ARTICLE
After consultation with the Bell County Health District, Temple Independent School District will begin the 2021-2022 school year providing in-person learning as the sole option for students and families. "Remote instruction has proven to be a far lesser option to in-person learning, in particular for our younger students," said Temple ISD Superintendent Bobby Ott. "Our data shows that students who were enrolled in on-campus learning out-performed their remote learning peers across the board. At this point, more than 80% of students in Temple ISD have returned to in-person learning and our health and safety protocols have demonstrated effective results in minimizing the spread of the virus. Temple ISD has not closed a single campus this year due to reaching the 2% threshold as advised by the Bell County Health District." Temple ISD will develop and revise current health and safety protocols for next school year that are consistent with local health authority guidance. Local Health Authority Dr. Janice Smith believes that Temple ISD has been "a model school district" when it comes to developing and implementing health and safety protocols for minimizing the spread of the virus. "I have no reservations about their return to full in-person learning knowing the district will work with us on developing and revising safety protocols next year," she added. TISD and Bell County Public Health will be continuously monitoring the situation and will make revisions to those protocols as needed to adapt to any significant changes in the course of the pandemic. The COVID pandemic forced districts across the country to implement remote learning practices overnight in the Spring of 2020. However, a year later with wide-spread vaccination efforts underway Dr. Ott said, "It is critical for Temple ISD to get all students back in the classroom. Our data shows that in-person learning is a better educational delivery system for our students and we cannot ignore this. Remote learning was always considered a crisis response and never a permanent educational solution." Ott went on to say, "We know that there may be a place for virtual learning, in particular for older and more independent students. TISD will take next year to study options that may be beneficial for preparing our high school students for college. This will allow us to stand up some pilot scenarios for the 2022-2023 school year." "As a superintendent, I am responsible for the provision of a safe and high quality educational experience for all students. The low reported case counts validate Temple ISD’s ability to provide a safe educational environment through the implementation of our safety protocols. Conversely, state and local achievement data prove that remote learning does not yield the same quality learning experiences for students as in-person. Therefore, Temple ISD - in consultation with the Bell County Health District - will open the 2021 school year with in-person education as the sole option for our students," Ott said.
After consultation with the Bell County Health District, Temple Independent School District will begin the 2021-2022 school year providing in-person learning as the sole option for students and families.
"Remote instruction has proven to be a far lesser option to in-person learning, in particular for our younger students," said Temple ISD Superintendent Bobby Ott. "Our data shows that students who were enrolled in on-campus learning out-performed their remote learning peers across the board. At this point, more than 80% of students in Temple ISD have returned to in-person learning and our health and safety protocols have demonstrated effective results in minimizing the spread of the virus. Temple ISD has not closed a single campus this year due to reaching the 2% threshold as advised by the Bell County Health District."
Temple ISD will develop and revise current health and safety protocols for next school year that are consistent with local health authority guidance. Local Health Authority Dr. Janice Smith believes that Temple ISD has been "a model school district" when it comes to developing and implementing health and safety protocols for minimizing the spread of the virus. "I have no reservations about their return to full in-person learning knowing the district will work with us on developing and revising safety protocols next year," she added. TISD and Bell County Public Health will be continuously monitoring the situation and will make revisions to those protocols as needed to adapt to any significant changes in the course of the pandemic.
The COVID pandemic forced districts across the country to implement remote learning practices overnight in the Spring of 2020. However, a year later with wide-spread vaccination efforts underway Dr. Ott said, "It is critical for Temple ISD to get all students back in the classroom. Our data shows that in-person learning is a better educational delivery system for our students and we cannot ignore this. Remote learning was always considered a crisis response and never a permanent educational solution." Ott went on to say, "We know that there may be a place for virtual learning, in particular for older and more independent students. TISD will take next year to study options that may be beneficial for preparing our high school students for college. This will allow us to stand up some pilot scenarios for the 2022-2023 school year."
"As a superintendent, I am responsible for the provision of a safe and high quality educational experience for all students. The low reported case counts validate Temple ISD’s ability to provide a safe educational environment through the implementation of our safety protocols. Conversely, state and local achievement data prove that remote learning does not yield the same quality learning experiences for students as in-person. Therefore, Temple ISD - in consultation with the Bell County Health District - will open the 2021 school year with in-person education as the sole option for our students," Ott said.