One of the most difficult aspects of our return to physical school is the question of proper social distancing. Even with a hybrid model of learning, the implications of student safety are massive, as is the planning needed to accomplish it. In this episode of the Learning Counsel’s Dawn of New Strategies series, school, district and BOCES leaders grapple with the tech needed to pull it off.

According to LeiLani Cauthen, CEO and Publisher at the Learning Counsel, “When we’re talking about social distancing, we’re normally talking to schools who are now moving into a hybrid mode. That has many different definitions. It typically means kids are not on campus all the time, or you need to be ready to have them remote at any time if there’s a second wave of coronavirus. The top concerns from our research are number one, the scheduling, an auto calendaring or auto scheduling and calendaring, how that’s all going to work. Then there’s the issue of classrooms. Spacing, keeping kids far enough apart – there’s discussion between six feet and eight feet, sometimes 10 feet apart, which really wrecks your normal total numbers of kids per classroom and gets kind of wild. There’s transportation distancing, how many kids can you fit on a bus? There are issues with recess and sports. And then sanitizing, how you’re going to sanitize the entire school and keep it sanitized. And then the issues of whole child education.”

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It is evident that everything is on the table right now when it comes to creating a hybrid learning plan that allows for social distancing. Plans are still being formed, and the complexity can seem overwhelming. If you want some good ideas for your school or district, be sure to watch this discussion.