With the exception of nearly half of all students opting for a remote-only program at Sunderland Elementary School, a majority of families in the Frontier and Union 38 regional school districts plan to follow the hybrid model when in-person learning begins later this month.
Although both school districts’ school committees voted in support of a hybrid learning model in early August, families were given the option to opt out of the hybrid model and follow a fully remote program instead.
“No one knows what to expect with these models,” said Superintendent Darius Modestow. “We are creating these models for the first time ever.”
In the hybrid learning model, students are grouped into A and B cohorts that alternate between in-person and remote education. The model allows for two weeks of remote learning, which began on Thursday, before gradually bringing students back into the building for in-person learning days.
At Whately Elementary School, 20 percent of students opted into a remote learning program, Modestow said. At Conway Grammar School, 22 percent plan to be fully remote, and at Deerfield Elementary School, 33 percent. At Sunderland Elementary, however, about 45 percent of students have opted for a fully remote program.
Lastly, at Frontier Regional School, 24 percent of students plan to be fully remote.
Modestow said the percentages of students opting for remote instruction increased slightly from an initial survey that was distributed to families in both districts.
“We had done a preliminary survey in the summer that had closer to 20 percent (remote), but we also had a percentage (of families) that weren’t sure,” Modestow explained. “I think some of the ‘not sures’ became remote.”
Trevor McDaniel, a parent of a student at Frontier Regional School and a member of the Deerfield School Committee, said he was surprised to see as many students as there were opting for the remote program over the hybrid model.
“I think in Deerfield Elementary, (remote) was a little larger than what I was expecting,” he said, also referencing earlier surveys of families with fewer preferences for remote. “I think that number will come down as people see how functional (the hybrid program) is.”
McDaniel, whose son started ninth grade at Frontier on Thursday, said he worries about the potential shortcomings of remote-only programs.
“Some people really need that face-to-face interaction,” he noted.
Modestow said families do have the option to switch learning models, but only at certain points. At Frontier, for example, students can make the move between semesters; at the elementary level, students will be given the opportunity to do so at various “gate points,” which will be roughly once per month.
“At the elementary school … you have to have time to prepare,” he said. “You can’t just have an influx of students each week.”
Increasing the number of students in the building, he noted, would require shifting staff around to adjust for the changing student numbers.
“That’s going to be another challenge we’re going to have to face,” he said.
Still, Modestow said he expects to see students returning from remote to hybrid as the year progresses.
“I think if we continue on the trajectory that we are on, with very low COVID numbers, and we’re able to safely return to school, you’re going to see families switching models,” he said. “I think their students are going to miss the in-person model.”
Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne