COVID-19 Bulletin #4: Education/AP Exams/Class of 2020

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Dear Neighbor:

 

How are you? I hope you and your loved ones are safe, healthy and managing to adjust to these challenging times. We will get through this, and my office is here to help. We are focused on getting information to you as quickly as possible. Each newsletter will focus on one topic with links to resources for more information. You can find all of our newsletters on our website at www.GongGershowitz.com where you can get links to the latest information and help available through our new COVID-19 Resource page.

 

This bulletin provides information for parents and students from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) on instructional days going forward as well as information from the College Board on AP Exams.

 

I would like to recognize the dedication and hardwork of our first responders and healthcare professionals who are on the frontlines of this healthcare crisis every day — thank you. I would also like to thank each of you for following Governor JB Pritzker’s “Stay at Home” order. We are in this together, and the question of when we can return to life as normal depends on what we all do now to flatten the curve.

 

While our physical office is closed, we are here for you. You can call our office anytime. We will be checking messages and answering calls weekdays during business hours at (847) 486-8810. Medical questions should be directed to your healthcare provider or health clinic.

 

Warmly,
Jennifer

 

 

Representative Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz
Education Updates for Students and Parents

 

On Friday, the State Superintendent of Education declared that Remote Learning Days will begin March 31 and continue until in-person instruction can resume. According to ISBE press release, schools may implement either an E-Learning Plan or a Remote Learning Day Plan that provides students with instruction and access to educators through whatever means possible. Details for how your child’s school will provide remote learning instruction should be available through your school district’s website and watch for communications from your children’s schools and teachers.
Remote Learning Days, Remote Learning Planning Days, and Act of God Days count as actual student attendance days. All of these days count toward the minimum length of the school year and absolutely do not need to be made up. View ISBE’s emergency rules for Remote Learning Days at www.isbe.net/Documents/23-5RG-E.pdf.
ISBE released joint guidance with the Illinois Board of Higher Education and Illinois Community College Board to advise secondary and postsecondary institutions in Illinois on supporting and accommodating students who are enrolled in dual credit courses during the suspension of in-person instruction. View this guidance at www.isbe.net/Documents/Joint-Dual-Credit-Guidance-During-Suspension-of-In-Person-Instruction.pdf.
Additionally, Governor JB Pritzker’s Executive Order 2020-15, suspends state assessments for spring 2020, including the Constitution exam. This action officially ends assessment activity statewide for the Illinois Assessment of Readiness, Illinois Science Assessment, SAT, and Dynamic Learning Maps-Alternate Assessment for the 2019-20 school year.
ISBE is working with the College Board on developing options to allow current 11th grade students to take the free SAT in the fall instead of this April as originally scheduled.

 

  • ISBE has refreshed its comprehensive guidance document with all of this information, as well as updated guidance on driver’s education, nutrition, flexibility in expending grant funds, and Early Childhood Block Grant recipients providing child care to the children of essential workers. View the comprehensive guidance at www.isbe.net/Documents/FAQ-3-27-20.pdf

 

AP EXAM INFORMATION

For the 2019-20 exam administration only, students can take a 45-minute online exam at home. Educator-led development committees are currently selecting the exam questions that will be administered. Students will be able to take these streamlined exams on any device they have access to— computer, tablet, or smartphone. Details are available online.

The College Board will conduct standard-setting processes to set appropriately rigorous cut scores for AP scores of 3, 4, and 5.

AP curricula are locally developed, and the College Board will defer to local decisions on how best to help students complete coursework. To be fair to all students, some of whom have lost more instructional time than others, the exam will only include topics and skills most AP teachers and students have already covered in class by early March.

  • Beginning yesterday, students and schools have access to free, live AP review lessons, delivered by AP teachers from across the country. These daily lessons focus on reviewing the skills and concepts from the first 75% of the course. Hosted on the AP YouTube channel, these lessons will be recorded and available on-demand so teachers and students can access them any time.

According to information from ISBE, the exam questions are designed in ways that prevent academic dishonesty using a range of digital security tools and techniques, including plagiarism detection software to protect the integrity of the exams.

 

 

 

NOTE TO THE CLASS OF 2020

I know this is not the way that any of us envisioned your senior year wrapping up. You have all worked hard and are now trying to process interrupted senior year traditions and plans to celebrate your accomplishments together. But I continue to be amazed and inspired by your sense of humor, your creativity and your resilience. 

This too shall pass, and your generation will lead from this challenge with a sense of community forged through adversity. Our relationships to one another give us our purpose. I have no doubt that out of this moment, you will innovate and rise to meet future challenges defined by your shared experiences.

We are all anxious for life to return to normal, but when that will be depends on what we do now to bend the curve and slow the spread of this pandemic. See yourself as the future leaders you are and protect one another by staying home and doing your part. 

Above all, we are proud of you. 

 

 

2020 Census

Now is the time to complete the 2020 Census. It’s online — no personal contact necessary! If you have not received your invitation to complete the Census for your household, please call our office. Representation and federal dollars for our schools and communities are on the line. EVERYONE COUNTS, AND WE MUST ALL BE COUNTED.

 

 

With questions and concerns about coronavirus,
please call the IDPH 24/7 hotline at 1-800-889-3931
For the most current information on the coronavirus in Illinois,
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