Where the top US school districts stand with virtual vs. in-person learning
In the effort to balance health, jobs and quality education, the nation’s biggest school districts are divided on how to teach students this semester.
Of the 20 largest school districts:
— 9 are teaching entirely online.
— 8 offer fully in-person learning and a choice of fully online learning. (Several of these districts are in Florida, where the governor ordered schools to offer classroom learning.)
— 2 have a hybrid plan, with some virtual and some classroom instruction.
— 1 has a combination of plans, depending on the infection rates.
Here’s how each of those school districts are teaching, ranked by size:
New York City Public Schools
— Elementary schools have a hybrid plan.
— Middle schools and high schools are all online.
Los Angeles Unified School District
— All instruction is online only.
— The superintendent said he wants all teachers to get vaccinated.
Chicago Public Schools
— All classes are currently online.
— Elementary school students are scheduled to return February 1, but the teachers’ union is pushing back.
Miami-Dade County Public Schools
— Families choose which type of learning they prefer, fully online or fully in-person.
Clark County School District in Nevada
— The fifth-largest district is expediting its plan to bring students back for in-person learning after a rise in student suicides.
Broward County Public Schools in Florida
— Families have a choice between fully online or fully in-person learning.
Houston Independent School District
— Instruction can be fully in-person or fully online.
Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida
— Families choose between fully online or fully in-person learning.
Orange County Public Schools in Florida
— Families have a choice between fully online or fully in-person learning.
The School District of Palm Beach County in Florida
Parents have the choice of enrolling their children in the following:
— Brick and mortar: Students attend in-person classes five days a week on campus
— Distance learning: Students learn remotely from teachers
— Palm Beach virtual school: Students participate in a self-paced learning guided by virtual teachers
Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia
— All instruction is online due to coronavirus infection rates in the area.
Hawaii State Department of Education (Hawaii public schools)
— Instruction plans are based on each island’s infection rates.
— As of this month, various islands had in-person learning, at-home learning or a combination.
Gwinnett County Public Schools in Georgia
— Families choose between fully online or fully in-person learning.
Wake County Public School System in North Carolina
— Instruction will be entirely online through mid-February.
Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland
— Teaching will be online only until small groups of students return for in-person instruction on March 15.
Dallas Independent School District
— Middle school and high school students have a hybrid plan.
— Fully in-person learning is available for elementary school students.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina
— All instruction is online.
— Kindergarten through eighth grades are scheduled to start classroom learning February 15.
— High school students are due to return to classrooms February 22.
The School District of Philadelphia
— All instruction is online.
— The superintendent has said he hopes to bring students from kindergarten through second grade back to classrooms in February.
Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland
— All instruction is online.
— Employees are tentatively scheduled to start getting vaccinated February 1.
— “We will reassess our reopening plans in mid-February,” school district CEO Monica Goldson said.
Duval County Public Schools in Florida
— Families have a choice between fully in-person or fully online learning.
