In an interview, he said teachers on Tinian, Saipan Southern High School and Marianas High School have expressed their desire to begin blended learning earlier than planned.
The principals of William S. Reyes Elementary School and Kagman Elementary School have already started blended learning, he added.
PSS initially planned to implement blended learning in the third quarter of the school year, which begins on Feb. 3.
“Teachers are already pushing for blended learning,” Ada said. “So some schools are preparing themselves now. They don’t want to wait until February.”
In blended learning, students attend two days of face-to-face classes and two days of remote or online learning each week.
Education Commissioner Alfred B. Ada, right, looks at the winning Education Month logo, which will be used as a Christmas decoration outside the Public School System office on Capital Hill, Monday. Also shown is former Kagman High School principal and Rep.-elect Leila Staffler who coordinated this year’s PSS Christmas decoration project. Photo by Emmanuel T. Erediano
While half of the students attend face-to-face classes on Tuesday and Thursday, the other half will be online, and vice-versa on Wednesday and Friday.
Monday, which is government austerity day, will be designated for providing social emotional support to students and school staffers, follow-up activities, remediation/intervention as needed, collaborative teacher planning and professional development.
Ada has told PSS principals that blended learning will be implemented in the third quarter.
If parents do not want their students to attend face-to-face classes, their children can continue learning remotely.
Right now, Ada said PSS is collecting data on student attendance and level of engagement in face-to-face learning for which the number of students per classroom has been increased to 15 from 10.
The commissioner said he has also advised school principals to ask parents of struggling students to allow their children to participate in face-to-face classes.
