The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has released its recommendations for the 2020-2021 academic year after the disruption brought by the COVID-19 crisis, according to a June 16 report by Houston’s Community Impact newspaper.

The options include a calendar with larger breaks spread throughout an entire calendar year, along with dispersed attendance, plus the option of adding days for an early start and late finish. 

An intersessional calendar might include the following changes: starting earlier and ending later; longer breaks during the school year; staggered in-person attendance; built-in remote learning time; up to six weeks of intersessional breaks added to the regular calendar; and breaks required due to the potential resurgence of COVID-19 or bad-weather makeup days.

Another option is to redesign the calendar. A 2019 bill from the Texas House of Representatives (HB3) allowed districts to extend the academic year by 30 days for elementary schools in the state. An extended calendar could include any of the following: optional summer learning; a full-year redesign using seven six-week sessions; a daily schedule changes that allow for extra teacher planning and extra student play time; and an intersessional calendar that includes breaks for remediation for specific students.

In order to take advantage of these options, school districts must first change their start dates. Before that happens, they must talk with students, teachers and parents to determine exactly what is needed and what they want. The districts must then get board approval to make those changes. 

The Texas Education Agency expects short-term disruptions, and rising absenteeism among students due to COVID-19. In examining what that means, the education agency projects that up to a year’s worth of progress could be lost.

To learn more about the options that TEA is exploring and what the next steps may be, visit tea.texas.gov, where you can find the “HB 3 in 30” web video series.