Clark County School District Superintendent Jesus Jara responds to questions during a news conference at Wolff Elementary School in Henderson Friday, March 5, 2021.
Sunday, May 30, 2021 | 2 a.m.
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Coming off of a school year in which some children struggled in the remote-learning environment but others thrived, the Clark County School District is planning a pilot program this fall to give students a choice of instructional approaches to see which one best suits their needs.
In a video meeting with the Sun last week, CCSD Superintendent Jesus Jara said the pilot program would allow students to explore three different types of learning environments — a traditional in-person classroom setting, remote learning and a blend of those two in which some students would be present in schools while others would be connected from home.
The district chose 17 schools for the project, and will study those schools to determine whether the availability of different methods improves student performance.
Many students need the in-person setting to thrive — and not only academically. Not seeing teachers and classmates regularly because of the pandemic brought many social problems, everything from students struggling with isolation to some not logging on for learning.
But others thrived being able to work from the comforts of home. And for some families, the online schedule was a better fit in balancing the rigors of life — say if an older student was studying around a part-time job or caring for younger sibling while parents worked.
“Our goal is to research it, document the results and then hopefully expand the program,” Jara said. “So we’re really excited about kicking it off this August.”
The 17 schools selected for the program are: Culley Elementary, Goynes Elementary, Johnston Middle School, Lied STEM Academy Middle School, Lincoln Elementary, Twin Lakes Elementary, Western High, Wolf Elementary, Fertitta Middle School, Guinn Middle School, Mack Middle School, Ortwein Elementary, Brown Junior High School, Lunt Elementary School, Miller Elementary School Academy for International Students; Walker International School Elementary, and White Academy of the Performing Arts Middle School.
These schools will zoned as opposed to open-enrollment, meaning the program will be available only to students within the schools’ attendance boundaries. The schools selected each applied to be part of the pilot study.
Jara said the idea for the pilot emerged after the district put out a call to staff in each of its schools asking, “What does the future of schools look like?” based on lessons learned by educators during the coronavirus pandemic.
Dozens of staff members responded and took part in discussions about how to build a better education system.
Jara said the program was one of several major initiatives the district put in place during the pandemic as part of its “Kids First” agenda to improve schools. Others included an overhaul of the grading system and enhancing mental health services for students and staff.
“Our kids and our families need to know that we haven’t just been opening schools and closing schools (during the pandemic),” he said. “There’s been a lot of really hard work that, when we come back, we’re going to be better on our way out of this.”
