The draft plan was
developed over two months with input from approximately 90 Duneland Schools
staff members and after a survey to parents revealed that approximately 80
percent of respondents want a return to traditional learning. Subcommittees
were formed to address the following topics: school operations, student
health, return to instruction, technology, transportation, facilities,
extra-curricular & transitional/start-up events, mental health, CMS & CHS
athletics, human resources.
“We believe this
plan allows an educational path for all students. Students who are ready to
return to a more traditional model of education will have an opportunity to
do so with a consistent teacher by grade level or course. Students who feel
more comfortable at-home will have the opportunity to continue their
education in a remote model, again with consistency with their peers and
teacher(s). Finally, students who wish to transition between the two models
based on the changing concerns of the pandemic will have the opportunity to
remain flexible,” the Administration wrote in the plan on Page 4.
The plan begins
with a system of tiered levels that will dictate whether or not in-person
instruction is safe at Duneland and how operations will change based on how
COVID-19 is affecting the DSC population. Level 5 (red) would mean that
COVID-19 is active and increasing at DSC and within the Duneland community
and schools would close for remote learning. Level 1 (blue) would mean that
COVID-19 is not active in the community, and students and staff would return
to in-person instruction “with an emphasis on good hygiene.” In Levels 2, 3,
and 4, families will be allowed to decide if they are most comfortable with
in-person or remote learning options.
Level changes, when
warranted, will be communicated immediately via the regular phone and email
alert system and posted on the DSC website, the draft plan says.
Summary of
Precautions
Students and
employees will be expected to self-screen for COVID-19 symptoms and
exposure. Parents should be advised that any students exhibiting symptoms
will be sent home, and staff will be observing for students who are
exhibiting symptoms and will refer them to a school nurse.
Daily temperature
checks will not be part of the planned self-screening and observatory
screening of students and employees because fevers are not always present in
COVID-19 cases, and temperature checks could do more harm than good by
requiring students to congregate and wait their turns.
Students or
employees will be excluded from school if they test positive for COVID-19 or
if they exhibit one or more COVID-19 symptoms. Excluded people who were not
tested for COVID-19 will be allowed to return upon spending 10 days away
from school, improvement of symptoms, and going at least 72 hours without a
fever.
Those who test
positive will be allowed back once they have met the above conditions for
untested individuals and received two negative test results at least
24 hours apart. Asymptomatic individuals who tested positive will be allowed
back after they have gone 10 days without symptoms and been cleared by a
healthcare provider.
If a student has
one or more symptoms but is cleared by a doctor as having something else,
that does not warrant exclusion from school. Students quarantined or
excluded from school will be transitioned to remote learning.
“If a student or
staff member has COVID-19 or is quarantined because of COVID-19 related
symptoms, any other DSC student(s) or staff member(s) within the household
should also stay home for the duration of the quarantine period,” the plans
says on page 9.
DSC will work with
the Porter County Health Department to perform contact tracing and evaluate
risk in the event of positive cases to determine if a level increase and/or
school closure is warranted. More specificity about daily operations in all
grade levels and subjects is available in the full plan.
Important
Highlights
Each DSC school
will have a designated COVID-19 nurses’ area where students or staff who
exhibit symptoms will be evaluated and/or wait to be picked up by family.
There will be strict guidelines for who enters this room and what personal
protective equipment they use. A log will be kept of who enters the room,
and it will be disinfected frequently.
DSC will also have
an “ample supply of cloth face coverings” available for students and
employees. Families can also provide their own face coverings.
Teachers will be
permitted to use face shields instead of masks in cases where students need
to see their faces, such as cases of students with hearing difficulties or
in foreign language classes.
Remote learning
under the new mitigation strategy will be different from former eLearning
models used for inclement weather and for the initial COVID-19 school
closure this past spring, according to the draft plan. New remote learning
strategies will employ live streaming, video-recorded lessons, a variety of
hardcopy assignments and hands-on activities, and virtual discussions.
Passing periods may
be extended to promote social distancing and students will be discouraged
from congregating in groups in the halls. Decisions on extending passing
periods will be made on a school-by-school basis.
Pick-up and
drop-off plans may vary by building and could include staggered arrival and
dismissal times. There may also be increased wait times in pick-up and
drop-off lines due to an anticipated drop in bus ridership.
The school calendar
has already been approved by the Board, and DSC will attempt to follow it,
according to the draft plan.
The following is a
level-by-level breakdown of how key operations and instruction will change
based on threat level:
Level 1: COVID-19
not active in Duneland community or schools
--Instruction
is all in-person.
--In general, mask
usage will not be required, and school activity will proceed with an
emphasis on good hygiene.
Level 2: COVID-19
activity in the Duneland community is low
--Families will be
able to choose either in-person or remote learning for their students.
In-person learning will place an emphasis on social distancing and good
hygiene.
--Students will be
required to carry a mask with them at all times. Mask usage on buses will be
at the discretion of bus drivers. Social distancing measures and mask usage
should be practiced at bus stops.
--A shortened
school day will be used to give teachers an extra 35 minutes to plan and
communicate with students learning remotely.
Level 3: COVID-19
activity is stable in Duneland community
--Families will be
able to choose either in-person or remote learning for their students. Masks
will be required during in-person learning where social distance cannot be
maintained.
--Students will be
required to carry a mask with them at all times. Students will be required
to wear masks at all times except when eating or when in the classroom. At
Level 3, mask usage in the classroom will be at the discretion of teachers.
Masks will be required on buses and when loading and unloading buses.
--A shortened
school day will be used to give teachers an extra 35 minutes to plan and
communicate with students learning remotely.
Level 4: COVID-19
is active and increasing in Duneland community/ there are isolated cases at
schools
--Families will be
able to choose either in-person or remote learning for their students.
--Mask usage will
be required at all times except for eating. Masks will be required on buses
and when loading and unloading buses.
--A shortened
school day will be used to give teachers an extra 35 minutes to plan and
communicate with students learning remotely.
Level 5: COVID-19
is active and increasing within Duneland community and schools
--School closure:
All learning will be remote