The DeKalb County School District is reconfiguring its out-of-school learning schedule when students and staff return from spring break on April 13, including four-day school weeks for some students.
Letters sent to parents Thursday dictated the second phase of the district’s Continuity of Learning Plan, which has shifted significantly as schools have continued to learn from the experience of full-time distance learning.
The district said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that revisions were done “in order to provide opportunities for greater communication among teachers and students, increased collaboration among teachers, and increased consistency among grade levels to cultivate a robust learning experience for all students.”
The new schedules alternate between digital learning lessons and offline learning for "special areas" including art, music, and physical education. For students in pre-K through fifth grade, Thursday is set aside for student or parent conferencing with teachers. Fridays are teacher workdays.
For sixth-grade students and above, students focus on specific subjects two days a week, followed by parent conferencing and teacher workdays on Fridays.
“The virtual learning schedule will now provide students and families with opportunities to conference with the teacher to address questions and monitor academic progress,” the district said in its statement.
DeKalb Schools, along with many school districts across the state, ended classroom instruction on March 12 on a recommendation from Gov. Brian Kemp. Interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson said then that this would be an ongoing learning process for teachers and the district's administration, undertaking a full online experience amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In the meantime, the district has continued offering some services, including bagged meals and snacks each day of the week and food donations for families on specified dates.
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