Orlando, Fla. — In less than five weeks, Florida parents will have three choices for their students: enroll them in online classes from their school, sign them up for the district’s virtual school, or send them back to traditional in-person classes.
Florida’s public and charter schools must open their buildings in August to begin classroom instruction, as ordered by the state’s Department of Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran Monday night.
The order has many parents and school districts perplexed over how to safely begin the school year as the COVID-19 pandemic grows.
“The real conversation is how do we keep kids safe,” asks Dr. Candice Jones, an Orlando pediatrician and a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
App users, listen to the full conversation with Dr. Candice Jones here.
Last month, the AAP said it “strongly advocates” having children physically present in school, citing evidence that elementary school aged-children appear to be at the lowest risk for serious infection.
Dr. Jones recommends parents read the state’s order and June’s AAP statement.
“So many things need to be considered and can be done creatively to keep kids safe but it is very important to understand that nothing is going to be 100% risk free.”
She says parents should weigh the benefits of sending their child back to the classroom and consider their family’s own health history.
Some of those benefits detailed in the emergency order include improved nutrition, socialization, counseling, and extra-curricular activities.
But Dr. Jones says it’s also very possible to provide children with those perks at home.
“There’s a whole world of children who are home-schooled successfully.”
As a pediatrician who, in recent weeks, has diagnosed children with the novel coronavirus and a mother herself, Dr. Jones says she has her reservations sending her children back to school as case numbers rise.
“I just would have to see that my school is doing enough to keep them safe or they will be home with me.”
The Orange County school board met on Tuesday to discuss a reopening plan. You can watch that meeting by tapping here.