BOZEMAN — It’s a tough time for students and parents of school-aged kids as decisions are being made as to whether or not children should return back to school this upcoming year.
“I do feel like I have been robbed from my education because I am not learning to the same capacity and the same content that I would be if I was in person at school,” said student Helene Hart.
Hart spent her Thursday morning advocating to go back to school in person for her senior year.
“We need to go back five days a week, and the detrimental effects of closing schools outweigh the slight chance and the negative effects of the coronavirus,” she said.
Right now, the recommended plan looks at in-person learning for two days and online learning for the remaining three. But from past experiences, this teacher says online learning just isn’t the same.
“I felt like teaching online wasn’t really very effective. We were able to make it work the best that we could but it was really difficult,” explained Holly Hart.
She’s a parent. But her perspective also comes as a teacher.
“I really struggled as a second grade teacher because my students trying to teach them reading, writing and math, you can’t do the conferencing that you need to do. You can’t see their papers. It’s hard to keep them focused on what you’re doing. I just felt like it wasn’t really the best option,” Holly said.
And as a teacher, Hart says she’s here for support for the school board, her students, and her daughter.
“I really trust our school board to make a good decision. There’s lots of options on the table. I hope that they look at the information and make an informed decision based on what parents need, what parents want, schools, what’s healthy, what’s best for our kids and I think that they’ll do that,” she said.
The upcoming school year is set to start on August 31.
