Will Fayette school’s at-home learning program get better this fall? Families hope so.

Denise Bauer, the parent of a Lafayette High School student, hopes that if distance learning is used as a long-term solution again in Fayette County schools that the district has a plan and appropriate tools for teachers.

Bauer who has “mixed feelings” about the at-home learning experience her daughter had when Fayette County Public Schools shut down and switched to non-traditional instruction, or NTI, this past spring, said both the district and schools can improve how they communicate with parents and families.

“My daughter missed some of the simple, routine things such as morning announcements. While they may not be needed during distance learning, those are the things that keep some normalcy in the situation. Even just updating the school’s website and announcements page would be helpful to both students and parents,” she said.

In announcing a reopening plan Thursday, Fayette County officials are expected to share what the district plans to do to make NTI work, how they hope to increase the numbers of kids participating and how grading will be different in the fall, district officials said Wednesday.

With COVID-19 cases spiking in Kentucky, Jefferson County schools on Tuesday night voted to start school this fall solely with a new NTI at-home learning model that features “more synchronous, robust and engaging instructional components, “ and greater supports for students and families, the Courier-Journal reported.

According to information previously released by the state, Fayette County’s rate of student participation in Kentucky’s at-home learning program dropped over an eight week period that schools were shut down due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Fayette’s student participation rate dropped from 85 percent in the first week it was implemented in April to 58 percent in the eighth week. Fayette piloted a data collection methodology that was likely to make the participation rates lower, district spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall said.

Penny Christian, president of the 16th District PTA that includes Fayette County, said she fully expects that families, teachers, and the district will all be more comfortable with virtual learning if it is used in the fall.

“I can only assume that means more accountability when it comes to attendance, grading, etc.,” Christian said.

“I plan to assist families in any way possible to insure our most marginalized students are successful during this pandemic regardless of how school looks,” she said.

Families responding to a district survey on NTI gave good reviews in several areas, but five percent of the families who responded said they had no devices in their home for virtual learning.

Only 56 percent of families and 50 percent of kids who responded thought that students felt like part of a community in their NTI courses.

“I don’t think any of us would be surprised to see that that sense of community was much less evident because of the distance that we had the last ten weeks of school,” district spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall said at a virtual meeting earlier this month.

Fourteen percent of families said they had difficulty watching videos without interruption. More than a fifth of students said they had difficulty watching online videos without interruption.

Roughly 15 percent of staff said their home internet connection was a barrier in completing work.

Deffendall said district officials will provide training to staff to strengthen their comfort level with NTI, will observe and provide support to staff during online learning and conduct other surveys for additional feedback. Data from the survey is being analyzed to make improvements.

The district has already spent $2.4 million on educational technology, according to state records. Superintendent Manny Caulk said expenditures in the spring included internet hotspots, and printing and online learning resources purchased to support Non-Traditional Instruction.

Parent Melissa Parks said she thinks the more options the district can offer families in the fall, the better.

“Everyone wants our children to succeed, but the solution won’t be one size fits all,” Parks said.

Parks said it is difficult for parents to work and to monitor schoolwork at the same time, especially with a child who needs guidance and prompts to complete work.

When Parks had problems with NTI in the spring, she spoke with someone at Central Office who sympathized with the challenges working parents face.

“She suggested reaching out to my child’s teacher to ask if we could complete assignments over the course of the week, so we could have Saturday to devote to his assignments as well. It was exhausting for me, but it was the best option we could come up with,” Parks said.

Bauer said two of her daughter’s teachers, in particular, continued to have the same high standards they’d set before switching to NTI.

“Most of her teachers did a good job, some did a great job and some were somewhat disengaged,” she said.

“In addition to our students’ academic needs, if they are going to face periods of distance learning in the future, ... I think both the school district and schools can improve how they communicate with parents,” she said.

Jessica Hiler, president of the Fayette County Education Association, said giving teachers more time and resources to plan for virtual instruction is key to making it a success. Hiler said educators in the spring went above and beyond to make sure kids received the best education possible with NTI during an unprecedented time.

Fayette school officials have previously discussed offering an in-person option along with the virtual for fall.

Hiler, however, said on Tuesday that, “The spike in (coronavirus) cases has me concerned.”

School board chairwoman Stephanie Spires said a committee that had been studying how to reimagine schools would on Thursday present their research and recommendations on how to reopen schools.

Spires said on social media this week that if “we are going to get our children back in the classroom, we, as a community have to make this a priority. We have to work to decrease cases and we need increase access to rapid testing and results.”

At the July board planning meeting, Caulk said that there was no substitute for being in the classroom and he knew students would regress in the months they weren’t there.

“I want our children in the classroom and I sympathize with our families,” Spires said. “As a single, self employed, mother of four, with special needs and abilities, I understand the challenges that lack of childcare and virtual therapies are causing for our families. I understand that our children miss their friends. I miss my friends.”

This story was originally published July 22, 2020 at 3:39 PM.