Barnegat Schools Plan To Combine Remote, In-Person Learning

BARNEGAT, NJ — The Barnegat Township School District will likely incorporate plenty of remote learning this fall. Administration's plan, as it stands, would allow some students to learn from home every day while others would physically attend school two days per week.

Jim Barbieri — the district's director of curriculum, instruction and human resources — gave Patch a "rough outline" of the plan. But he said he wasn't at liberty to share Thursday to share the document with the proposal, which is around 40 pages.

Administrators will present the plan at the next Board of Education meeting, which takes place at 6:30 p.m. July 28 in Barnegat High School. But there are several steps for the coming days.

'Reduced-Capacity, In-Person Learning'

The prospective plan would break students up into three cohorts. About 15 percent of parents replied to the district's survey indicating they would like their children to continue learning remotely every day.

The district would allow students to do so if they present a doctor's note that they or their parents have underlying conditions that could leave them more vulnerable to COVID-19, Barbiere says.

Then the district would break students up into two different cohorts. One would learn in person Mondays and Wednesdays. The other would attend school Tuesdays and Thursdays. All students would learn remotely Friday and all weekdays when they're not physically in school.

"We are opening up the buildings for reduced-capacity, in-person learning," Barbiere said. "It will be socially distanced. It will align with the CDC (Center for Disease Control) guidelines as they continue to evolve."

New Jersey Coronavirus Updates: Don't miss local and statewide announcements about coronavirus precautions. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.

Officials would separate students based on transportation needs. All students from the same household would attend school on the same day and would likely attend the same days as their neighbors.

One half of each class would receive an in-person lesson one day. The teacher would assess each student's proficiency with that skill. Then some students would remotely practice that skill if they still need improvement, while others would receive virtual extension or enrichment activities.

It's still to be determined whether teachers or staff would be able to work remotely full-time, Barbiere says.

"The health and safety of students and staff is our top priority," he said. "We’re looking at all options within the guidelines that we received from the state of New Jersey and from the federal government. We’re waiting on further guidance from our board attorney in terms of how those rules apply to some of the questions that you just asked there."

The Next Steps

Several committees have vetted the proposal. Administration will then bring it to the school board's subcommittees, beginning with education. Then administrators would present it to the full board at its next meeting,

Meanwhile, teachers would continue with their annual professional development academy. This year, it would incorporate elements of virtual learning.

Administrators also hope to purchase new Chromebooks within the limits of the budget.

"We are not yet a one-to-one district," Barbiere said. "We are moving towards one-to-one. We’re in the middle of that initiative now. So we’re about two-thirds or three-quarters of the way there."

Read more: NJ Coronavirus, Reopen Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

Click here to get Patch email notifications on this or other local news articles or get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our app. Download here. Follow Barnegat-Manahawkin Patch on Facebook. Have a news tip? Email josh.bakan@patch.com.