Students will be able to make up work at Pathways

Home district Transportation Departments are aware of the schedule and will provide bussing.

IN-PERSON INSTRUCTION – DAILY SAFETY PROTOCOLS

Our plan will have the greatest success when students, parents and staff work together in supporting the safety protocols outlined below. To optimize cooperation, we will rely on the strategies we always have, well-communicated expectations, positive interventions and a hierarchy of consequences.

All students must wear acceptable face coverings at all times; excluding students who are unable to medically tolerate a face covering. Please no bandanas or inappropriate messages on face covering.

If your son or daughter is medically unable to wear a mask, please provide a doctor’s note.

Mask breaks will be provided but students will need to wait until they have permission from an adult to remove their mask. Students should expect to wear a mask most of the day.

Student temperatures will be checked as students are getting off the bus. Students that have a high temperature (100⁰ or higher) will be sent home along with any household residents.

Students will follow our normal safety protocols including metal detection, bag inspection.

Staff will be trained to observe for symptoms. Students displaying any symptoms will immediately be asked to report to the Health Office. The nurse will make a determination regarding whether the student should be sent home.

A room has been set aside for students who are showing symptoms and cannot be in class. Students will be able to wait safely for transportation if needed.

HYBRID INSTRUCTION

We will run into circumstances where school is open but some students are not in attendance for COVID and Non-COVID related illnesses.

When a student is not able to come to school they are responsible for material covered in class.

Students will be able to take part in lesson over the internet, with Google Classroom, Nearpod and Zoom.

All instructional materials will be available through Google Classroom.

Students will follow their nine period class schedule. Students will be able to take part in the lessons through a “Zoom Meeting”. They will be able to ask questions and take part from home. The lessons will be recorded so students can review at their own pace.

Nearpod allows teachers to create virtual lessons that are interactive and engaging for students.

Teachers will take attendance for each period as usual and absences will be followed up with parent contact.

REMOTE INSTRUCTION

We will use remote instruction when we are forced to close school. This year when school closes instruction will continue. We will have classes every day except when the school calendar says we have a day off.

With the remote learning model, students will follow a modified bell schedule and report to their assigned classes for face-to-face virtual instruction via Zoom. Students are expected to follow this schedule similar to if we were meeting in person. This modelwillallowstudentstobeactivelyengagedinclasseseveryday.Attendancewill be taken for each class and students are expected to attend all classes.

PATHWAYS ACADEMY REMOTE LEARNING SCHEDULE

Remote Instruction Scheduling Notes:

Attendance for all classes is required and attendance will be recorded.

As we do for normal face to face instruction each day will be labeled as either an A day or a B day. Depending on the label students will follow that day’s schedule.

In the Spring of 2020 we found it beneficial to allow for time in the schedule for students to work one on one with their teachers. There is time built in to the schedule that allows for that to happen.

The “Pathways Wake Up” will become our morning ritual for our community. Students will be given a chance to have a few moments to hear announcements, prepare their minds for the day ahead, engage with some movement and get their Physical Education Challenge of the Day. Students will receive PE credit for attending the class and taking part in the physical challenge.

ACCESS TO INSTRUCTION IN REMOTE LEARNING

Students will access instruction through Google Classroom. When students log into Google Classroom they will be provided with instructional material such as videos, subject specific reading and writing prompts. They will also be able to submit their work on Google Classroom. Students will follow their schedule joining Zoom meetings set up by their teachers. These meetings will provide virtual instruction and access to their teacher in a live interaction. Students will be able to ask questions and interact similar to the way they do in school. Teachers will be able to record their lessons in case a student is absent or needs a chance to review the material.

Students that need devices for remote instruction will be provided a chromebook by the Herkimer BOCES. Parents will be asked to sign an Acceptable Use Agreement as well provide assurance the device will be returned. We will work with families and their home district for those that do not have access to reliable internet. In the case of Special Needs students or students unable to access the Internet, paper copies of all work will be provided by the district.

Interaction, Collaboration and Feedback

Interaction, collaboration and feedback are critical elements of any rich educational experience. While virtual instruction creates an obstacle we are committed to insuring each student has every opportunity enjoy these benefits.

First, lessons on zoom will allow for face to face conversation among students, teachers and teaching assistants. Zoom also makes it possible for teachers to set up small groups within a class group. This is useful if a student is working at a different pace or needs a different kind of attention.

In addition to period by period lessons teachers and teaching assistants will be reaching out to students to check on progress and offer support at the end of the day. Teachers will rely on Zoom meetings, phone and email to accomplish this. We learned in the Spring of 2020 that this kind of individual attention is very productive.

Finally, the staff at Pathways takes very seriously the individual needs of their students. Families can be assured that all teachers of students with special needs will document daily contact on individual student contact logs, IEP goals will be supported and tracked and related services will be provided in accordance with the IEP.

STUDENT AND FAMILY SUPPORT/SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING

One of the most important lessons from last spring is how important it is to work with families in supporting students at this time. Here are some of the strategies we plan to use to keep everyone informed and support positive outcomes for students.

We are planning Family Meetings on September 2 and September 3. The meetings will be held in our building and they will be scheduled in a way that takes social distancing and overall safety into account. These meetings are being held so that families can have familiarity and confidence in how student safety is being accounted for. We also will demonstrate some of the technology in use so that parents can support as much as possible if we need to use remote learning.

Parents will be invited to enroll in the Pathways Principal Google Classroom. This Google Classroom will allow me to reach out to parents easily with building announcements and parents will easily be able to message with me. Additionally, parents will be able to become a little bit more familiar with an important technology for the students.

As soon as students return to school Pathways staff will focus on teaching students how to use Google Classroom, Zoom and any other technology they will need to be successful in remote learning.

Pathways staff will continue to check in frequently to make sure families have all the information they need during remote learning.

GRADING AND ASSESSMENT

Grading is based on teacher discretion. However, grading will clearly align with the learning outcomes of each course, as well as the NYS and Next Generation Learning Standards. All regents’ level courses and CTE courses need to prepare students for the appropriate end-of-course assessments.

The level, rigor and quality of work we will expect from our students will be greater than that expected at the end of the 2019-2020 school year. The previous model focused mainly on participation and effort.

Posting Guidelines and Instructional Support

With in-person, remote, and hybrid models, a weekly agenda outlining lessons and activities will be posted to students within your learning platform. This will assist in keeping the students organized and current. Teachers are expected to support the education of all students.

In-person, remote, and hybrid models will follow the instructional days of the school calendar. Adjustments to the school calendar will be made at the discretion of the District Superintendent to ensure mandated minutes of instruction and daily requirements are met.

When students are not physically in class, students are expected to participate virtually through GoogleMeet or Zoom.Additionalinstructionalsupportwillbeprovidedforstudentsthatarestrugglingor non-participatory. During in-person, remote, and hybrid models, student attendance will be taken daily.

Inhybridandremoteinstructionmodels,allteacherswillbeavailableduringscheduledclasstime online and will provide daily and timely feedback to theirstudents.

The building principal will continue to support the appropriate involvement of the component districts.

Food Service

Our meals will be offered free of charge again this year. We also are encouraging families to complete a school lunch application so that we are able to continue to provide free meals going forward.

Meals will be consumed in the classroom. Staff will either pick up or have meals delivered to the classroom each day. The classroom will already be set up to ensure social distancing for classroom instruction. The same rules will apply for their lunch consumption.

TEACHERS

With in-person, remote, and hybrid learning models, teachers will need to collaborate to effectively support our student body as a whole.

At the time this plan is created, all Regents exams and Technical assessments are still scheduled to occur. We need to teach our students and hold them accountable to the standards associated with each individual course to best prepare them for success on these high level end-of-year state assessments.

SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHERS

Special Education teachers should continue to support their students based on their assigned caseloads. Special Education teachers will continue to collaborate with general education and academic area teachers to ensure equitable access to instruction.

For in-person models, Resource Rooms will continue to provide student support in accordance with student IEP and schedule.

To the extent possible, Special Education teachers will continue to support the Individual Education Plan (IEP) for each student.

Daily check-ins will take place with all Special Education students on their caseload. All student and parent contacts during remote or hybrid learning must be documented as prescribed by administration.

School Counselors

Counselors will focus on social emotional learning and academic progress of students. They will make themselves available to all students and will continue to meet the needs of the IEPs of the students on their caseloads. Teachers will contact counselors if a student needs social emotional support, and the counselors will follow-up as necessary. The counselors will also continue to work very closely with administration to plan for the 2020-2021 school year. 

TEACHING ASSISTANTS AND AIDES

Aides and Assistants will help in the preparation of materials, copying, supervision and other duties assigned or requested by administration and the teachers they work with.

Aides and Assistants will also play a significant role in assisting the main office with classroom coverage during times of staff illness quarantine, and lunch supervision.

CLERICAL

Clerical staff will continue to fulfill the duties of their contractual positions.

Clerical staff will work closely with and in direct communication with the Herkimer BOCES administration.

STAFF AVAILABILITY

We recognize that with in-person, hybrid and remote models, opportunities for student-teacher interaction are an important part of the teaching and learning process. We also recognize the complexity of a virtual environment. All educators will be available according to their period schedule and through scheduled office hours. Acceptable platforms for instruction and interaction include Google Classrooms, Zoom, Google Hangouts or Meets, phone calls, emails, discussion boards, etc.

With in-person, hybrid and remote models we will continue to do our best to provide meaningful learning opportunities to our students while being flexible to individual and family needs during this process.