HERMANN — The first-night homework assignment for Gasconade County R-1 students likely will confirm what school district officials already suspect: That a significant number of families in the outlying portions of the district doesn’t have internet access.

That’s a key finding for R-1 administrators in the event one of the buildings — or the entire district — has to shut down for a while because of the coronavirus. For many students, a prolonged absence from the classroom might mean a repeat of the pencil-and-paper assignments that were sent to students after the March 18 shutdown. That’s a scenario that district officials don’t want to go through again.

“We don’t want to experience what we did this spring,” said R-1 Superintendent Scott Smith last Wednesday night during an informational meeting with parents and grandparents about the district’s re-entry plan for the school year scheduled to begin Aug. 24.

About two dozen parents, grandparents and R-1 staffers — spaced throughout the Hermann High School Auditorium — gathered to hear details of the re-entry plan adopted by the R-1 Board of Directors in July.

Smith emphasized that the plan is fluid and parts of it could be changed — indeed, probably would be changed — as the start of school approaches and the coronavirus continues to pose a threat. “Changes are very likely as we work through this situation,” the district’s top administrator said, standing on the stage and working his way through a powerpoint presentation.

The first day of classes will end with students in grades 4-12 bringing home the Chromebook laptop they will be using during the year. The assignment essentially will be for the students to connect online with their classwork.

Or not.

“We realize we have some homes that do not have Internet,” Smith said.

Indeed, and in those cases a couple options are available: A device could be made available through checkout from the library. That device attaches to a home’s computer and accesses the Internet through nearby cell phone towers. Also, the district could equip a school bus with a hot spot device and provide Internet access to students who would gather at a central location.

Smith said officials would hope to keep such a distance-learning option in place only a couple weeks and then have students return to the classroom.

Along with on-campus learning, R-1 is offering the option of virtual learning, in which students receive daily instruction through a third-party provider via the Internet. Students who choose to participate in virtual learning are committed to this option for the entire semester. They will not be allowed to join their classmates in mid-semester because, as Smith explained, the classroom might be at a different point in the lesson schedule.

The third-party provider might not provide the lesson information at the same pace as the classroom teacher, which would place the virtual-learning student at a disadvantage if he or she were to join classmates later in the semester.

Return to ‘old school’ setting

Smith explained that students will not be returning to a typical school setting later this month. For instance, there will be less time to visit with friends between classes. Staff will be busy keeping groups from forming and encouraging social distancing between students as much as possible.

“It’s going to be difficult; we realize that,” he said.

The classroom setting will be different, also. Call it a return to old school. Tables that encouraged students to work together closely are being replaced by individual desks. A shipment of desks was expected to arrive at the end of last week. “By going to desks, we feel like we can get more separation” of students, he added.

Lunchroom changes

That increased separation also will apply to the lunchrooms, where additional tables will be set up making it more difficult for students to gather in groups while they eat. Old school also will apply to the way the students receive their lunch meal.

“We’re going back to the old style,” Smith said, explaining that kitchen staff will be dishing up the menu items onto the students’ trays, rather than the students serving themselves, which has been the case in the higher grades.

Assigned seating

Back in the classroom, all students will have assigned seating. This is being done, the superintendent said, to aid in contact tracing if a student tests positive with the virus. A seating chart will better enable Gasconade County Health Department personnel to make contact with those around a student for a prolonged period of time as part of the quarantine process.

“We are doing everything we can here to keep your family safe,” Smith said.

Masks not required

But one thing R-1 is not doing — either in the classroom or on the bus — is requiring the wearing of face coverings. Rather, the district is encouraging the use of masks by students.

“At this time, we have not taken a stand to require it,” Smith said. But he quickly added, “That could change.”

Transportation issues

As for the bus rides, where students might be the closest to each other at any point during the day, masks are not being required, he explained, because the younger students likely would not keep them on, the masks likely would wind up on the bus floor and be stepped on and become dirty and unusable.

He did point out that the buses will be sanitized at the end of each day.

As for transportation in general, Smith said parents are being encouraged to bring their children to school and pick them up. This is aimed at reducing the number of students on what can be a crowded bus for a prolonged period of time. “If you are able to transport them, please transport them,” Smith said to the audience members.

Also, he said district officials are considering adding extra bus routes —especially in areas closest to the school buildings — as a way to reduce the number of riders on a single bus.

Less focus on attendance

And in a frank admission, Smith said officials aren’t emphasizing what has been a key focus in public education: Perfect attendance. Or even near-perfect attendance, such as 95 percent or higher.

“We’re not looking for perfect attendance,” he said. “We want our kids healthy. If they’re not healthy, we want them to stay at home.”

Further, students who in the past might have been kept at school if they complained about headaches or feeling badly will be handled a bit differently in light of the coronavirus. Students who tell the nurse they don’t feel well likely will be sent home in quick fashion with school officials erring on the side of caution.

With the new year scheduled to begin Aug. 24, R-1 administrators and directors are poised to make changes to the re-entry plan quickly if necessary.

“We know our cases (in the county) are growing,” Smith said. “That’s something we going to keep our eye on.”