Schools can reduce social distancing

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (TNN) - School districts are coming back from spring break and learning of the updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the classroom, students can sit three feet apart instead of six feet but need to be wearing their mask.

“Now that they’re talking about changing some of those guidance and relaxing some of those standards. It does sound like we will be able to go back to some of our teaching techniques,” said Ted West, superintendent of Electra ISD.

For now, Electra ISD is sticking with six feet social distancing and waiting to hear from additional agencies.

“Even thought the CDC has said something about it, we’re still having to wait to get word from both Texas Education Agency and also our local county health departments,” said West.

Burkburnett ISD was ahead of CDC’s announcement because they followed the recommendations from American Academy of Pediatrics, which says three to five feet is safe along with other procedures.

“We started at six feet everywhere we could, but in any learning space where at each six weeks we had more of our virtual students coming back face-to-face then if we needed to in a classroom we knew that we had the flexibility that we could reduce down from six feet down to five feet or four feet,” said Dr. Brad Owen, superintendent of Burkburnett ISD.

Both superintendents see this as a sign of school returning closer back to normal.

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