Spring ISD schools combat COVID-19 learning gaps with earlier school year
HOUSTON - Two elementary schools in Spring ISD are already back in session.
Monday marked the first day of the 2021-2022 school year for Clark Primary and Clark Intermediate schools as part of the new Additional Days School Year (ADSY) program.
Thirty days were added to the school year for schools participating in the ADSY program, with funding granted by the Texas Education Agency.
The goal of the program is to try and prevent students from falling behind academically during the summer by adding days at the beginning and the end of the regular school year.
Students will get shorter week days as a result, and teachers will have increased time for planning, according to a Spring ISD release.
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"This past year with COVID-19, we know that our children do have learning gaps, so for us, this is an exciting opportunity," said Clark Primary Principal Cynthia Gomez.
According to Principal Gomez and Clark Intermediate Principal Katherine Fisher, the community is excited about this earlier start and the response to the newly designed calendar has been generally positive.
"It was a short summer and we didn’t get to do much so I’ll miss them, although I’m glad to have them back in school," said Kyannah Bryan, a parent of children in both schools.
"My babies have been saying all summer, ‘I want to go back to school!’ When I asked why, they said, ‘Because I want to get an education!’"