No masks. No social distancing. No mandatory quarantines and no shutdowns. In the Peaster Independent School District in Texas, life went on as usual when school started in fall 2020 and everything was fine.
In fact, as the school year rolled on with homecoming and other fall activities including sports and the annual pancake dinner and festival going on as scheduled, the district actually experienced higher enrollment and average daily attendance than last year, according to superintendent Lance Johnson.
In an interview with CBS, Johnson said most students are on track to finish the school year on grade level, closing the learning gap that occurred when schools shut down in spring 2020.
Most interesting, though, was the response of the parents and community. The district surveyed families before opening. Fifty-five percent said they’d send the kids to school if the buildings opened with masks and social distancing mandated.
But, a whopping 86% said they’d send their kids if the school opened as close to normal as possible with no social distancing or mask mandates. The result is that “Our kids have thrived and our teachers have thrived,” Johnson told CBS. “And it’s just been real eye opening to see how we’ve done things different than other schools.”
SOURCE: CBS DFW March 8, 2021