BRIDGEWATER, NJ - Interim superintendent Thomas Ficarra has released a statement to parents with updates regarding the plans for the district to reopen for its hybrid model on Oct. 12.
The district was expected to open in a hybrid model at the beginning of September, but opted to go virtual while plans continued, materials were gathered and more. Ficarra said the district was planning to move to a hybrid model as of Oct. 12, and will make a final decision at the beginning of October.
Ficarra said in his letter to parents that they are continuing to monitor health and safety guidelines, the number of students opting to continue virtual only, staffing and more.
"It is hard to believe that we will soon have students in our classrooms again who have not been inside a school for six months," he said in the letter.
The letter outlines what the hybrid model is, and what it will look like for students, with students being in two cohorts for the pre-kindergarten through eighth grade levels, and three cohorts for the high school.
The benefits of the model, Ficarra said, include that students will not have a change in teacher when they move to hybrid, the schedule will remain the same and they can pivot back to virtual if needed.
Timing for the schools will be 8:35 a.m. to 10:40 a.m. for morning pre-kindergarten and kindergarten; 10:45 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. for afternoon pre-kindergarten and kindergarten; 8:35 a.m. to 12:50 for grades one through four; 9:05 a.m. to 1:25 p.m. for grades five and six; 7:35 a.m. to 11:58 a.m. for grades seven and eight; and 7:20 a.m. to 12:01 p.m. for the high school.
Below is the letter in its entirety:
Dear Parents/Guardians,
As we continue to prepare for return to school in a hybrid model on October 12th, we have been monitoring the following to ensure our district’s preparedness: the health and safety guidelines, the number of students who are opting for virtual-only, staffing, and, most importantly, the effectiveness of our current schedules. It is hard to believe that we will soon have students in our classrooms again who have not been inside a school for six months. Teachers and students will be adjusting to new procedures and protocols, while also adapting to a new model of instruction. Today we are reaching out to provide some additional information about the hybrid instructional model. You will notice that we made some changes at the elementary level.
The Hybrid Model of instruction will include both in-person and remote/virtual instruction on a rotating basis. Remote/virtual students will receive the same live instruction in real-time as the in-person students are receiving.
What is the hybrid model of instruction?
Students will continue to meet with their same teachers and classmates regardless of whether they participate from home or at school.
Live instruction will continue day-to-day using the same school schedules as our current virtual model. However, school start and end times will return to the traditional hours that are included below. This shift back to “regular” start times is due to transportation.
In Pre-K- 6, schools are running a “traditional” 4.5-hour schedule, during which students meet with their teacher(s) and receive instruction across all subjects each day.
In middle school and high school, there is an A/B schedule, which means students attend half their schedule on one day (A) and the second half of their schedule on the next day (B). The schedule alternates each day. This allows for longer blocks of instructional time each day at the secondary level.
At all levels, one group of students will be present for in-person instruction while all other groups will follow the same schedule and attend live instruction from home through Google Meet.
What will the hybrid model look like for students?
Some students will attend classes in-person at school on specific days. At the PreK-8 levels, students are in two cohorts, A and B. Students in A will attend in-person instruction on Mondays and Tuesdays while students in Cohort B and the virtual-only students are attending classes from home through Google Meet.
Students in the B cohort will attend in-person instruction on Thursdays and Fridays while students in Cohort A and virtual-only students are attending from home through Google Meet.
All students in PreK-8 will attend virtually on Wednesdays.
At the high school, students are divided into 3 cohorts (A, B, C). The three cohorts will continue to rotate through a six-day cycle with two days in a row of in-person instruction and four days of virtual instruction. Unlike the Pre-K-8 schools that will have a virtual Wednesday for all, the high school will have a group of in-person students on campus each day.
Benefits of the hybrid model:
Students will not have a change in teacher when we transition from all-remote to hybrid.
The schedule will remain the same, providing consistency for both staff and students.
We can pivot back to virtual-only or to a traditional day without changing schedules or assignments.
Students will continue to have access to accelerated and enriched classes at all levels.
As we have started virtually, both students and teachers will have had time to acclimate to this model before adding in the hybrid piece.
Overall, there will be better consistency of program for students and staff.
How will staff be prepared to instruct in this model?
Staff members continue to be provided with professional development specific to teaching in the virtual model. As we all become more secure in this model, we will now be working with staff to transition to the hybrid model of instruction by providing professional development specific to technology, lesson planning and instruction. Our goal is to have everyone feeling comfortable with this next phase so that we are ready to welcome students back into our buildings.
Our teachers and service providers have been working really hard to deliver the best instruction and services to our students, and we thank you for your continued support of their work. We will continue to build on what we have learned, as we move to this next phase of our re-entry plan. Please know that, together with the support of our families and the community, we will work to ensure a successful transition for all.
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September 21, 2020 at 07:00PM
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