School might be out, but learning continues, say districts
DELAWARE COUNTY » In recent weeks, schools throughout Delaware County and across the state have had to adjust to remote schooling.
Now that new way of teaching is about to last much longer than anyone thought.
Thursday Gov. Tom Wolf announced that all schools in the state must remain closed through the end of the school year.
“Schools will remain closed for the rest of the academic year, but that doesn’t mean learning is stopping in Pennsylvania,” Wolf said in making his Thursday announcement. “While this was a critical step for us to take to protect as many people as possible, it was not an easy decision to make.”
For Delaware County school districts, it means they will have to continue their newly developed distance-learning plans for the end of the year. But beyond the traditional teaching, school officials also are working to develop plans to deal with other year-end traditions such as proms, graduations and then summer programs.
In Radnor, Superintendent Kenneth Batchelor issued a statement to parents and district families shortly after Wolf made the announcement.
“Our online programming will continue to expand and adapt to this extraordinary situation. We will keep you informed as we return to our online programming on Monday, April 13, and keep you updated with any changes. We provided everyone with an email last Friday, April 3, about the status of our programming. If your children are struggling with our online program, please reach out to your principal,” Batchelor said in his statement to families.
In Upper Darby, Superintendent Dan McGarry said their goal is to remain flexible as the district transitions all students to virtual
learning during the school closure.
“We are going to move forward with our plan to provide your students with the best education we can during this very challenging time. We have to continue to remain patient with one another and keep our lines of communication open and positive,” he said.
According to McGarry, the district plans on providing an update after the April 14 board meeting.
“We are making plans on how to best hold a graduation ceremony, adjust our remaining school calendar, and provide you with as much up-to-date information as we can while schools are closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 academic year,” he added.
Tina Kane, superintendent in the Marple Newtown School District, said the district continuity of education plan will continue as scheduled Monday, April 13, and the district’s leadership team will continue to adapt the plan as needed.
“I understand this end of the school year closure raises many questions and is disappointing for so many of us,” Kane said. “The district will communicate answers to questions as decisions are made. Under these circumstances, the paramount focus is protecting everyone’s health.”
In a letter published after Wolf made the announcement,
Anthony Barber, superintendent with the Springfield School District, said the district’s online program would continue to expand.
“Obviously, this news is certainly not what we wanted to hear. We do understand and appreciate this safety measure, as the health and welfare of our communities are most important. However, we also understand this announcement brings with it much sadness and a host of unanswered questions,” Barber said.
In neighboring Montgomery County, Lower Merion Superintendent Robert Copeland said the district would continue to use its flexible instruction plan for remote learning through the rest of the year.
According to Copeland, knowing that the closing will last through the rest of the year is helpful for Lower Merion to make the decisions it needs.
“Now that we know that the duration of the closure will last through the end of the school year, we will be able to make decisions regarding plans for events, such as proms and graduations. Principals will be reaching out to students and families with this information as soon as plans are finalized,” Copeland said.
Lower Merion would also consider how the closure will affect the district’s summer programs such as summer school, ESY and SPIES.
“Once we receive additional guidance from the Department of Education, we will be able to share with you how and whether we will be able to provide these programs,” he said.