Kennebec middle school

Some Grade 8 students continue to be streamed into high school courses that close the door to university with little guidance or understanding about how their choices may affect their futures. That’s one of the troubling findings of a new report that captures the voices of youth and reveals how they end up choosing Grade 9 courses that have significant consequences down the road. Children barely in their teens are too young to make such important choices, and often do so without enough information or help from middle school staff who understand the implications, says the report, released Thursday by the research group Social Planning Toronto. “Without the maturity and support to fully grasp the weight of these decisions, some students are unknowingly following a path which inhibits them from reaching their full potential,” the report says. Among its findings: During middle school, youths and their parents didn’t understand the difference between courses in the “academic” … [Read more...] about Students too young, uninformed to choose high school courses, study says

New York City high schools are set to reopen on March 22 after months of distance learning, officials announced Monday. The city’s decision to reopen again sets an important precedent, given it is home to one of the largest school districts in the country, the New York Times reported . New York City first reopened its schools last fall but switched to fully remote learning in November when the city’s coronavirus cases soared. The city has phased reopening for its elementary and middle school students, welcoming some elementary school students back to the classroom in December and middle school students in February. Officials prioritized getting younger students back to in-person learning because it is more difficult to conduct remote learning sessions with them. About half of New York City’s 488 high schools will fully reopen for full-time instruction for most, if not all, of their in-person students. The other half will reopen on a hybrid model. High school sports … [Read more...] about NYC High Schools Set to Reopen March 22

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — New York City public high schools will reopen later this month, and sports will resume in mid-April, the mayor announced Monday. After four months out of the classroom, high school students can head back starting March 22. READ MORE: COVID 1 Year: Area School Districts Continue To Make Best Of Tough Situation, Always With Eyes On The Future “We’re really excited about this,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “We are ready to go, we have all the pieces we need to bring high school back and bring it back strong and, of course, to bring it back safely.” WATCH: Mayor Bill De Blasio Announces High School Reopening Date As CBS2’s Hazel Sanchez reported, half of the city’s high schools will reopen five days a week for all or a majority of students. Teachers and staff will return on March 18 to prepare. All New York City public schools switched to remote learning last November , heading into the holiday season. Elementary schools were the first to … [Read more...] about New York City Public High Schools To Reopen March 22, All Sports To Return Mid-April

More than 60 grief-stricken high school and middle school students wrote essays for The Denver Post about a school year that never materialized. While only three stories were published, all were thoughtful. We were struck by the students’ empathy and compassion. “When I reflect on the strict protocols, they weren’t actually a burden. Putting on my mask, connecting my headphones and logging into Google Meet to greet my immunocompromised teacher who was still working from home, oddly granted me normalcy in a day that was seemingly anything but normal,” wrote James Kerwin a student at Denver South High School about his first week back to school in-person at least part-time. We could all use more grace like that in these difficult times. Students need to be back in school full time and teachers need our support. The good news is that teacher vaccinations for COVID-19 are well-underway in most school districts. Colorado’s community transmission rates have plateaued at a moderate … [Read more...] about Editorial: Colorado kids must get back to school and teachers need our support

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday called the reopening of schools in the nation “a crucial first step” in a “roadmap to freedom” from the coronavirus pandemic but added a warning against complacency. Johnson held a news briefing from his office on the day millions of children in Britain went back to school. He told reporters he fully expects the return to the classroom to have an impact on the spread of the virus. He said the next steps the government takes regarding reopening “will be driven by the data.” He noted the number of hospitalizations is about eight times higher than the lowest figures reached during the middle of last year. He pointed to that figure as a caution against complacency and the ability of the infection to bounce back. Johnson said the success of Britain’s vaccination program has allowed them to cautiously lift restrictions, such as reopening schools. But he said, again, the roadmap is intended to be “cautious but irreversible,” meaning they do … [Read more...] about Britain’s Johnson Calls School Reopenings ‘First Step’ in ‘Roadmap to Freedom’