Reopening and Remote Learning in Chicago Public Schools
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CONTENTS
Summary of Reopening Issues and Concerns
Policies and Protocols
Personnel Needs
Equipment, Supplies, Facilities, and Sanitation
Remote Learning Support
Technical Support and Accommodations
Framing
Resource Frame
Support and Accountability Frame
Appendix: OSHA Risk Abatement Hierarch
Summary of Reopening Issues and Concerns
During our July 10th meeting, CPAA members identified the following issues in regard to reopening schools amidst the COVID19 pandemic.
1. Policies and Protocols
Needs
Finalized reopening models as soon as possible for local planning purposes
Multiple reopening models that account for various school factors (elementary, high; large, small; low or high space utilization.
Staff and student check-in process and procedure developed by the district and adequate training for staff to process and document
Procedures for when a staff person or student is either sick or diagnosed with COVID19.
School scheduling models that maximize safety and account for COVID-era use of communal spaces
Relief from SQRP
Protocols for parents and visitors in the building
Role and expectations for support staff and specials teachers
A community engagement process for reopening.
A list of the resources required to enact the policies and protocols and a plan for obtaining them.
Enforcement and accountability procedures for student and staff physical distancing.
Clear Logistics for Instructional Programming and Procedures and Integrity of Instruction
CPS must engage in ongoing consultation with the elected representatives of principals and assistant principals at CPAA
Questions and Concerns
I am concerned that the district will ask schools to create their own re-opening plans. I understand that each school may be different, however, we do not have the expertise or knowledge to draft plans of this nature. We are often challenged to create a plan without the information necessary to be effective. This leads to further inequities across the district as expertise and knowledge vary across schools. The district should be prepared to tell us what to do to keep our communities safe. They also must consider the infection rates in different communities and how support may be different in those areas.
Will physical distancing policies be integrated into the CPS Code of Conduct?
When a student or staff member tests positive, what happens to the student or staff member, and (2) all of the students and staff members who were in contact with them? CDC Guidelines: Staff and students who have recently had close contact with a person with COVID-19 should stay home and monitor their health.
How do we address the needs of students who have conditions that make PPE a challenge such as Asthma or Speech Servicers?
What are the policies and procedures for vulnerable students and staff members?
What are the specific indicators that the district is using to move forward with re-opening when the numbers are increasing? What’s the “cut score”? Where these reopening criteria made in consultation with epidemiologists?
What is the process for a student whose temperature scan indicates a fever or demonstrates COVID symptoms (contact parents/guardians for pickup and place in a holding room)? How will the designated space for sick students be staffed and managed?
How will CPS ensure effective leadership in schools with ill administrators?
How will we address attendance concerns? Will there be funding for outreach and incentives?
Any word on new enrollments, and the process moving forward for that and transfers for students?
What will classes look like relative to the number of students in attendance?
2. Personnel
Needs
Additional Supervisory staff for classroom, halls, and communal spaces
Medical staff at all times and every school to manage students who present symptoms, forehead scans, PPE supplies, inventory
A consistent, adequate, and reliable pool of substitute teachers.
Support for programmers and buckets to pay programmers who will have to tackle hybrid schedules.
Questions and Concerns
How do we address possible shortages due to staff members with COVID19 symptoms or opting not to report due to being high-risk or out of general concerns about their safety?
3. Equipment, Supplies, Facilities, and Sanitation
Needs
Masks
Sanitizer
Shields for the front office, teachers, student desks
Digital touchless thermometers
A robust cleaning plan
Repair malfunctioning air conditioning and ventilation systems.
Questions and Concerns
Will there be additional funding and resources provided to ensure that adequate personal protective equipment is available for students and staff?
Will there be protective shields installed at student desks?
Will schools be provided with an adequate number of thermometers for temperature checks
Who is purchasing these resources and what is that status of the purchase?
Will signage be provided, and when?
4. Remote Learning Support
Needs
In regards to engagement, there must be a balance of understanding and empathy for students on one hand; with support, intervention, and accountability on the other.
Effective professional development and ongoing supports for teachers, along with clear and strong expectations for the frequency and quality of engagement with students,
Criteria for success beyond attendance.
Questions and Concerns
What additional funding and training will be provided to build capacity in teachers to be effective in a virtual setting?
How will we address attendance concerns? Will there be funding for outreach and incentives?
What are our high-level instructional goals during remote learning, beyond engagement measures?
5. Technical Support and Accommodations
Needs
A support hotline that can give immediate assistance most time, and at least same-day assistance at all times.
Technical support to set up and maintain the distancing in the school
Childcare for staff with young children
Technical support to set up and maintain the distancing in the school
Clear policies and procedures and expectations that allow staff members with high-risk conditions to work remotely.
Strong implementation support for schools.
Questions and Concerns
Will tech be replenished? If so how and what accountability supports will be in place to help manage lost/ broken items.
What accommodations are there for staff members when their children have to be home?
Framing Options
Based on the above issues and concerns, some possible frames to use in communicating our reopening demands are as follows:
Resources Framing
Since all the needs and concerns of administrators focus on resources of one kind or another, we propose the following as our primary frame:
We support informed reopening with remote learning as needed, but only if district officials invest in the resources to reopen responsibly. That means clear policies and protocols, and sufficient personnel and protection.
“Reopening Requires Resources”
Policies, Protocols, Personnel, and Protection
Support and Accountability Framing
One principal commented, “I had an epiphany. CPS officials manage their responsibility to schools the way Donald Trump manages his responsibility to the states. Trump failed to have a 50-State strategy to get governors the policies and resources they needed to protect their residents from COVID19, and then he deflected accountability by criticizing the governors for the consequences of his failure. Similarly, CPS officials often fail to have a 500+ school strategy to get principals the policies and resources we need to help students realize their full human potential and keep them safe. Then they deflect accountability by pointing the finger at principals for the consequences of the district’s under-resourcing. Whether it be test scores, attendance, or student safety, the district has a pattern of failing to provide resources to schools and then scapegoating principals for the inevitable negative outcomes of that failure. We have little to no reason to believe the district will behave any differently while reopening schools during the COVID19 pandemic. With that in mind, the following wording is proposed as a secondary frame:
Principals and assistant principals support informed reopening with remote learning as needed, but only with district officials as partners who share responsibility and accountability. We do not support reopening if district officials continue to neglect their responsibility to provide the staffing and resources needed to reopen responsibly, and then avoid accountability by scapegoating us for the consequences of their neglect.
Appendix
Risk Hierarchy: Employer Exposure vs. Worker Behavior
Eliminate the Hazard
This step is not possible from a CPS perspective.
Isolate People from the Hazard
Remote Instruction
Staying home when sick (ending attendance requirement)
Change the Way People Work
Consistent non-mixed groups
Six-foot spacing
No sharing objects
Small Class Sizes & Staggered rotation
Personal Protective Equipment and Practices
Face Masks, Shields, Gloves,
Cleaning
Handwashing