Governor Kay Ivey on Tuesday released a statement encouraging Alabama education leaders — both on the state and local levels — to get students back to in-person instruction as soon as possible.
This comes as many school districts continue with various forms of instruction other than traditional in-person learning; this includes hybrid formats as well as virtual-only instruction.
Additionally, some school districts, such as Birmingham City Schools, have recently announced a cessation of any in-person instruction as COVID-19 numbers rise nationwide and across the Yellowhammer State.
“Due to COVID-19, 2020 has been an extremely challenging year for everyone, especially for our parents, teachers and students,” Ivey said to begin her statement. “I’m extremely grateful for the flexibility everyone has shown as they have adapted to virtual instruction.”
“However, virtual and remote instruction are stop-gap measures to prevent our students from regressing academically during the pandemic. These practices cannot — and should not — become a permanent part of instructional delivery system in 2021. As we are learning more about COVID-19, we are seeing more and more clear evidence pointing out that our students are safe in the classroom with strong health protocols in place,” the governor continued.
Notably, Dr. Anthony Fauci in recent days called on leaders to keep schools open.
“If you look at the data, the spread among children and from children is not really very big at all,” he advised.
Ivey on Tuesday added, “There are nearly 9,800 fewer students enrolled statewide in this academic year and a five percent reduction in students on the kindergarten level. This will not only result in a critical learning loss for our students today but will also likely lead to an equally negative impact on the readiness of our workforce in years to come. Additionally, it could have an equally important economic loss that affects the critical funding for our classrooms and teacher units.”
“As we begin the holiday season and contemplate a return to a normalcy in 2021, I strongly urge our education leadership on both the state and local levels to return to in-person instruction as soon as possible,” she concluded. “My Administration will work with Dr. Mackey, all of our local superintendents and the Legislature to ensure that our kids are back in the classroom in 2021. Our employers, our families, our communities, Alabama’s taxpayers, and most importantly, our students, deserve nothing less.”
Ivey in recent weeks also advocated for keeping Alabama businesses open.
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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