Litwack laid out.
“At a certain point, this isn’t school anymore,” said one mom. “Parents don’t know what to do.”
The heavy reliance on remote learning will be especially punishing for parents who cannot work remotely and must scramble to find day care for their kids.
In addition, every inch of PS 107 could be pressed into service as a classroom, including the cafeteria and smaller offices.
Students would have to remain distanced at all times, making specialty instruction all but impossible.
“There would be no in-person Art, Music, Science, Technology, Library, or PE in the traditional sense that we’ve come to expect,” Litwack wrote to parents.
If they remain at all, those classes would be limited to remote lessons or in homeroom classrooms, she said.
Citing federal guidelines, Litwack said kids would likely have to wear masks all day except when eating.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises “that students remain in their classrooms with their teacher throughout the day, lunch included, and that movement in the building is restricted,” she said.
Litwack warned that the future remained uncertain.
“This is the grim reality we face when school reopens,” she wrote. “However, if the virus subsides during the summer, these guidelines could be eased somewhat.”
Several parents said the e-mail intensified their efforts to seek new schooling options, including moving out of the city, turning to private or charter schools, or home-schooling.
“If people can leave, they are,” a parent said. “It’s that simple. But for many people, including me, that isn’t an option. We understand that this is difficult, this is unprecedented. But the lack of answers right now and the proposals they’re giving us are pretty traumatic.”