LAUSD To Keep School Facilities Closed Through August

LOS FELIZ — On Monday, July 13, the Los Angeles Unified School District uploaded a video on their official Twitter page for the public to watch regarding plans for the upcoming school semester. In this video, LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner updates the community, informing them about how the school plans to approach education while still promoting safety and preventing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

Beutner reiterates how safety is a huge priority for the school district and reflects on how school facilities were closed even before there was any recorded cases of the virus on campus. For them, “the health and safety of all those in the school community is not something we can compromise.”

Choosing to move forward with caution in mind, the district states that while the new school year may begin in August, school facilities will continue to be closed. The district also revealed some details as to the new format that education would be taking.

With online classes in mind, LAUSD states that there will be “a regular schedule with standards-based instruction, including daily, live engagement between teachers and students. Regular assessments of student progress will be used by teachers to guide their work with students and to keep families informed.”

The district also acknowledges that students may have difficulty learning due to a term they called “summer slide” as students will have been away from school for about five months once August comes around. This will have been the longest stretch in recent history where there has been no school and according to Beutner, this could result in a “lifelong impact” if some students are not back in school soon.

To address this “summer slide,” the district states that wherever possible, schools will add instruction and individual tutoring after school and on Saturday mornings to aid students.

The video ends with Beutner stating that more information will be shared in the coming weeks “with final plans by the first week in August.” He then thanks the viewer for their continued patience and support.