Virtual Fall: America’s Largest School Districts Are Opting for Remote Starts

Thirty-five of the nation’s 50 largest school districts are opting to educate students remotely this fall, concluding that in-person instruction is either medically or politically too risky or logistically too difficult to execute in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic (Figure 1).

 

Figure 1. Number of Districts Opting for Remote, Multiple, Hybrid, or TBD Fall Start

Note: data from author’s review of district public plans, subject to change

 

The districts opting for remote instruction educate more than five million children (see Figure 2). How long schools remain physically closed to students may vary depending on the district. Districts that are opting for a remote start have expressed a desire to revisit the schedule as early as late August as in Gwinnett County, Georgia, or committed to remote learning until at least the end of January, as in Baltimore County, Maryland.

 

Figure 2. Number of Students Experiencing Remote, Multiple, Hybrid, or TBD Fall Start

Note: Enrollment Data is from NCES, Fall 2016

 

Though many districts are opting for remote instruction, the remote school day will still look different for students depending on the district they attend. As one example, Montgomery County Schools, Maryland, provides a detailed overview of what an elementary school student’s day will look like in remote instruction (Figure 3). Some districts have not committed to providing the same instructional hours as would have been provided if school was in-person.

 

Figure 3. Typical Elementary Day at a Glance, Montgomery County Schools, MD

Source: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/reopening/MCPSDraftRecoveryPlan-updated.pdf

 

While remote or fully online learning is by far the most common path that the largest districts are taking, a few have chosen in-person learning, hybrid models where students spend some days in school and other days at home, or multiple options that give families a choice between in-person and fully remote learning.

A district pursuing “multiple options” is the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District in Texas. Cypress-Fairbanks will offer both on-campus learning and a remote learning option. Both options will follow the same instructional year calendar, grading procedures, and attendance policies, as well as the same curriculum. Pinellas County Schools in Florida is offering three distinct learning options for families to select— “traditional,” “online,” and “virtual.” These options have implications for a student’s ability to remain enrolled in their current school.

Many district plans are still continuing to evolve to provide accommodations for students with disabilities or other specialized needs.

Will School Be In-Person, Hybrid, or Remote?

District	State	Rank order	Enrollment, fall 2016	5-to-17-year-old population, 2016	5-to-7-year-olds in poverty, 2016\1\	Poverty rate of 5-to-17-year-olds, 2016\1\	Total Revenue (in thousands)	Per-Pupil Revenue (in thousands)	State Covid-19 Cases per 100K People (as of 8/6; CDC)  https://www.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#cases	Reopening Plan Link	School Start Date	Main Learning Model (Elementary)	Main Learning Model (Middle)	Main Learning Model (High)
New York City	NY	1	984,462	1,245,611	328,553	26.4	$27,448,356	$27,882	1720	https://www.schools.nyc.gov/school-year-20-21/return-to-school-2020	9/5/20	Hybrid	Hybrid	Hybrid
Los Angeles Unified	CA	2	633,621	715,436	194,823	27.2	10,329,380	$16,302	1326	https://achieve.lausd.net/site/default.aspx?PageType=3&DomainID=4&ModuleInstanceID=4466&ViewID=6446EE88-D30C-497E-9316-3F8874B3E108&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=91406&PageID=1	8/18/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
City of Chicago (SD 299)	IL	3	378,199	408,677	108,558	26.6	5,272,668	$13,942	1474	https://www.cps.edu/school-reopening-2020/	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Dade	FL	4	357,249	394,651	93,050	23.6	3,590,773	$10,051	2334	http://reopening.dadeschools.net/index.html	8/24/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Clark County	NV	5	326,953	367,926	69,496	18.9	3,220,684	$9,851	1749	https://sites.google.com/nv.ccsd.net/distanceeducation/ccsd-resources/reopening-ccsd?authuser=0; https://ccsd.net/schools/back-to-school/distance.php	8/24/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Broward	FL	6	271,852	295,468	48,843	16.5	2,607,068	$9,590	2334	https://www.browardschools.com/domain/17754; https://www.browardschools.com/domain/18054	8/19/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Houston ISD	TX	7	216,106	248,155	76,878	31.0	2,480,131	$11,476	1602	https://www.houstonisd.org/reopening	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Hillsborough	FL	8	214,386	228,744	43,271	18.9	2,098,358	$9,788	2334	https://www.sdhc.k12.fl.us/doc/2719/school-reopening-plan/about/openingplan/?utm_source=web&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=reopening	8/24/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Orange	FL	9	200,674	213,379	44,506	20.9	2,253,016	$11,227	2334	https://www.ocps.net/cms/One.aspx?portalId=54703&pageId=1455756	8/10/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Palm Beach	FL	10	192,721	205,311	35,926	17.5	2,038,576	$10,578	2334	https://www.palmbeachschools.org/students_parents/reopening_schools	8/31/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Fairfax County	VA	11	187,467	197,292	13,070	6.6	2,733,933	$14,584	1126	https://www.fcps.edu/returntoschool	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Hawaii Department of Education	HI	12	181,550	216,481	21,877	10.1	3,030,519	$16,692	183	http://www.hawaiipublicschools.org/ConnectWithUs/MediaRoom/PressReleases/Pages/school-year-2020-21.aspx	8/17/20	TBD	TBD	TBD
Gwinnett County	GA	13	178,214	185,631	28,329	15.3	1,893,150	$10,623	1918	http://publish.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/gcps/home/public/home/!ut/p/z1/04_Sj9CPykssy0xPLMnMz0vMAfIjo8zivSxMDDyN_Q08LdxMnA08nczDvP1MQowMnA31wwkpiAJKG-AAjgZA_VFgJbhMsDCAKsBjRkFuhEGmo6IiAORKNuY!/?1dmy&page=gcps.public.home.content&urile=wcm%3Apath%3A%2Fgcps_public_content_enus%2Fpublic_site%2Fschools%2Ffall-2020-in-gwinnett-county-public-schools	8/12/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Wake County	NC	14	160,467	190,315	19,440	10.2	1,380,356	$8,602	1245	https://www.wcpss.net/returntocampus	8/13/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Montgomery County	MD	15	159,010	177,421	14,769	8.3	2,898,647	$18,229	1539	https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/mainstory/story/671316/Draft-Recovery-Guide/	8/31/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Dallas ISD	TX	16	157,886	195,691	59,579	30.4	1,896,322	$12,011	1602	https://www.dallasisd.org/reentry	9/8/20	In-person	In-person	In-person
Charlotte-Mecklenburg	NC	17	147,428	183,372	31,461	17.2	1,389,280	$9,423	1245	https://www.cms.k12.nc.us/backtoschool/Pages/default.aspx	8/17/20	Hybrid	Hybrid	Hybrid
Philadelphia City	PA	18	133,929	238,855	86,599	36.3	3,030,964	$22,631	904	https://www.philasd.org/coronavirus/schoolstart2020/	9/2/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Prince George’s County	MD	19	130,814	144,242	17,574	12.2	2,206,548	$16,868	1539	https://www.pgcps.org/reopen/	8/31/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Duval	FL	20	129,479	147,336	28,913	19.6	1,211,671	$9,358	2334	https://dcps.duvalschools.org/domain/11723	8/20/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
San Diego Unified	CA	21	128,040	138,882	25,011	18.0	1,790,524	$13,984	1326	https://www.sandiegounified.org/newscenter/node/2287	8/31/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Cypress-Fairbanks ISD	TX	22	114,868	118,190	16,982	14.4	1,175,118	$10,230	1602	https://www.cfisd.net/en/lead-safely-2020-21	9/8/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
Cobb County	GA	23	113,151	124,723	15,084	12.1	1,239,449	$10,954	1918	https://www.cobblearningeverywhere.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Full-Remote-Reopening-Plan.pdf	8/17/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Baltimore County	MD	24	112,139	130,717	13,929	10.7	1,782,381	$15,894	1539	https://www.bcps.org/	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Shelby County	TN	25	111,403	132,312	44,897	33.9	1,218,671	$10,939	1685	http://www.scsk12.org/safeplan/	8/31/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Northside ISD	TX	26	106,145	107,911	16,239	15.0	1,118,501	$10,537	1602	https://www.nisd.net/schools/back-to-school	8/24/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Pinellas	FL	27	102,905	116,901	19,940	17.1	1,036,722	$10,075	2334	https://www.pcsb.org/reopening	8/24/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
Polk	FL	28	102,295	110,382	26,477	24.0	962,439	$9,408	2334	https://polkschoolsfl.com/reopening	8/24/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
DeKalb County	GA	29	101,284	115,181	28,144	24.4	1,194,250	$11,791	1918	https://www.dekalbschoolsga.org/covid-19/	8/17/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Jefferson County	KY	30	99,813	122,586	23,365	19.1	1,323,404	$13,259	733	https://www.jefferson.kyschools.us/preparing-for-start-school	8/25/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Fulton County	GA	31	96,122	113,312	18,050	15.9	1,196,919	$12,452	1918	https://www.fultonschools.org/backtoschool	8/17/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Lee	FL	32	92,686	96,845	19,529	20.2	929,289	$10,026	2334	https://www.leeschools.net/parent_portal/covid-19/school_reintroduction	8/31/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
Denver	CO	33	91,138	96,455	19,503	20.2	1,271,873	$13,955	860	https://www.dpsk12.org/coronavirus/return-2020/	8/24/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Albuquerque	NM	34	90,651	112,667	23,996	21.3	1,021,201	$11,265	1029	https://www.aps.edu/news/2020-2021/aps-reentry-plan	8/12/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Prince William County	VA	35	89,345	90,603	7,770	8.6	1,110,691	$12,431	1126	https://www.pwcs.edu/news/what_s_new/preparing_for_the_2020-21_school_year	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Fort Worth ISD	TX	36	87,428	94,508	28,946	30.6	963,004	$11,015	1602	https://www.fwisd.org/forward	8/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Jefferson County, No R1	CO	37	86,371	86,109	6,117	7.1	929,179	$10,758	860	https://www.jeffcopublicschools.org/restart_jeffco	8/24/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Davidson County	TN	38	85,163	98,704	22,632	22.9	1,004,078	$11,790	1685	https://www.mnps.org/backtoschool	8/4/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Austin ISD	TX	39	83,067	102,363	17,478	17.1	1,238,622	$14,911	1602	https://www.austinisd.org/announcements/2020/08/07/sept-8-start-school-las-clases-empiezan-el-8-de-septiembre	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Baltimore City	MD	40	82,354	89,009	27,470	30.9	1,420,023	$17,243	1539	https://www.baltimorecityschools.org/reopening	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Anne Arundel County	MD	41	81,379	92,347	7,809	8.5	1,206,658	$14,828	1539	https://www.aacps.org/fall2020	9/8/20	TBD	TBD	TBD
Alpine	UT	42	78,957	87,585	6,253	7.1	603,204	$7,640	1363	https://alpineschools.org/returntolearn/	8/18/20	In-person	In-person	In-person
Loudoun County	VA	43	78,348	82,840	2,610	3.2	1,089,781	$13,909	1126	https://www.lcps.org/Page/230986	9/8/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Greenville, 01	SC	44	76,918	86,981	12,159	14.0	855,902	$11,127	1878	https://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/2020/08/04/greenville-county-schools-approves-reopening-plan-based-coronavirus/5572563002/	8/17/20	TBD	TBD	TBD
Long Beach Unified	CA	45	76,428	84,056	19,563	23.3	1,075,291	$14,069	1326	https://www.lbschools.net/Departments/Newsroom/article.cfm?articleID=2896	9/1/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
Milwaukee	WI	46	76,206	110,915	37,495	33.8	1,186,209	$15,566	1051	https://mymps.org/	8/17/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Katy ISD	TX	47	75,428	67,757	6,399	9.4	835,819	$11,081	1602	http://www.katyisd.org/returntoschool/Pages/default.aspx	8/19/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
Fort Bend ISD	TX	48	74,146	90,019	9,879	11.0	758,885	$10,235	1602	https://www.fortbendisd.com/2020-21	8/17/20	Remote	Remote	Remote
Brevard	FL	49	73,444	79,542	14,998	18.9	724,781	$9,868	2334	https://www.brevardschools.org/Page/17115	8/24/20	Multiple	Multiple	Multiple
Fresno Unified	CA	50	73,356	80,662	34,739	43.1	998,861	$13,617	1326	https://www.fresnounified.org/Pages/covid19.aspx#.Xy2iZyhKhjE	8/17/20	Remote	Remote	Remote

\1\Poverty is defined based on the number of persons and related children in the family and their income. For information on poverty thresholds, see https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-poverty/historical-poverty-thresholds.html.

\2\Fiscal year 2018 Department of Education funds available for spending by school districts in the 2018-19 school year.

\3\Federal revenue per student is based on fall enrollment collected through the “Local Education Agency (School District) Finance Survey (F33).”

NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. ISD = independent school district

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), “Local Education Agency Universe Survey,” 2016-17; “Local Education Agency (School District) Finance Survey (F33),” 2015-16; and unpublished Department of Education budget data. U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) Program, 2016 Poverty Estimates for School Districts. (This table was prepared May 2019.)

Christopher Cleveland is a Ph.D. candidate at Harvard University.

Read more from Education Next on coronavirus and Covid-19.

The post Virtual Fall: America’s Largest School Districts Are Opting for Remote Starts appeared first on Education Next.

By: Christopher Cleveland
Title: Virtual Fall: America’s Largest School Districts Are Opting for Remote Starts
Sourced From: www.educationnext.org/virtual-fall-americas-largest-school-districts-are-opting-for-remote-starts/
Published Date: Mon, 10 Aug 2020 03:34:02 +0000