School District readies for in-person learning

    The Weiser School District has released its COVID-19 Response Plan for the 2021-22 school year.
 The plan, developed by District officials in conjunction with input from staff, parents, students, patrons, and “other essential stakeholders,” provides an outline for a return to traditional instruction.
 For now, the District’s goal is to conduct full-time, in-person learning for all students. The 2020-21 school year was truncated by about 20 percent due to pandemic lockdowns, which had an effect on the learning process, according to Weiser School District Superintendent Wade Wilson.
 “I think it is really hard for us to measure the true impact, but I know we had a lot of kids who struggled with that online time,” he said. “They didn’t necessarily have all the support they needed. They struggled for various reasons: some had technology issues and others just didn’t have anybody to ensure they did what they were supposed to do.”
 Wilson added that some kids managed to thrive under the difficult circumstances, but that an increase in the number of summer school attendees this year was a clear sign that in-person instruction is needed.
 “That was an indicator, and we are still trying to file through our state testing results to see what those look like compared to other schools, but I don’t think they are where we had hoped they would be, although we aren’t surprised by that, either,” he said.
 Wilson said the online model forced schools to modify their class programming.
 “We weren’t able to do all of the things that we are typically able to do,” he explained. “For example: at Pioneer School, our reading model … we level our kids based on ability, an ability group. Well, we didn’t do that last year at all, so we had to change our reading model, so that was a struggle. That’s why it is a priority for us to try to get back to that full-time, in-person learning with as much a traditional element as makes sense for us.”
 To make the plan work, however, every individual must take charge of their own health, the plan states.
 “If somebody has been exposed to COVID or they are not feeling well, they should stay home so that we don’t create any patterns of infecting others,” Wilson said. “We want to try to reduce that possibility as much as we can.”
 The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced its recommendation that even vaccinated people should consider wearing masks if they are in a high-transmission area.
 The District’s plan came out prior to that announcement.
 “Basically, we recommend people wear masks, but they will not be required at this time. Once we get going with the school year, that might change,” said Wilson who added that he is not aware of any restrictions for IHSAA-sponsored sports and other events.
 “We will encourage as much as practical that people distance without requiring it,” he said. “We just hope people go to games and they enjoy themselves, that they cheer, but that we do what we can … to make sure our school events are able to continue.”
 The complete approved WSD COVID-19 Response Plan can be found at www.weiserschools.org.