MYRTLE BEACH â As thousands in Horry County and across South Carolina reconsider their format of school instruction before the second semester, medical experts are casting a wide net in questioning the effectiveness of plexiglass used as dividers in classrooms, calling the measure a âplaceboâ and pointing to the lack of data to determine the true impact.
In mid-November, the Horry County Schools Board of Education unanimously voted to use nearly $5 million in state funds to install plexiglass throughout the district to try and combat the spread of COVID-19 in classrooms, something already complete in many other South Carolina school districts.
Aynor Elementary School first-grade teacher Ashley Poston said she wasnât sure what to do when her administration and her own first-grade daughter came bursting into her classroom a few weeks ago.
âThey announced it over the loudspeaker and my principal, two curriculum coaches and the assistant principal came in with flowers and candy,â Poston said. â[My daughter] came running in here, my students ⦠they all cheered and were clapping.â
Poston was named as the 2020-2021 Teacher of the Year for AES.
â[She] is most deserving of this honor. She lives and breathes enthusiasm for her students and teaching,â said AES Principal Reggie Gasque. âStudents and their parents LOVE Mrs. Poston! She is an innovative and insightful teacher that continuously seeks knowledge and new methodology that will ensure her students success.â