Pennsylvania school districts are being urged to consider new state recommendations when adopting one of three instructional models for the upcoming school year: the in-person, remote or hybrid instruction model.
Officials said at a press conference that superintendents should stay apprised of the percentage of COVID-19 tests that come back positive in their counties over the most recent seven-day period, and the number of positive tests per 100,000 county residents (the incidence rate) over that same period.
Those metrics show the level of community transmission of coronavirus in a county, according to state Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine.
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According to Secretary of Education Pedro Rivera this is the description of the three instructional models for the upcoming school year:
A traditional, in-person model with schools open every day and remote learning available for at-risk students or staff, a hybrid “blended learning” model that incorporates more remote learning to reduce the number of students in school buildings to accommodate social distancing and a full remote learning model in which all students would be engaged in learning remotely.
The departments designated three different thresholds for community spread of COVID-19 to determine which educational model school districts should use:
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Schools in a county with a low level of community transmission over the last seven days (less than 10 new positive COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents, and less than 5% of COVID-19 tests coming back positive) should have “full, in-person” instruction or use a blended learning model.
Schools in a county with a moderate level of transmission over the last seven days (between 10 and 99 new cases per 100,000 residents, or less than 10% of all new tests coming back positive) should follow a blended learning model or a full-remote learning model.
Schools in a county with a substantial level of transmission over the last seven days (100 or more new cases per 100,000 residents, or 10% or more of new tests coming back positive) should use the full-remote learning model.
The guidance is not a mandate, but designed to help school districts make adjustments throughout the year based on the state of the COVID-19 pandemic, state officials said.
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