Local decisions made by local folks based on their local knowledge of the area and how it is being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

That’s the view of Tera Collum, executive director of the Travis Institute of Educational Policy.

“It should be left up to the districts,” Collum told The Lone Star Standard. “Each area of the state is dealing with different levels of COVID. They should be able to do what is best for their district.”

Tera Collum | File photo

Collum says this is not a matter for federal or state officials or agencies. Instead, one group should make the call.

“School administrations working with their county public health department would be ideal,” she said.

Schools are required to report COVID-19 cases involving students or staff to the state within 24 hours. The Texas Education Agency and the Department of State Health Services will, starting in September, provide weekly updates about COVID-19 cases in public schools. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission is sharing information about COVID-19 cases in childcare centers, school-age programs and before- and after-school programs.

The Texas Education Agency says that districts can develop a hybrid instructional model that utilizes on-campus, remote-asynchronous and remote-synchronous experiences. It is leaving most decisions up to school districts and the local community, but has offered a series of guidelines on best practices to follow as schools reopen.

“With limited exceptions . . . LEAs (local educational agencies) must offer schooling that is fully on-campus,” the TEA explains on its website. “In addition, they may also offer the option for students to receive instruction that is fully remote, or a hybrid model that is designed to have some on-campus attendance days and some remote attendance days. When delivering instruction remotely, a district can choose to offer any grade/subject synchronously, asynchronously, or a mix of both.

“Assuming the options are available from the school, students can generate attendance that varies by day, on campus, or remote (synchronous or asynchronous),” the TEA continued. “For intentionally designed hybrid experiences, this will vary by design. But for some students, it will vary because they want to change their instructional setting as circumstances change over the course of the year.”

Collum is talking with educators and said two messages come through loud and clear.

“They are concerned that students will not get the education they deserve but, at the same time, they are scared to be back with in-person learning due to all the unknowns,” Collum said. “And that virtual learning is the most tiring thing they have done. Most are exhausted and are experiencing eye strain from the constant computer use and lack of time between classes. Also, most students seem to think it’s not real school, that it doesn’t count, so teachers are doing a lot of work to prepare and some students are not even logging on to the system.”

Collum says that while the pandemic is a legitimate issue, there are other problems with remote learning.

“I think it will have a huge impact,” she said. “We will run the risk of learning being affected with long-term consequences. Younger students might have frustrations because they do not have the experience with computers. Older students may take advantage of the situation and not do the work, thus falling behind when they go back to in-person education.”

Collum founded The Travis Institute of Educational Policy, which is based in Bedford, because she was “frustrated” that teachers did not have a louder voice and a greater say on educational issues.

“Our mission is clear: To improve the education of all Texas students and empower teachers with support, education and guidance,” it states on the institute’s website. “Whatever it takes, we will be here to stand by the teachers of Texas.”

That includes during a pandemic.