Public schools will keep offering online classes next semester
Florida’s public schools will continue to offer online options for students next semester, evenas the state’s school leaders remain convinced in-person classes on campus are best for most students, Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran said Wednesday.
“We will have full parental choice,” Corcoran said, speaking at the State Board of Education meeting in Tallahassee .“The governor will take nothing less than full parental choice.”
C or co ran said he expects to release a new order spelling out how schools will operate during the corona virus pandemic by Thanksgiving. The new order will allow the live, online options districts offered this semester — including Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties — to continue, he said.
Some parents, educators and doctors have worried those options might vanish because the state order that allowed — and paid for — them expires at the end of the first semester.
They feared it would not be renewed in part because Corcoran and Gov. Ron DeSantis have said repeatedly that they want more youngsters in “brick-andmortar” schools, convinced that is the best academic option and also better meets kids’ social, emotional and mental health needs.
“I’m very pleased he made that decision because until this pandemic is under control, many parents are not prepared to send their children back to the class----
rooms,” said Frank Barbieri, chairman of the Palm Beach County School Board. “We also have teachers doing remote teaching because of health issues. If they don’t come back, thatwould mean more vacancies.”
Rosalind Osgood, chairwoman of the Broward School Board, said Corcoran’s comments are encouraging but she wants to hear more details to ensure districts won’t deal with funding cuts if large numbers of students continue to learn from home.
“Ultimately, parents will choose and districts need the resources to provide what parents choose,” she said.
She said the district also needs additional resources for tutors to help students who have fallen behind to catch up, as well as incentives to encourage teachers who return face-to-face.
Many Bro ward teachers have been threatening to leave, saying they don’t feel safe returning to schools, due their own health issues or those of family members.
Miami-Dade Superintendent Alberto Carvalho agreed with the other officials, saying “we are elated” about Corcoran’s comments because “we believe in parental choice in our community.”
But he said if the state doesn’t provide full funding for online students, “it would be devastating not only on for Miami-Dade but other districts aswell.”
Corcoran told superintendents lastmonth he wanted to continue to give parents options but also offer incentives for districts that enroll more students in face-to-face lessons.
Statewide, a little more than 60% now are on campus, although the percentage is smaller in South Florida’s public schools. About 40% of students in Palm Beach County, 20% in Broward and 45% in Miami-Dade have returned.
“We’ve got to get those kids in the classrooms,” Corcoran told the superintendents, calling online lessons “a tier-two education.”
State Board of Education member Michael Olenick pushed Corcoran on that issue at Wednesday’s meeting, urging him to allow district-run online options to continue. Those options allow for live, online classes that followthe regular school day but with students logged in from home.
Florida’s school superintendents and the Florida PTA have done the same.
“I know people who have died form COVID. I know people who are sick from COVID,” Olenick said. “I think there is a fear with many of students, faculty, parents,” he added. “That fear is warranted.”
Olenick agreed that a “a brick-and-mortar experience” is usually best. But he said that in a state where “school choice is the mantra” — usually in connection with charter schools or private school vouchers — parents should have a choice about educational options during a health crisis, too.
“That decision should be a parent’s decision,” he said.
This semester, the state funded the district’s online options as it did in-person classes, part of an emergency order signed in July that also demanded schools open in August for parents who wanted in-person classes for their kids. That made those online options affordable for school districts because typically the state pays less per student if they are not on campus.
Statewide, and locally, most parents chose the district-run online options rather than the Florida Virtual School’ s programs, which were also choices for those who did not want their children on campus.
While C or co ran said those district options will continue, and “keeping people safe” is a priority, he also reiterated his concerns that academically online classes are “falling short” formany students.
First Lady Casey DeSantis also spoke at the meeting, highlighting the administration’s belief that in-person education is best. DeSantis, who launched a statewide mental health initiative after her husband took office, called open schools “critical” both for working parents and for children’s mental health and physical safety.
She was joined Wednesday by a child abuse survivor who told the state board he worried child abuse, often spotted and reported by teachers, was on the upswing with somany youngsters at home.
“This year is probably themost important year for kids who are at risk because there’s no one looking out for them right now,” said Phillip Adams, who has appeared with DeSantis at other events. “I’d rather be at school with a mask than at home with my abuser.”