Welcome to the 2020-2021 School Year

Superintendent’s Update, October 15, 2020

Transcript

Booker T. Washington once said, "Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome."

Together, we have overcome many obstacles during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March, the State Superintendent closed our schools, and we had to quickly implement a virtual “Continuity of Learning” plan for our students. The Continuity of Learning process was far from perfect; however, our FCPS families and staff pulled together and got through it as best we could. There were many lessons learned while overcoming this obstacle, lessons that would prove to be beneficial when facing the next mountain.

In June, over 194 staff and community members joined together to develop plans for surmounting two possible mountains — a fully virtual reopening of schools and a hybrid of virtual and face-to-face learning. Both of these mountains presented new paradigms for instructing 44,000 students. There were no pre-existing road maps to follow or number one best-selling books. FCPS families and staff had to develop plans for overcoming this obstacle.

When the Board voted in July to open in a fully virtual model, we began to modify our virtual plan as we received new guidance. Staff and families began to prepare for this unique opening of school. We have now been in a virtual learning model for seven weeks. We have faced several challenges, and it hasn’t been perfect; however, our teachers, support staff, administrators, parents and guardians have been relentless in their support for the students and resilient in continuously adapting and improving the model. I appreciate and value the work that everyone has done on behalf of our precious students.

Now, we stand together in front of another steep and unpredictable mountain—the transition to a hybrid model that returns more students to face-to-face instruction. Some are ready to start climbing this mountain now, and others are more cautious. I know that all of us ultimately want students returned safely to face-to-face instruction—because we know that is the best way for students to learn and connect.

We will all climb this mountain together!

However, as any mountain climber will tell you, there are things you must do prior to climbing.

1. Prepare for the climb. Our administrators and staff have developed a state-approved school reopening plan for moving into the hybrid learning model. We have updated guidance regularly and offered step=by-step options for consideration.
2. Take the time to research the mountain you are about to climb. Our administrators and staff monitor the research on COVID-19 and collaborate with the health department to ensure that our plans reflect new guidance and safety precautions. We also collaborate with colleagues across the state who are implementing small group or hybrid instruction to share best practices.
3. Pack the items needed for survival. We have purchased the materials and supplies recommended by the CDC to ensure that our facilities will be ready and that our students and staff have the required PPE.
4. Stretch before the climb. We have already started to move into a hybrid model slowly by bringing in small groups of students. We are learning from these small groups and adjusting procedures in our reopening plan as needed to support additional safety measures.
5. Respect the power of nature. The COVID-19 virus is new, and research is continuously being updated. Working collaboratively with the Frederick County Health Department, our staff continues to monitor the latest research and metrics to support our climb because we value the many young climbers we are leading to this mountain, and we value the dedicated staff that will lead and support them throughout the climb.
   There is one more important tip for mountain climbers.
6. Greet people along the trail. All of us have a unique story that we bring to the mountain. Let’s make this experience as pleasant as possible for all climbers, no matter where they are on this trail. Lend a hand. Share a smile. Stay positive. It means more than we realize.

Whether you are standing with us at the foot of the mountain saying climb now, or standing back saying not yet, we are all here together. We will overcome this obstacle…Together!

Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Important Information About Schedules and Schoology Access

The 2020-2021 school year is almost here and we are excited to begin our virtual learning journey!  This week schools who have not already mailed the following items will be sending important information that includes:

• Your child's schedule
• Your school's virtual schedule
• Letter with important technology information including*:
  • Parent Access Code for Schoology: Many parents/guardians have already connected to their child(ren)'s Schoology account using their Parent Access Code. If you have not created a parent account in Schoology, use this Parent Access Code to create your account and connect with your child(ren) accounts. 
  • Your student's NEW FCPS credentials to access all FCPS technology.  All student username/password credentials will be reset on August 26 at midnight.  After the reset, your child should use these new credentials to access Schoology and other digital tools. 

You will also receive an email that will include the Schoology Parent Access Code information as referenced above. This is the same code as the one you will receive in the letter mentioned above. This email will also contain links to videos to help parents/guardians understand Schoology.  

Courses and course materials will be visible to students and parents/guardians in Schoology on Thursday, August 27th. 

Note: The week of August 24th is the teacher training and preparation week.  Courses may appear empty or have limited resources because teachers work in an "unpublished mode" before finalizing their course.  Course materials will be available once classes begin.

To learn more about student navigation and parent account setup in Schoology, please visit www.fcps.org/schoology. 

Please contact your child's school if you have any questions. 

*Your elementary school may provide you the important technology letter during the scheduled material distribution time next week.

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

FCPS welcomes you to the 2020-2021 school year.

The Board of Education decided to open the 2020-2021 school year in a virtual only model.  A number of developments have occurred over the summer that we want to make you aware of to better prepare you for the start of the school year. 

Virtual learning enhancements include:

• Increase in Live Face-to-Face Instruction
• Record and Share Google Meet Sessions
• Small Group In-school Face-to-Face Instruction
• Schoology Designated as the Course Management Platform
• More Digital Resources, Activities and Assignments in Schoology
• More Professional Learning for Teachers
• Return to Normal Grading Practices
• Weekly Instructional Planning

After questions and feedback from students, parents and teachers about expectations for the instructional model, we have developed important components that will be part of the instructional model moving forward.

Increase in Live Face-to-Face Instruction

The first component will be an increase in live, face-to-face instruction during each week. Students will have scheduled times to receive instruction from their teachers via Google Meet. Although many teachers used Google Meet to provide instruction during  Continuity of Learning, all teachers will provide synchronous instruction in the Virtual Learning model. It is important that students join these instructional sessions. 

Record and Share Google Meet Sessions

We received many requests from families to record Google Meet sessions so they can be viewed at a later time. Many felt the recordings would allow students to review the instruction when they're working on assignments and help parents understand what was expected of their child. We are pleased to announce that Google Meet sessions can be recorded and will be in most cases. These recordings will then be available for review by students and families. 

Small Group In-school Face-to-Face Instruction

The Board of Education authorized small groups of students to participate in in-school face-to-face instruction. School teams will be working to identify those students needing additional face-to-face time beyond virtual learning. School staff will contact you if your child is identified for in-school, face-to-face small group instruction.

Schoology Designated as the Course Management Platform

Another improvement for this year will be the use of Schoology as the only platform for course management. Parents were overwhelmingly in favor of moving all classes into a single platform as it was challenging for parents to access, understand and manage multiple platforms. We believe teachers, parents and students will see the real value of a single learning platform for course management, gradebook and communication. Day to day communications regarding course activities and assignments will occur through Schoology. Specific directions on how you can connect to Schoology will be provided in the near future. Of course, teachers will still contact parents via phone and email when that's the most appropriate form of communication.

We know that Schoology had some bumps when the entire country moved to online learning in March, as did the other major learning management systems like Blackboard, Canvas and Its Learning. In working with the company this summer, we believe there should be limited interruptions to the Schoology platform. However, we ask families to remain patient if glitches occur during the first week of school as many districts across the country will be coming online around the same time. 

More Digital Resources, Activities and Assignments in Schoology

FCPS staff worked tirelessly with teachers over the summer to create digital resources, activities, assignments and more in Schoology to support teachers in virtual learning. Having these ready-made resources available will allow teachers to spend less time developing assignments, assessments, videos and activities and more time engaging with students, providing direct instruction, giving feedback on student work, and holding small group instruction. 

More Professional Learning for Teachers

In addition to digital resources being readily available for teachers, significant professional learning occurred in the spring and many teachers continued learning into the summer. FCPS will continue to provide professional learning opportunities to build teacher confidence in virtual learning. 

FCPS has added new digital tools and upgraded others to improve the online learning experience for students. We are committed to successfully connecting all students virtually. If you are unable to access a device for your child or if internet connectivity is a challenge, please reach out to your child's school. We'll work to get your child connected. 

Return to Normal Grading Practices

Another upgrade in the virtual model will be the return to normal grading practices according to  the FCPS grading regulations. This change was guided by feedback we received from teachers, parents and students. Schoology will now be the required gradebook for all teachers, regardless of grade level. Families will now be able to check the grades of their children in Schoology at the elementary, middle and high school levels. 

Weekly Instructional Planning

We know some students will have difficulty participating in a virtual learning environment depending on the day. As a result, teachers will be engaging in weekly instructional planning whereby students have flexibility to complete assignments over a period of time with dates considerate of individual situations with students and families.

Sample student schedules by school level can be found here.