Dekalb County middle school students enrolled in remote learning through the district’s virtual platform are are no longer participating in that program.
District spokeswoman Carla Parker told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution this week that middle school students who were enrolled in FLEX Academy are now taking virtual classes taught by teachers at their home school. It’s the same model the district uses for elementary school students who are learning remotely.
Parents were notified Friday of the change, the district said. High demand from parents of middle school students for virtual learning “required the district to adjust its instructional model,” Parker said.
“This is an opportunity for middle school students across the district to receive the highest level of classroom instruction from their home school’s teacher,” she said.
DeKalb schools has 2,031 students enrolled in FLEX Academy, which started in 2017 to provide high school students with virtual learning options. It was expanded over the summer to include middle school students to provide more virtual learning options amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Parker said the district wants to build the FLEX Academy platform to include middle school students for future enrollment.
The change now means that middle school educators will join their elementary counterparts in simultaneously teaching both in-person and virtual students. DeKalb schools is offering a temporary stipend for any teacher who agrees to teach both groups of students during the 2021-22 school year.
The stipend, funded with federal coronavirus stimulus dollars, is $3,500 per semester and will be paid in increments.
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