Dear parents,
students, staff, and Kenai Peninsula Borough communities:
For the past
several weeks, a 20 person planning team is designing the safe start-up for
school in August when we welcome all children and staff into the new 2020-2021
school year. Our sincere hope and planning goal is to open up all 42 schools
for onsite and in-person teaching and learning.
The Alaska
Departments of Education and Health and Social Services requested every school
district in the state to develop alternative plans in the event it becomes
necessary to provide for safe social distancing measures, or a more drastic
return to remote learning if the COVID-19 virus makes a strong return in our
communities. Part of the planning process includes how we will be able to
accurately determine community and school risk levels. Information and guidance
will come from both the state and public health. The risk levels and the
implemented actions in KPBSD may include:
- In
a Green or Low Risk environment, school will open on a normal schedule, and be as typical as possible with increased health and hygiene measures in place.
- In
a Yellow or Medium Risk environment, plans may require safe social distancing in schools and during bus transportation, smaller groupings of students, the possibility of wearing cloth face masks in some settings, and options for remote work or learning
for higher risk students and staff.
- If
we were experiencing community spread and transmission of the COVID-19
virus, this would trigger Red or High
Risk plans to be implemented which will likely result in the closure of some schools, and the need to provide remote off site instruction in that region of the district.
In July, the KPBSD
Board of Education and the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development
will receive our draft plans for final approval. I offer a special thanks to
the hundreds of staff and thousands of families who participated in the
survey’s that took place in May.
Our critical
mission is to provide equitable educational support and opportunities for all
students, all school year. For information and the latest updates about the KPBSD 2020 Smart Start
team’s work, please frequently visit our KPBSD 2020 Smart Start
web page at https://bit.ly/3eflLXC, or
access it from the KPBSD.org homepage.
Wishing you success
and positive impact,
John O'Brien, Superintendent
Learn more about PL, or read on:
Personalized Learning in KPBSD
Personalized learning shifts from a one-size-fits-all factory model of education to better prepare students for the jobs and needs of their future. The design of instruction and the classroom allow educators to respond to the individual needs of students instead of expecting students to fit the current mold or adapt to unsuccessful learning structures. PL does not replace teachers with computers. Many of our teachers implement elements of PL in their classrooms right now, and we will now build on this foundation to create an even better learning environment. Key elements your child will experience include:
- Teachers integrate digital content, which allows for a differentiated path and pace based on individual student needs
- Teachers use targeted instruction based on specific student needs and learning goals
- Teachers use current and relevant data to help inform instructional decisions and groupings
- Students engage in ongoing self-reflection that promotes ownership of their learning
When will PL formally start in KPBSD schools?
Every KPBSD school is doing some degree of work with personalized learning. However, the formal work of individual schools and teachers working directly toward personalized learning will be rolled out in three "waves" over the next year.
- Wave 1 schools began their work in spring 2017, and will continue in the fall of 2017.
- Wave 2 schools will begin their formal work with Education Elements in the fall of 2017.
- Wave 3 schools will begin their formal work with Education Elements in the spring of 2018.
Links
Personalized Learning
webpage
KPBSD Personalized Learning Blog
Personalized Learning
FAQs
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