Cindy Truong, Class III
Photo by Mary Frost, Brooklyn Daily Eagle
A grueling year of remote and hybrid learning has passed as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Around the world, millions of students are facing unprecedented and long-term impacts from the deficits in their education and social interactions amidst online learning. As the 2020-21 school year comes to a close, it is inevitable to wonder, what will the next school year look like for New York City public schools?
Currently, an estimated 700,000 students or two-thirds of the city’s education system have chosen to remain remote due to the lingering health concerns from COVID-19. However, with the $92 billion preliminary budget, Mayor Bill de Blasio aims to have more students back into the buildings next school year by prioritizing reopening New York City public schools in the fall. In an interview with MNSBC, Mayor de Blasio said, “We’re coming back in September full strength. I don’t have a doubt in my mind.”
A major stepping stone to reopening schools is successfully distributing COVID-19 vaccines across the city. “Increased availability of the vaccine is the key to fully reopening everything, from schools to businesses,” de Blasio said. Even though teachers have begun to receive the vaccines, this is not yet the case for the 1.1 million students in the city’s education system. While children are less likely to experience serve COVID symptoms, it is vital to recognize that vaccinating the broader population would slow community spread and raise the confidence in parents’ sending their children back to campus. Vaccinating the entire city will take time, especially with the current stagnant flow of COVID vaccines, but the outcome will ensure a safer reopening of NYC schools for students and school staff.
The CDC has recently updated the K-12 school guidance on physical distancing between students from 6 feet to 3 feet with universal masking. Although it is unclear if this would continue for the 2021-22 school year, many experts agree that the continuation of mask-wearing, hand washing, and good ventilation will still be necessary for the foreseeable future. Mayor de Blasio also mentioned the huge cost New York City public schools will face when reopening to address the COVID achievement gap and to provide support to kids who have been through trauma. Some kids fell behind during remote learning because of the lack of guidance or services they have received, others have faced serious emotional traumas, while some have succeeded and thrived in this environment. The city has recently revealed several ideas to help students catch up and meet their needs during the 2021-22 school year: assessing children to see what they know, devising tailored digital lessons, and providing training for teachers and parents. The mayor also plans to direct $35 million for “resources to support social-emotional learning impacted by COVID.” Whatever the case may be, it is important to address these concerns and create a plan that would support and not disregard the troubles students and school staff had to face this past year.
The Latineer recently conducted a survey on our Instagram to collect data and statements from the Brooklyn Latin School community regarding their preference for hybrid and remote learning or full in-person learning for the 2021-22 school year. The results were strikingly close; 59% of students prefer hybrid and remote learning, while 41% prefer full in-person. When asked why they selected their choice, Allison Goel, a Class II discipula who chose full in-person learning, expressed her desire for prom. Others, on the contrary, prefer hybrid and remote learning because they are not fond of the idea of traveling to and from school on public transportation. “I live very far from TBLS, and [there are] also safety issues regarding me taking two long trains,” discipula Yuqi Zhang from Class IV said. An anonymous Class III discipula also expressed the same worry, “I have to travel on the train. I don’t think it’s safe because I feel it’s crowded and dirty there.” Although some students were very keen on what they want for the next school year, others have considered both sides of the spectrum in their response. Class III discipula, Merry Li, selected her preference for full in-person learning next school year, but also explicitly stated the importance of getting vaccinated before returning to school: “ Remote learning is definitely not learning—it may be bad that I’m saying this as a student, but students are losing motivation and overall, it’s just not a proper environment. So I think if everyone gets a vaccine and it is safe, then in-person learning would be better. But safety [is important].”
Looking at these results, it is going to be challenging to promote a plan that effectively balances the different concerns and wants of New York City public school students. However, we do know that learning and teaching would not fully return to what we used to think of as "normal" for the foreseeable future.
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