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July 30, 2020Soon, students will return to classrooms in Catholic schools across the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. This year, the typical back-to-school flutters of excitement have been replaced with anxiety for some students and families. Students and parents alike are preparing to navigate unfamiliar territory as some struggle with adjusting to the new landscape.
The Catholic Schools Office has been working diligently to anticipate the needs of students and staff while orchestrating a blueprint for a safe return to the classroom on Aug. 12. Guidelines for school continuity have been established and implemented.
Administrators, educators and staff have been working together to prepare for a year full of unknowns. Providing for school continuity to “go make disciples” will challenge all students, faculty, staff and parents as they navigate new protocols and procedures to keep everyone safe as they continue in the tradition of Catholic education.
“The whole goal of coming back is to educate our kids,” said Catholic Schools Superintendent Diane Floyd, Ph.D.
She said teachers and administrators have taken an “inventory” of what they were able to accomplish with their students during the distance learning process this past spring. The first step upon returning to in-class instruction will be to evaluate the skills each student has mastered. Initial assessments will be administered within the first two weeks of returning to school.
“We want to serve these kids the best way possible,” she said.
Each Catholic school will utilize the guidelines provided by the CSO to implement their own individual procedures for returning to the classroom. Curriculum delivery options, health and safety protocols, communication plans and calendar changes will all be determined at the site level.
The only exception is the requirement for face coverings. With the goal for Catholic schools to be able to return and offer as much in-person instruction as possible, all schools will require face coverings for all faculty, staff and students in first through 12 th grades. Inside the classroom, small mask breaks will be allowed, particularly for students in first through fourth grades, when students are working independently and following social distancing measures.
While the intent is for students to return to the classroom, alternative instruction plans are in place and ready to be implemented in the event of another school closure or the need to reduce capacity in the buildings. In-person learning could potentially shift to one or two days per week.
Full days could be reduced to half, with some students attending in the morning, others in the afternoon. Alternating weeks of in-person instruction and extended breaks are other possibilities for maintaining as much continuity as possible in the event of another disruption.
Floyd explained that plans for asynchronous and synchronous learning opportunities also are in place for students who become ill or are quarantined at home. For those who cannot return to school because they or someone in their family is immunocompromised, the archdiocese is working to provide an alternative to the in-person option. Emphasis will be placed on meeting the needs of every student in the archdiocese.
Allowing each site to create its own plan for returning to the classroom has given administrators the opportunity to include input from their school advisory councils as part of the decision-making process. Other factors, including school culture, students needs and parent support, also were taken into consideration.
Alice Newman, principal at Holy Trinity Catholic School in Okarche, explained how beneficial the return to in-person learning will be to students as well as teachers.
“Kids need interaction to develop socially,” she said. “Teachers need interaction as well.”
Each school will have a designated COVID-19 point person who will facilitate communication, help ensure adherence to health and safety procedures, and assist students and parents with any issues that arise as a result of the situation.
Find more information on Catholic schools at archokc.org/schools.
Sally Linhart is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic.
