Philadelphia Parents Grappling With Big Decision On Whether To Send Kids Back To School Or Participate In Digital Academy
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The School District of Philadelphia is hammering out a plan to reopen schools in the fall. Eyewitness News talked to parents who are grappling with a big decision they must make in a short amount of time.
It's a decision that will decide how their children and the students will learn, at least for the first part of the year.
The plan laid out by the School District of Philadelphia is under the assumption that by September, there will still be active COVID-19 cases in the area, and that a vaccine will not yet be available.
If any of that changes, the district says this plan can too.
"I'm concerned with sending my child back," parent Attayah Milton said.
Milton is the mother to a pre-K student and upcoming first grader in the Philadelphia School District.
"I think that there is a value with in-class instruction but I have two children that are asthmatic," she said.
Therefore, she's interested in the district's new K-12 Digital Academy. It's a 100% virtual learning program for parents not comfortable with sending their child back into school buildings.
"Students who participate in the Digital Academy must be able to participate in a regular, full day of an instructional program five days per week," said Dr. Malika Savoy-Brooks, Chief of Academic Support for the School District of Philadelphia.
Parents must enroll their child in the Digital Academy by Aug. 4 and the student must remain in the program for two marking periods.
For students who will attend school physically, the district's hybrid back to school plan includes two days of classroom learning a week, where mask-wearing and social distancing will be mandatory.
"Our children ride SEPTA to school. They are exposed," parent Leslie Patterson-Tyler said.
Patterson-Tyler says she is also leaning toward the Digital Academy for her teenage daughter but wishes it could be personalized.
"The idea of having a one-size-fits-all digital model for students, in my opinion, is not a good idea because students don't all learn the same," she said.
For younger students, both the virtual and in-person options will require supervision at home.
"My first thought was how am I going to juggle that with a second child and a full-time job?" Milton asked.
The plan will be submitted for a Thursday review by the school board.