The Ohio General Assembly introduced SB 229 to offer flexibilities to schools as they respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Passage of the bill should conclude later this week when the Senate concurs in House amendments and the Governor signs the bill. The bill contains an emergency clause, which would make it effective immediately upon the Governor’s signature.
Under the current version of the language, the bill makes changes to the following alternative learning models:
- Blended Learning
Under existing law, “blended learning” is defined as the delivery of instruction in a combination of time primarily in a supervised physical location away from home and online delivery whereby the student has some element of control over time, place, path, or pace of learning. SB 229 modifies this definition to include noncomputer-based learning opportunities.
The bill temporarily also extends the deadline for a school district to submit a blended learning model to ODE for the 2021-22 school year. Under the existing law, districts were required to declare their intent to use a blended learning model by July 1, 2021. The new language would extend this deadline to April 30, 2022.
The bill requires ODE to post a list of districts that have submitted a blended learning model declaration for the 2021-22 school year on its website.
In addition to complying with existing requirements in place for the use of a blended learning model, the bill also requires districts and schools that implement blended learning for any portion of the 2021-22 school year to:
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- Ensure that students have access to the internet and to devices that allow students to participate in online learning.
- Monitor and assess student achievement and progress and provide additional services if necessary to improve student achievement.
- Periodically communicate with parents or guardians regarding student progress.
- Submit reports to ODE on the number of students participating in blended learning and the duration of such participation.
- Remote Learning
“Remote learning” means synchronous and asynchronous instruction and educational activities that take place when the students and teachers are not physically present in a traditional classroom environment.
SB 229 allows some districts to adopt a resolution to provide instruction using the remote learning plan that the district implemented last year pursuant to HB 164. Districts that elect to provide remote learning must notify ODE of the decision by Dec. 15, 2021. However, under SB 229, districts that have adopted plans to offer online learning models under RC 3302.42 are not able to adopt a resolution to reinstitute their remote learning plans.
For the 2021-22 school year, a district or school that offers remote instruction may provide remote learning to students whose parents or guardians submit a written request to the principal of the school building to which the student is assigned to specifically request the option. If offering this remote instruction, the district’s or school’s remote learning plan must be updated to do all the following:
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- Meet all minimum school requirements under section 3314.03 or 3313.48 of the Revised Code.
- Ensure that students have access to the internet and to devices that allow students to participate in online learning.
- Track and document all student remote learning participation, including online and offline activities.
- Report student attendance based on student participation.
- Monitor and access student achievement and progress and provide additional services if necessary to improve student achievement.
- Periodically communicate with parents or guardians regarding student progress.
- Submit reports to ODE on the number of students participating in remote learning.
Each school or district that offers remote learning shall make its remote learning plan available on its website and submit a copy to ODE.
- Online Learning
SB 229 allows a district that operates an online learning school to allow a student who is in quarantine due to possible exposure to a contagious disease to participate in the online learning school for the duration of that student’s quarantine period. This flexibility is in place for the 2021-22 school year only. Students who are permitted to participate in the online learning school for the duration of their quarantine will remain enrolled in the school the student would otherwise attend and should not be considered to be enrolled in the online learning school.
Current law requires school administrators to develop and adopt a comprehensive emergency management plan for each building under the administrator’s control. Among other things, these plans outline protocols for addressing and responding to serious threats to safety and other emergency events. SB 229 exempts administrators of an online learning school from complying with these requirements, unless students of the online learning school participate in in-person instruction or assessments at a location that is not covered by an existing emergency management plan.
Remediation Plans
SB 229 may require some districts to complete and submit to ODE a remediation plan to address the loss of learning students experienced because of the COVID-19 pandemic. ODE will be developing a template for districts to use, which will require districts to provide information about the timelines and programs the district is implementing to address loss of learning, the length of time the programs will be offered, and the method by which the district intends to pay for the programs.
Districts that submitted Extended Learning Plans in April 2021 or Local Use of Funds Plans in August 2021 are not required to submit remediation plans and will be deemed to have satisfied the SB 229 requirement.
OSBA will keep you apprised of the bill’s progress. In the meantime, if you have any questions about SB 229 or its impact, please contact the Division of Legal Services.