A week after the city Department of Education showed over half the entire student body had opted for remote learning, more students are following suit, according to the latest numbers.
Figures released by the DOE show that another roughly 16,000 students have abandoned in-person learning over completely learning in front of a screen for now. This brings the number of students exclusively learning at home to 541,469. Parents can have their children enrolled in remote learning at any point, while opting back into in-person learning at only occurs select times, dependent on school availability.
DOE statistics also show that 72% of Asian students have chosen to go fully remote, while 54% of Black and 53% of Hispanic students are following suit.
Ahead of the updated remote learning statistics, Mayor Bill de Blasio responded to a news report showing more low-income students are choosing to go fully remote over hybrid learning, undercutting his argument that in-person learning is better for low-income students who the kind of nurturing and support public schools offer.
"We certainly see a number of parents choosing to send their kids to school right now, and we see a number of parents holding back, waiting to see a little bit more what's going on," said de Blasio. "We, obviously – parents know there's going to be an opt-in period coming up to make a decision to come back in. There's a lot of different pieces. So, I think what many parents are doing is watching, learning, talking to other parents who have sent their kids to school, making their decisions."
Randomized COVID Testing In NYC Public Schools Finds Few Cases So Far
[Updated 3:45 p.m.] New figures from the city Department of Education’s randomized testing program show extremely low infection rates among school staffers and students who were tested.
The DOE reported that 28 of 16,298 tests performed since testing began on October 9th came back positive for COVID-19, with 20 staffers and eight students infected. The DOE says there are another 350 tests whose results remain outstanding.
The results suggest that the city’s efforts to open schools without increasing viral spread -- including a staggered schedule, socially distant classes, nightly electrostatic cleaning, and temperature checks -- may be working, so far.
Separate from the city's randomized testing program, the state's school COVID dashboard shows 198 NYC public school students have tested positive for COVID-19 since September 9th.
The city's randomized testing protocol went into effect on October 9th, several weeks after the start of in-person classes, a stipulation the United Federation of Teachers demanded as part of the city’s reopening plan. Under the plan, 10% to 20% of a school community's population will be tested monthly after submitting a consent form. Students who do not consent will have to transition to full remote learning unless they agree to do so.
Students and teachers found to be infected are expected to quarantine for 14 days. The rule also applies to students and teachers sharing the same classroom. School buildings where someone tests positive for COVID-19 are required to close for 24 hours to ensure the entire building is deep-cleaned before allowing anyone to re-enter.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has ordered students and teachers in yellow zone schools, which have not closed, to be tested weekly instead of monthly.
Teachers At Hunter College Campus Schools Threaten Strike After Four People Test Positive For COVID-19
11:15 a.m.: A week after four people enrolled at Hunter College Campus Schools contracted COVID-19, the union representing teachers at the school known as the "Brick Prison" is demanding immediate safety improvements from CUNY after four people from the school contracted COVID-19.
The union, Professional Staff Congress -- which represents 130 Hunter teachers and 30,000 other CUNY faculty and staff -- did not rule out the possibility of a strike at a news conference on Sunday.
HCCS is a public school serving kindergarten through 12th grade students that falls under the purview of the CUNY school system. It opened for in-person learning last month following contentious negotiations -- including the threat of a strike -- over safety improvements, which included the installation of quality air filters at the Upper East Side building, an armory comprised of windowless classrooms that is currently serving only K-8th grade students.
“If these things are not addressed, we will have to go back to that strike-authorization vote," PSC president Barbara Bowen said at the news conference. For now, Bowen is once again considering taking CUNY back to court.