On Wednesday, August 5 at 5:30 p.m. News 5 aired “Safely Back to School,” a half-hour special showing how Ohio schools plan to rebound this fall amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Watch the complete special in the video player above.
The state offered limited guidance on how schools should safely reopen leaving local districts to create their own plans incorporating online, in person, and hybrid learning models. Additionally, a number of school districts are now creating their reopening plans based on the Ohio Department of Health’s color-coded COVID-19 threat system.
So, how do parents, students and teachers navigate all this? We had candid conversations with all the stakeholders, and consistent with our Rebound brand, we provided useful, action-oriented steps that people can take to return back to school safely.
Watch and read the individual stories from our half-hour special by clicking the links below:
What do teachers think about their districts’ back-to-school plans?
News 5 reporter Taneisha Cordell spoke to teachers from Parma and Shaker Heights to learn how they feel about their districts’ current plans for the fall semester, from the challenges of virtual learning to the concerns about bringing students and staff back into a classroom.
No easy solution: Students and parents raise concerns about both in-person and online school options
News 5 reporter Jonathan Walsh assembled a group of students and then a group of parents at the Grantwood pavilion in Solon for candid conversation about various school options for the fall.
What happens when a teacher or student has a case of COVID-19?
Many districts have released their plans for the fall semester, and many do include plans to bring all or some of the staff back to the classroom at some point. But what happens when a teacher or a student tests positive for COVID-19? News 5’s Amanda VanAllen spoke to school officials in Akron and Summit County to find out.
COVID disrupted learning time, but didn’t inherently disrupt education quality, says CMSD CEO
For the first nine weeks of school, a classroom won’t be offered to students in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD). Instead, they’ll have to do all their learning through a computer screen, part of a plan made necessary by the coronavirus for CMSD and many other districts to start the upcoming school year completely online.
Shaker Heights teacher concerned virtual learning makes impactful teaching impossible
The anxiety that many students face with back-to-school routines is also shared by parents and teachers. Brittany Webb, a math teacher in Shaker Heights said virtual learning has stripped her of what makes her an impactful teacher.
When sports may return to school in Ohio, and what it might look like
The spring sports season was abruptly canceled for young athletes across the state due to the pandemic, and since then, teams have been preparing for a different type of opponent in the fall: uncertainty.
