Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Lawmakers grapple with school impact
WEST CHESTER » Last year, when state lawmakers adopted Act 64 providing school districts to develop a Flexible Instructional Day program allowing them to meet the 180-day instruction requirement, few would have envisioned its use under a pandemic scenario.
The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic on Wednesday. Schools and colleges in the region are closing for cleaning due to exposure concerns. Some are also moving instruction online, and schools in both Chester and Delaware counties are preparing to do so, in an effort to meet the 180-day school requirement set by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. If quarantines are required in the event a teacher contracts the virus, a 14-day or even a 28-day school closure would be likely.
And at this time of year, it would make it difficult for schools to meet the instructional requirements.
“There has to be a plan of action for the commonwealth,” said state Sen. Andy Dimmiman, D19th, of West Whiteland, who chairs the Senate Education Committee.
“This is an unprecedented situation and three must be some guidance in how instruction time can be made up. We can’t simply say students can be excused from school for 14 or 28 days.”
Dinniman said he will take up the issue with his co-workers when the Senate gets back to work next week. He said lawmakers
could pass a bill to override the 180-day requirement — which he said is unlikely — or provide school districts with alternatives. Because Gov. Tom Wolf issued an emergency disaster declaration, the 180-day instruction requirement can be waived, but there appears to be little support for that.
But under the Act 64 law, students do not physically attend school. Act 64 includes information on how students and employees can use technology such as the internet, laptops and phones to conduct what would at best resemble a normal school day, except it would be at home and with some “flexibility.”
Dinniman said this isn’t realistic because while wealthy school districts give laptops to students, poorer ones don’t, and some of those students don’t even have a computer in their homes.
Sen. Tom Killion, R-9th, of Middletown, who voted for Act 64 last year, said school districts need to have as many tools as possible to fulfill their instructional requirements.
“As legislators, we certainly want our children to receive the educational instruction required by law,” Killion said. “I’m confident the Department of Education and our school districts will find solutions short of measures of last resort such as Saturday classes and I’ll support any legislative proposal that promotes that goal.”
Dinniman said the state Department of Education needs to give clear guidelines outlining school closures and the required instructional time.
“It’s easy to say let’s not worry about 180 days, but that’s saying education isn’t important,” Dinniman said. “No one ever predicted or thought out a pandemic situation. Perhaps we need to use Saturdays for instruction, or holidays. Guidance is needed in how we can make up instruction.”
And it helps, Dinniman said, that no school days were closed this year due to snow.
Dinniman said his preference is that schools cancel the 10 days of testing scheduled and put thm toward regular instructional days.
“The Senate needs to reassess what we are doing, and how we will deal with the 180 day rule,” Dinniman said. “This is a priority to me. We need to be sure every student gets an adequate education.”
The Flexible Instructional Day program may be online, offline, or a combination of the two. Act 64 defines a school entity as a school district, intermediate unit, area vocationaltechnical school, or charter school or regional charter school.
“As legislators, we certainly want our children to receive the educational instruction required by law,” Killion said. “I’m confident the Department of Education and our school districts will find solutions short of measures of last resort such as Saturday classes and I’ll support any legislative proposal that promotes that goal.”
Fifteen presumed positive coronavirus cases have been identified in Pennsylvania. Local cases have been identified in Montgomery, Bucks, Delaware, and Philadelphia Counties.