School leaders say students and staff executed their training when an active shooter struck. But a teen was able to get a handgun into Oxford High to launch a rampage. “Everything worked,” said one official, “and it’s still a tragedy.”
A lot of Michigan students won’t be taking the standardized tests, which are given in grades 3-8 and 11. Because of the pandemic, many families are being given an option by districts to take the normally mandatory test, or just say no.
The result will not only mean far fewer test-takers, but far less useful data emerging from the scores.
Districts are in the midst of testing, with makeup dates available through early May. It will be weeks before there is a clear picture of how many took the tests, but school officials who spoke to Bridge Michigan said they anticipate a large dropoff from the about 700,000 who took the tests in 2019.
Michigan’s decision to move educators near the front of the vaccine line is appearing to pay off: Nearly two-thirds of teachers have already received at least one dose of the COVID vaccine, or are on schedule to get it, according to an informal survey of over 22,000 Michigan teachers.
That’s good news for teachers worried about getting sick and for parents waiting impatiently for their children to return to classrooms. Some school districts say teacher vaccinations are paving the way for more face-to-face instruction ahead of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s plea for schools to offer in-person classes by March 1.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Friday urged Michigan schools to offer all K-12 students an option of returning to classrooms by March 1.
The guidance was not an order local school districts will continue to be allowed to make their own decisions about what is best for their communities but Whitmer’s message offered a glimpse of a return to normal life as COVID-19 vaccines begin to be administered, however fitfully, through the winter.
“The value of in-person learning for our kids is immeasurable, and we must do everything we can to help them get a great education safely,” Whitmer said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many students are potentially impacted by the state’s tweaked guidance on school reopenings. Most districts in the state have offered at least an option of in-person instruction at some point during the current school year, which began in September.