Oklahoma City Public Schools is taking a step closer to normalcy when its school year begins Monday, but state laws regulating pandemic precautions and classroom conversations have shifted, altering the path forward for schools in the process.
The state's COVID-19 climate might feel unsettlingly similar to last summer with cases and hospitalizations steadily rising before the school year begins.
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But after a year and a half of dramatic changes in education, Oklahoma found a way to flip the script again.
1. Schools are reopening five days a week
Oklahoma City district students will have five days of in-person learning each week. The last time they could say that was March 2020.
The district switched between virtual instruction and hybrid class schedules before expanding to four-day school weeks in April. A full-time virtual curriculum is still available for families preferring to stay in remote learning.
Superintendent Sean McDaniel said he is eager for the traditional five-day format. He and other district administrators hosted an end-of-summer news conference Wednesday at Frederick A. Douglass High School.
“The relationship between teacher and student is critical in a face-to-face setting,” he said. “So, we want to do everything we can to get our kids and keep them in school.”
2. Masks are no longer required in Oklahoma schools
Unlike last school year, Oklahoma districts are forbidden from mandating masks unless Gov. Kevin Stitt issues an emergency declaration for the pandemic — a measure the governor said he has no plans to enact.
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Senate Bill 658, which took effect July 1, made mask mandates contingent upon an emergency order. It also blocked K-12 schools and colleges from requiring vaccinations.
That leaves mask wearing and vaccines up to the individual. Oklahoma City schools hope students and employees will arrive as willing partners in mask wearing and vaccinations.
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“If we will do those things, if we will wear a mask indoors if you can’t social distance, if you will get vaccinated, if you will quarantine at the appropriate times, we give our kids a better chance of staying healthy and saying in school,” McDaniel said. “We’re just encouraging people to do what you can.”
3. Controversial legislation will govern classroom conversations
The only school-related legislation more controversial than SB 658 this year has been House Bill 1775.
The new state law, which drew both acclaim and contempt during the 2021 Legislative Session, puts restrictions on lessons about race and gender in classrooms.
Public schools cannot teach that one race or sex is superior to others and that a person is inherently racist, sexist or oppressive. Students can’t be made to feel uncomfortable or guilty on account of their race or sex, nor can they be told they bear responsibility for actions committed in the past by members of their same race or sex.
HB 1775 doesn’t block the teaching of any subject or historical event listed in the Oklahoma Academic Standards. But many, including the Oklahoma City district, decried the bill as a way to discourage conversations about racism and other sensitive topics.
Families can file a complaint with the district if they believe a teacher or school has taught concepts that are banned under HB 1775. McDaniel said the district already has a robust complaint system and investigators on staff to look into alleged issues.
The Oklahoma State Board of Education passed emergency rules to enact HB 1775 last month, allowing parents to inspect classroom materials and to report the teaching of banned subjects both to the local school district and to the state. Any educators found in violation of the law could have their teacher certification revoked.
4. How might the delta variant impact schools?
Not enough evidence exists to determine whether the fast-spreading COVID-19 delta variant sickens children to a greater degree than previous strains of the coronavirus. That doesn’t mean health experts aren’t concerned about the variant’s impact on the coming school year.
Transmissions of the virus could be more likely in school settings where unvaccinated individuals choose not to wear masks, State Epidemiologist Jolianne Stone said.
Medical professionals know the delta variant contains a higher viral load and is far more transmissible than the original strain, she said.
Children ages 12 and older are eligible for the Pfizer vaccine. Medical experts highly recommend vaccination as a safe and effective tool against COVID-19.
“The choice for me as a parent was clear: my children are vaccinated,” said Dr. Amy Middleman, chief of adolescent medicine at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health. “And I recommend that, for their protection, my patients also get vaccinated.”
5. Youth vaccination rates are paltry in Oklahoma
Despite expert recommendations, vaccination rates among Oklahoma adolescents and teenagers remain low.
About 18% of youths ages 12-17 in the state are fully vaccinated, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Health. That’s far below the national average of 32%.
Fewer than 50,000 school-age youth are fully vaccinated in Oklahoma. They will be a minority among the 694,000 students enrolled in the state’s public schools.
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6. How many OKCPS employees are vaccinated?
Half of Oklahoma adults are fully vaccinated. In Oklahoma City schools, 60% of the district’s 5,000 employees self-reported that they took a COVID vaccine.
That still leaves about 1,500 adults working in the district’s schools who haven’t been vaccinated, McDaniel said.
School districts and universities are prohibited from mandating COVID-19 vaccinations under SB 658. Even before the law took effect, Oklahoma City schools did not require COVID-19 vaccines for employees and students.
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7. Health and safety measures will continue
Cleaning of high-touch surfaces will continue in Oklahoma City schools. All district facilities have been equipped with an ionization system that filters airborne particles and pathogens. Ionization improves air quality in every room of every school, McDaniel said.
District schools will maintain contact tracing, as well. COVID-19 testing is available through school partnerships with local health agencies. Anyone who tests positive must complete a 10-day period of isolation.
Quarantines are recommended after a coronavirus exposure, except for those who are two weeks past their final dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Anyone fully vaccinated is exempt from a quarantine period in the Oklahoma City district.
Social distancing will not be as easy to maintain, though. Classrooms, hallways and cafeterias will become more crowded with most students attending five days a week.
McDaniel said safety measures in the schools are still robust.
“If there is a district who has taken more steps toward safety than we have, man, I’d like to shake their hand,” McDaniel said. “My message to moms and dads and others is this is a good place for your kids to be. This is a safe place for your kids to be in the schoolhouse.”
8. Schools are prepared for remote learning but hope it won’t happen
McDaniel said teachers and schools will be ready to teach remotely if it becomes necessary.
Every student has a district-issued internet hotspot and take-home device – either a Google Chromebook or Apple iPad.
In the best of times, those devices supplement in-person instruction. In the event of a quarantine, isolation or school closure, those devices would become students’ access point to their education.
The district prefers to isolate individuals or a classroom before resorting to a school-wide or district-wide shutdown, McDaniel said.
The Oklahoma City district eliminated its policy of an automatic shift to online learning if community transmission rates become too high. However, the superintendent didn’t rule out the possibility of a return to virtual instruction if health expert advice and local data indicate it’s the best option.
“We don’t want to shut down the district,” McDaniel said. “We don’t want to shut anything down.
“We have the best laid plans, and we’ll see what the reality ends up being.”
Read more like this on The Oklahoman.
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