The Superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia, Dr. William Hite, said the district was exploring plans to expand instruction options into the summer with a fifth grading period for students who may have suffered more learning loss. The information was provided during an interview for Good Day Philadelphia Monday.
The district plans come while 53 public schools reopened their doors to Pre-K to 2nd-grade students who had opted into hybrid learning last fall.
According to a Fox 29 report, Dr. Hite noted in the interview that the district’s purpose was to have the remaining schools reopened to Pre-K to 2nd-grade students by March 22, this way they could focus on them and then begin to consider which students would be next to return.
You can read: Pennsylvania offers new guidance to school districts for reopening schools
Dr. Hite was asked if the current timeline meant most older students may not see the inside of a school building until next fall and he said that physical distancing guidelines were still activated, so not all students would be able to return at once.
He added that the district was exploring extending instruction into the summer with a fifth grading period option. Hite also said that the extension into the summer schooling could be ‘significant.’
Another grading period
“We’re going to add another grading period, and that will be for children who need help and who have fallen the most,” Hite said. “Individuals will still have an opportunity to choose whether or not they do that.”
Hite added that the district wanted to partner up the extension into the summer with individuals who normally run camps and arts and culture activities inside of their schools. That partnership would ensure that the added time wouldn’t just be a ‘school-based experience,’ but also an ‘enrichment experience’ as students use the time to make up for lost learning.
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