The online ‘experiment’: For most of the public school districts in Florida, online schooling begins today for more than 2 million K-12 students. Instead of pencils and paper, chalkboards and crayons, the tools of students will be online programs such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Canvas and Edsby on laptops, tablets and phones. Teachers worry about being the change being effective, and there are questions of equity and taking attendance and helping with mental health problems and learning disabilities, and more. What can we reasonably expect from this grand educational experiment that nobody wanted? Is this the new normal? Tampa Bay Times. Miami Herald. Sun Sentinel. Orlando Sentinel. Palatka Daily News. WKMG. Ormond Beach Observer. Daytona Beach News-Journal. WPLG. Lakeland Ledger. Pensacola News Journal. Bradenton Herald. WTSP. WUSF. WTXL. WFLA. Daily Commercial. Naples Daily News. WFTV. WJXT. WJXT. WTSP. WTVT. WINK. WMBB. Experts give advice on how to turn a home into a school. Tampa Bay Times. The 19 funniest moments during the first week of online learning in the Duval County School District. Florida Times-Union. Pasco County School Board member Colleen Beaudoin has several years of experience with online learning, and has tips for teachers on how to make it effective. Tampa Bay Times. Wifi and hot spots are not reliable solutions for online education in rural areas that lack comprehensive connectivity, say superintendents. Education Dive.
Online schooling, revisited: When the coronavirus pandemic forced schools to be closed, Florida responded by choosing to aggressively move learning online, while other states such as Michigan decided to simply close schools until it’s considered safe to return and then adjust the school calendar accordingly. Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran said the state never considered closing schools for the rest of the school year. “That’s not who we are as Americans,” Corcoran said. “What Michigan has done is throw up the white flag in surrender as no state should.” Educators in the state and elsewhere remain baffled by Florida’s decision, with some saying its leaders don’t “seem to be in touch with reality.” Other observers, such as University of Wisconsin education professor Gloria Ladson-Billings, president of the National Academy of Education, said no one knows what approach is the right one. “That’s the most honest thing we can say,” she said. “We have never had anything like this before.” Tampa Bay Times.
Shutdown extended: President Trump has extended the current national guidelines for social distancing because of the coronavirus pandemic through April 30. Last week he implied that he was interested in relaxing the rules, set March 16, by Easter on April 12. “The peak in death rate is likely to hit in two weeks,” Trump said. “Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before the victory is won.” The administration’s infectious diseases expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, call Sunday’s decision “wise and prudent.” Fauci had said his projection of 100,000 to 200,000 deaths was “entirely conceivable” if enough wasn’t done to dull the spread of the virus. Associated Press. New York Times. USA Today.
More on the coronavirus: A private elementary school in St. Lucie County is opening its doors to students today. Officials at Ivy League Academy in Port St. Lucie told parents they can choose to keep their children home. TCPalm. The Hillsborough County School Board will meet in person on Tuesday, and members of the community being given the chance to comment. Tampa Bay Times. School districts continued to distribute laptops and electronic devices to students over the weekend, and set up wifi and hot spots. Sun Sentinel. WPLG. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Northwest Florida Daily News. Hernando County school officials have canceled all school-related events for the rest of the school year. Hernando Sun. Collier County high school seniors say they’re trying to stay optimistic as more of the special moments of their final year are canceled. Naples Daily News. The Bay County School District’s experience with Hurricane Michael in 2018 has helped the district prepare for the pandemic, said Superintendent Bill Husfelt. Panama City News Herald. The Charlotte County School District has “temporarily furloughed” its substitute teachers. Charlotte Sun. School districts and other organizations continue to feed low-income students while schools are closed. Florida Department of Agriculture. Florida Department of Education. Gradebook. Gradebook. Florida Today. WKMG. Palm Beach Post. Fort Myers News-Press. Bradenton Herald. WFTS. WINK. Daily Commercial. Sarasota Herald-Tribune. WPLG. WPTV. Questions and answers about the coronavirus, guidance for school districts and a glossary. Florida Department of Health. Florida Department of Education. Orlando Sentinel. The CDC’s latest guidance for K-12 schools. Education Dive.
Labor issues: The latest labor dispute between teachers and school officials is in Nassau County, where teachers are expected to work two days in their schools to produce lessons plan and assignments and three days from home in the weeks until schools are reopened. Union officials say the schedule puts the health of teachers at risk unnecessarily and that most should be working remotely as much as possible. “The district seems to be spending more time trying to figure out how to create busy work rather than focusing on how we maintain district operations under the current coronavirus crisis,” said Chris Pagel, president of the Nassau Teachers Association. Politico Florida. Florida Politics. WJXT.
Aid for education: President Trump signed the $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package on Friday that will send $13.5 billion to K-12 schools for expenses surrounding school closures and buying technology for online learning. The bill also gives governors an additional $3.5 billion to distribute based on need, allows students to defer loan payments for six month and keep Pell grants, waives federal testing rules for K-12 students, and commits $14 billion to higher education for lost revenue and increased technology costs associated with the switch to distance education. Education Week. U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said Friday that she is pushing for legislation that would allow the government to provide microgrants to students and teachers who are trying to adapt to online learning. Chalkbeat.
Teacher test fees: Between April 1 and July 31, current teachers and aspiring ones can register to take their Florida educator certification exams free of charge. Once someone is registered, he or she has a year to take the exam. The state is waiving fees as a way to address the teacher shortage of more than 2,400 as of January. WTSP.
Court critical of district: An administrative law judge has ruled that the Sarasota County School District is violating federal disabilities rights laws by continuing to resist court orders to provide remedial education to an 11th-grader who was wrongly steered into classes for students with special needs. District officials say they are trying to comply, but the student’s new school is not cooperating. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Notable deaths: Matthew John Krajewski, the principal at New Smyrna Beach High School in Volusia County, has died after heart surgery for a pseudoaneurysm. He was 60. Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Opinions on schools: When life returns to a new normal and kids return to the classroom, I’m sure we’ll all celebrate and thank our teachers for what they mean and do for us. It’s unfortunate that it took a pandemic for so many to realize it. Tim Walters, Florida Today. Today is the second “first” day of school in Leon County, and we’ll need flexibility, compassion, grace and patience to get through this. Leon County Superintendent Rocky Hanna, Tallahassee Democrat. The digital divide leaves millions of children at a disadvantage during the coronavirus pandemic. Gregory Porumbescu, Palm Beach Post. It is a step in the right direction that Florida changed its law to match federal guidance on e-cigarette use and that the federal guidance matches what has been clear all along: that vaping has a negative impact on our teenagers and young adults. Tampa Bay Times. For all the turmoil this chaos class of high school seniors has endured, maybe students can find solace in knowing they’re unique — a special part of history that we’ll hopefully never repeat. After all, no other class has finished school with what one administrator described as “the most epic Senior Skip Day of all time.” Scott Maxwell, Orlando Sentinel. If there ever was a year to hit pause on a full-throated summer off school, this is it. Andrew J. Rotherham, The 74.
Student enrichment: Seven Florida school districts have received money from the Florida Pathways to Career Opportunities Grant to start or expand technical education programs: Broward for carpentry, Hillsborough for construction trades, Manatee for child care and TEC electricians, Orange for medical assisting, Osceola and Palm Beach for welding, and Pasco for electricians. Capitol Soup.
