Dear Parents of DD2 & DD2 Board,

This petition is being put together in hopes of making sure that our children are able to go back to school safely full time. We know that most kids and parents struggled with distance learning this Spring. Most children have difficulty learning through technology without personal interaction with teachers and fellow students. As a result, the quality of the education that children received this spring was significantly reduced.

This is particularly true for elementary school-age children. Younger kids cannot readily absorb new information simply by spending hours in front of a computer screen.  Consequently, a lot of the job of teaching fell on the parents—and most working parents do not have time to homeschool their kids or they would already be doing homeschool. 

To make matters worse, many school districts provided little in the way of curriculum or learning materials, and the curriculum school districts did provide was often either too easy or too difficult for students. Crisis learning just isn’t the same as regular, open school learning. 

Moreover, distance learning disproportionately affects children with special needs.  Some special-needs children are not able to learn through technology like iPads due to attention-related and other issues.  For those children, the only good—but often too expensive—options are to enroll in a private school or hire a private tutor.

The American Academy of Pediatrics strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school. The importance of in-person learning is well-documented, and there is already evidence of the negative impacts on children because of school closures in the spring of 2020. Time away from school and associated interruption of supportive services often results in social isolation, making it difficult for schools to identify and address important learning deficits as well as child and adolescent physical or sexual abuse, substance use, depression, and suicidal ideation. This, in turn, places children and adolescents at considerable risk of morbidity and, in some cases, mortality. Beyond the educational impact and social impact of school closures, there has been substantial impact on food security and physical activity for children and families.

One of the options that was being considered by the Department of Education for the Fall is the partial day program.  However, this model does not seem to take into the account the fact that young children can’t be left home alone. Working parents with young kids will thus need childcare for days when school is conducted from home. This will be difficult for low income working families who can't afford to hire a nanny or enroll their kids in daycare.

Moreover, there is no reason to think that having kids home on some days but not others will do anything to slow the spread of the virus. Indeed, because families are likely to be involved in more and different settings under a partial-day program, their contacts with families and staff will be greater and more varied. For example, going to multiple classes, including school, after-school programs, and day care, any proposed partial-day school program might reasonably be expected to increase the spread of the virus.

Many private schools have already announced that they will fully reopen this year. This means that only families that can afford private school tuition will receive a high quality education, if public school continue with distant learning.

Berkeley and Charleston county have already gone back to school and if this hybrid schooling continues we risk losing the best schools district title due to our children being left behind. 

It is important that our kids are safe. Fortunately, it is possible for them to be safe at school. Schedules can be adapted so kids change classrooms less often. Kids can help keep the classrooms clean. We must do whatever needs to be done so our kids can go back to school and get a full, high-quality education. We do not support having them wear masks all day but do support reasonable changes that keep our kids safe while still getting the socialization they need to learn and grow. Businesses have reopened everywhere in our country and the State. It’s time that schools reopen as well.

Parents know what is best for their children and they should have the choice of whether they want to send their kids back to in-person learning or distance learning this school year.  

If you want to help ensure that your kids are back to school this year full time, please sign this petition and share it with your friends. This petition will be sent to our DD2 board members for consideration. 

Thank you,

Parents of DD2 Kids