Danvers To Host Meeting For Input On Hybrid, Remote Learning

DANVERS, MA —Danvers students, parents, and community members can share their thoughts on the successes and failures of remote and hybrid learning at a community hearing Monday night. The School Committee is hosting the special meeting to hear feedback about what’s been working and what people would like to see going forward.

School Committee Chairperson David Thomson said the district will update attendees on its plans, but the primary purpose is to get feedback.

“Most importantly, to hear from parents who have kids in the distance to hear what's working and what’s not working, to make things better,” Thomson said of the goal for the meeting.

Parents have widely varying opinions on what the district should do, he said. Some want all kids to be attending in-person everyday, while others think they should be kept remote––others fall somewhere in between.

“People have strong opinions on all sides, and I say all sides because there’s many more than two,” Thomson said.

Danvers switched to remote learning in December after a rise in cases that put the town in the state’s high-risk category.

"This decision was made based on a number of factors, including the review of the public health data, anticipated gatherings over the holidays and an uptick of cases in the community and schools, resulting in significant staffing challenges, Danvers Superintendent of Schools Lisa Dana told Patch at the time.

The district returned to hybrid learning on Jan. 11. The district hosted a webinar for how to make the best of remote learning later that week.

Thomson said he hopes people attend the meeting and give their opinions.

“It’s really difficult because we’re trying to make the best decisions as a School Committee based on the information we have, but we’ve bever lived in a pandemic before and we’ve certainly never tried to educate students during a pandemic,” he said.