“What approach do you want for your child?” asked TPS
Superintendent Romules Durant, EdD, as he introduced the
options available to students during a press conference.
According to Durant, TPS is prepared to offer parents and
students three options in the fall: the traditional
classroom, remote learning and an “A/B” combination of class
and online instruction.
The district has been actively soliciting the opinions of
parents through its website – TPS.org – to determine how
many would prefer each option. Thus far the results show
that 48 percent of parents prefer the classroom option, 20
percent the remote instruction option and 33 percent want
the A/B combination.
Nevertheless, Durant emphasized, the final decision may not
be up to either parents or school administration but rather
the State of Ohio and Governor DeWine. It is the governor
who is expected to declare within weeks, when schools may
re-open for classroom instruction.
Registration for the fall 2020 school year starts this week
and can be accomplished at TPS.org.
The preparations for the fall session is an extension of
what TPS and other school districts faced in the spring when
schools were temporarily closed, then shut down for the rest
of the academic year.
“We made sure that some 8,000 chrome books were in
households,” said deputy superintendent James Gault who
emphasized the “comprehensive approach” the district
administration was taking to develop options for its parents
and students.
Providing chrome books, a reliable internet service and
certified teachers for live instruction are all priorities
for those students – PreK to 12 – who want to go virtual,
said Gault.
Stephanie Eichenberg, school board member and a parent of
TPS students, spoke to a problem the district had during the
spring when the shutdown happened – locating students and
their families.
“We need to know how to find you,” said Eichenberg. “That
can be a roadblock. Make sure you’re up-to-date and in touch
with us.”
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