For all the angst about the drawbacks of remote instruction during the pandemic, it turns out some Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools students and their families prefer it.
CMS surveyed about 36,000 families whose elementary and middle school children attended Full Remote Academy this year. About 9,400 responded, and about 4,200 said they’d definitely prefer to continue with virtual learning next year. Almost 2,800 said "no" to continuing with remote classes, and the rest were undecided.
Based on that, Superintendent Earnest Winston plans to offer virtual options for grades three through eight for the first time. CMS already has a virtual high school and some nearby districts, such as Iredell-Statesville, Cabarrus and Gaston counties, offered online learning for all grade levels before COVID-19 hit.
CMS plans to offer in-person classes five days a week starting in August. Teachers will not be expected to do in-person and remote instruction at the same time, as many did this year. The move will require state approval.
