COLUMBIA, S.C. — Monday, was a big day for students, parents, and teachers as many kids got a chance to step away from kitchen table learning and go back to face-to-face instruction. The Richland One School District's Superintendent, Dr. Craig Witherspoon, toured several schools welcoming students back to the classroom.
"We've got our Pre-K through second-grade students today," said Dr. Witherspoon. "For a lot of those students, this is new."
In the school district's phase two plan, students will attend school two days a week and learn from home the other three days.
"It allows them to come back in a small setting and get used to things in a different way," explained Dr. Witherspoon.
Parents had mixed feelings about sending their kids back.
"As parents, we can not go into the schools," said Ashley Jenkins. "We can only drop off our children, so we can only get their say on what happened or what is it like."
Jenkins has a second-grader who goes to Logan Elementary. She says the decision to send him to school was to see if he will learn better in the traditional model.
"As a mother, I am concerned because I don't want my son to get COVID," said Jenkins. "At the same time, some children are not adjusting to the e-learning system."
While parents decide if sending their child back to school is the best choice, there are questions about other practices for students to continue going to school.
"We have those mitigated strategies in place like the mask, handing washing and social distancing, all of those things we know that make a difference," explained Dr. Witherspoon.
"If the numbers get worse or if they have an incident in the schools, that will definitely bring him back home," said Jenkins.
"We will continue to see how things are going and spot-check just to make sure we are in a good place to continue," said Dr. Witherspoon.