KERN COUNTY, Calif. — The distance learning struggles continued at schools within the Kern High School District, with a 14% increase of students who received failing grades in the fall of 2020, and now the Kern High School District's board president is reacting to the news.
Jeff Flores, KHSD board member president, said he wasn't happy about the increase of failing students and that this wasn't a big surprise when considering all struggles, we've seen students experience during the pandemic. However, he says there may be some reprieve for those students.
"We're going to allow those that find themselves in this situation to make up that coursework with their teachers as long as they demonstrate knowledge of the subject, they can go back and redo those grades."
It's a second chance for students who received failing grades at schools within the Kern High School District.
This comes as the Kern County Superintendent of Schools released data on Tuesday, showing a 14% increase of KHSD students who received Ds and Fs in the fall of 2020 compared to the fall of 2019.
Flores says he wasn't surprised about the results, but it was still unfortunate to hear.
"It breaks my heart, I don't want to see that I don't want to see people falling with Ds and Fs, so we did the best we could with virtual and you know the grades are out from the last semester and you know, we've got work to do."
Part of that work, according to Flores, is making sure students have the opportunity to boost their grades.
"We will come up with a customized plan for your student to allow them to retake that course virtually, in the evenings, on the weekends, whatever it takes and if they demonstrate mastery of the subject, we will give them new grades for that course."
KHSD, parents, and students can reach out directly to their school to start the process according to Flores, who also says he's optimistic the situation will get better.
"In-person instruction is on the horizon, more vaccines are coming into Kern County, I was on the phone today with the CEO of Kern Medical. We are vaccinating teachers everyday 200, 300 a day, so our teachers will be ready.”
So, when will that in-person instruction resume? The KHSD board of trustees unanimously voted two weeks ago that all KHSD schools can return to in-person instruction when the county moves into the red tier.
