District 25 to start year with full remote learning

Arlington Heights Elementary District 25 will start the school year with full remote instruction for all students, officials announced Monday.

The district's long-anticipated reopening plan, announced in a two-page letter from Superintendent Lori Bein to parents, came with the caveat that circumstances may change. The hope is to transition to a online and in-person hybrid model at some point, she wrote.

"There is no perfect solution for how to provide in-person instruction while also providing a 100% guarantee of safety for all students and staff," Bein wrote. "The only thing that I know for certain is that plans will need to be flexible as there could be many changes throughout the school year."

Survey data from families showed that 49% preferred a full in-person model, 27% preferred a hybrid model, and 25% preferred a full remote model.

“We feel forced to start remotely as a precautionary measure," Bein wrote.

She added that the goal is to work diligently towards a physical return to school in a hybrid model - a decision that would be re-evaluated monthly.

The remote school day would include five hours of instruction in grades 1-8, with a goal of half that time being live interaction between teachers and students, Bein said. Early childhood and kindergarten students would have 2½-hour instructional days with half that time devoted to live interaction.

Bein said remote instruction would be "robust," students will be responsible for classwork and assignments, and teachers will take attendance and give grades.

Students with special needs will receive teletherapy, and some may be brought on-site for some direct instruction and support services, Bein said.

No extracurriculars are planned for September, but will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for the future.

The first day for students is Tuesday, Sept. 1, while the staff will return Aug. 24.

The school board will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, at Ivy Hill Elementary, 2211 N. Burke Drive, to review details of the plan. Up to 35 community members can attend in-person, while up to another 500 can view the meeting streamed online.