One day a week: White House surprises with its plan to open schools

While US President Joe Biden works to reopen most of the nation's schools within the first 100 days in office, the White House has refined its benchmarks - setting a less ambitious goal than some parents might like to hear. Writes about it Yahoo!

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White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that Biden's goal is for more than 9% of schools to have "at least some in-person classes at least one day a week" — not necessarily fully reopened by 50th day of his presidency.

“I hope there will be more,” said Psaki.

When he announced the target in December, Biden said he is committed to ensuring that “most schools” open within 100 days.

But in Biden's plan to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, released on his first full-time office job, the White House lowered its target, clarifying that it only affects “most K-8 schools,” not high schools.

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From the outset, Biden made it clear that the goal depended on funding in Congress, as well as appropriate security measures by cities and states.

The White House is awaiting developed safety guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to provide guidance to schools.

Biden offered, among other things, $ 130 billion to open schools in his $ 19 trillion COVID-1,9 relief package. The money will help pay for the increased staff that will be hired to reduce the number of students in the classroom, as well as modify ventilation, purchase protective equipment to prevent the spread of infection. Such measures will, among other things, help to expand learning opportunities for students who are lagging behind.

“In my opinion, it’s time for schools to reopen, but reopen safely,” Biden said. “There should be fewer people in the classroom, good ventilation systems are needed.”

Closed schools in cities face problems opening up that didn't exist a few months ago.

In January, during a phone call with teachers' union leaders, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the federal government's chief infectious disease expert, suggested that Biden's timeline for opening most K-8 grades may be unrealistic due to new variants of the virus that allow him to spread more easily. ...

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“That may not happen because different circumstances are likely,” Fauci said. “But he really wants to do whatever he can to help.”

Education Next conducted a parent survey in November and December, according to which 28% of students attend classes in person, and 19% use hybrid models with online classes and face-to-face instruction, ranging from one to five days a week. The survey found that more than half of schoolchildren in the United States study fully remotely.

But according to Burbio, a company that collects data on school districts, the number of districts moving from fully virtual to part-time or full-time education has already surpassed the 50% goal set by the White House.

Burbio found that 40% of US students live in school districts that offer full-time education, although parents are free to choose distance learning for safety reasons. According to Burbio, another 25% of schoolchildren attend classes partly online, and 35% are fully online.

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