The BOE chairman casts doubts on the plan for personal learning in public schools

HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) – The chairman of the state education committee says public schools won’t be ready to welcome some students back to campus when Q2 begins October 12.

That is despite assurances to the contrary from the Ministry of Education.

The board will vote on Thursday whether or not personal learning will be suspended for the time being.

Schools have been waiting to get students back on campus since July, but now the wait may be even longer. Both the Hawaii State Teachers Association and the school committee chairwoman – former headmistress Catherine Payne – say the standards the state health department uses to determine when schools can safely reopen are far looser than the CDC’s recommendations .

[Read more: Public schools will make ‘gradual’ transition to blended learning in October]

“The DOH is poised to allow ten times as many cases in the community as the CDC numbers,” said HSTA President Corey Rosenlee.

Headmaster Christina Kishimoto allows local school principals to use the case numbers to enable face-to-face teaching or hybrid learning that includes both online and face-to-face tuition.

HSTA says this creates confusion.

For example, Farrington High School on Oahu plans to welcome some students back to campus on October 12, while Kailua High will continue distance learning through the second semester.

“The confusing part is that some complex area managers on the exact same island make different decisions, and that puts everyone at risk,” said Rosenlee.

At Thursday’s meeting, Payne is expected to propose that the DOE review its in-person learning metrics, set clearer decision-making standards, and suggest keeping all schools in distance learning.

You and the union say the Ministry of Health also needs to explain why the guidelines for schools did not follow federal recommendations.

“Why didn’t the health department consider these critical metrics that other states and school districts use? It appears that despite the ongoing threat of community spread, the state is doing what it needs to justify reopening the school, ”added Rosenlee.

Health Department officials say the metrics were announced by CDC the same day they finalized the proposed metrics for DOE. The state adds that blended learning plans are evolving, and the department is determining how the CDC recommendations will be incorporated into the DOE’s reopening plan.

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