FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – Administrators in the Freehold Township K-8 School District will implement a plan that will see the 2020-21 academic year begin with 100% remote (virtual) learning before a plan that combines in-person and remote instruction debuts for children whose parents have selected that option.
New Jersey’s schools were ordered to close in mid-March by Gov. Phil Murphy at the start of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. For the remainder of the 2019-20 school year, students remained at home and received instruction remotely.
Earlier this summer, Murphy directed school administrators to develop a plan to reopen schools for the 2020-21 academic year in a manner that best fits a district’s local needs.
Murphy later said an all-remote option had to be provided for parents who did not want to send their children into a school.
On Aug. 11, the Board of Education approved a reopening plan which will provide all students with remote instruction when the school year begins on Sept 8.
On Sept. 21, a hybrid model that combines in-person instruction with remote learning will begin for children whose parents have selected that option.
Some children will remain on remote only instruction if their parents have selected that mode of learning.
According to district administrators, students who attend school will be divided into two cohorts.
One cohort will attend school on Monday and Tuesday and receive remote instruction on Thursday and Friday.
The other cohort will attend school on Thursday and Friday and receive remote instruction on Monday and Tuesday.
Wednesday will alternate between in-person instruction and remote learning for the two cohorts.
In a letter dated Aug. 17, Superintendent of Schools Neil Dickstein described how staff members would provide synchronous learning, which will allow students who are attending school in-person and students who are receiving remote instruction to be taught simultaneously.
“Synchronous learning is a general term used to describe forms of education, instruction and learning that occur at the same time, but not in the same place,” Dickstein said.
“In our district, (some) students will be sitting in the classroom while other students are connected to the classroom through Zoom.
“Teachers will seamlessly teach new content five days per week. Teachers will maximize the use of Zoom with breakout rooms to run small group instruction and cooperative learning activities,” the superintendent said.
“Isn’t it exciting to know your children can be at home and interacting with their teachers and classmates in real time?”
“There will also be a component of time that will be asynchronous learning. For example, the teacher may conduct a whole class mini-lesson and then students at home (will) work independently for a period of time before reconnecting with the teacher.
“Regardless of the model chosen, all students will learn ‘together’ with synchronous learning. All students, regardless of whether they are learning from home or in the classroom, will follow a schedule during the typical early dismissal hours of our schools. This will allow teachers to maximize instruction and students will be part of classes at their home schools,” Dickstein said.