PA Updates School Guidance For Elementary Students

HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania health and education officials on Thursday urged local school leaders to return as many elementary school-aged students as safely possible to in-person instruction.

Noe Ortega, Pennsylvania's acting secretary of education, said that as research continues on the spread of COVID-19, more and more shows that classes can be held safely in-person, even when community spread of the virus is ongoing.

While the state did not issue any new mandates on Thursday, it did change its official coronavirus guidance for schools to allow for at least some in-person learning even in areas where the spread of the virus is deemed substantial.

"We know that school leaders continue to be the ones best positioned to make decisions about in-person instruction," Ortega said at a news conference. "While these are not mandates, it is up to school leaders to make a decision whether local factors permit them to return elementary students to in-person instruction."

Pennsylvania continues to recommend fully remote learning for middle and high school students in areas where the spread of COVID-19 is considered substantial. That's areas that have an incidence rate of one case per 1,000 people or a 10 percent or higher test-positivity rate.

Currently, all 67 Pennsylvania counties are considered at substantial risk of spread.

Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said studies have shown that, with safety measures like distancing, masks and hand-washing in place, returning to school during the outbreak is the best course for younger students.

"The educational benefits of in per learning, especially for younger children, are very clear from an educational perspective," she said. " As a pediatrician, I am also aware of thee critical role that school plays in the healthy emotional and physical development of children."

The new state guidelines are for the school year's second semester, which begins in most places around Jan. 25. In addition to young learners, Ortega and Levine urged districts to consider returning to in-person instruction for student populations including children with disabilities and those learning English.

Each week, the health department designates counties as having a low, moderate or substantial risk of community transmission based on public health metrics. They are available on the department's COVID-19 Early Warning Monitoring System Dashboard.

"While it is impossible to eliminate the risk of disease transmission entirely within a school setting where community spread is present, recent studies have shown that when mitigation efforts, such as universal masking, physical distancing, and hand hygiene are followed, it may be safer for younger children, particularly elementary grade students, to return to in-person instruction," Levine said.