RISD families initially registered 1,040 students for the program, which includes district educators teaching curriculum both synchronously and asynchronously. During the Aug. 23 board meeting, Deputy Superintendent Tabitha Branum said that number had declined to 1,010 students after the first day of virtual learning Aug. 23.
“Once parents had ... a deeper understanding of what their role is, [some] made a decision that they wanted [their students] to return [to school] in-person,” Branum said. “So, you'll see that [enrollment] number could change over time.”
Branum told the board the district has 20,613 elementary students. That number includes pre-K and early education students as well as those in kindergarten through sixth grade.
Third and sixth grades had the highest share of virtual learners with 158 each, followed by 152 fifth graders. The district’s lowest share of virtual learners is the 116 in kindergarten, while second grade had the next lowest with 134 students. “We also saw all campuses represented," Branum said. "One campus had a low of two students that were in the virtual classroom option, all the way to a campus that had [a high of] 73 students. All grade levels had, kind of, an equal balance of interest.”
Parents of students in RISD’s virtual option are expected to serve as their child’s “at-home learning coach” and to play an active role in supporting their child's learning, according to the district website.
“Our virtual classroom facilitators really are there to connect in the morning, make sure that parents and students know how to access all of their assignments [and] that they don't have any questions,” Branum said. “We are providing some small-group time if we know that students are struggling or need additional support, but primarily, this is led by our parents as at-home learning coaches.”
The virtual learning option is scheduled to last through Oct. 15, which is the end of the district’s first nine-week grading period. The deadline for parents to register students for the option was Aug. 17.
A decision about whether the program will be extended into the second grading period is expected to be made by Oct. 9, according to district staff. During the Aug. 23 meeting, RISD Superintendent Jeannie Stone said one consideration for that decision is a pending bill in the Texas Legislature's special session that seeks state funding for virtual schools.
“Another consideration will be where we are on Oct. 9 with the [COVID-19] delta variant data,” she said. “So, we'll be continuing to monitor that and to see if [a virtual option extension] is necessary. Nothing would make us happier than if we could have every single student back in school without a mask on.”
Plano ISD had 2,396 students enrolled in its temporary, parent-led virtual option for students in pre-K through sixth grade. PISD’s virtual option is slated to last through Sept. 3.
