COVID-19 Updates

Image

Student pouring in liquid to measure during science class.

Following the recent updates from the Ministry of Education and under the guidance of the Ministry of Health in Bahrain, we are excited to announce that our campus is open for face-to-face learning.

The COVID-19 pandemic presents the most serious public health crisis the world has experienced in generations. Looking forward to the 2020-21 school year and beyond, American School of Bahrain is dedicated to operating in the safest way possible because we believe doing so is in the best interest of our students. American School of Bahrain (ASB) must be able to respond quickly to challenges in our school community as well as to the conditions in Bahrain. The importance of mitigating risk through precautions involving social responsibilities, preventative hygiene, facility cleaning and physical distancing will be the cornerstone of our planning.

The ASB Back to School Plan

We opened our doors on September 13, 2020, with 100% of our students attending classes on campus. ASB has developed a plan to keep our students and staff safe and healthy by implementing COVID-19 health and safety measures. This plan follows the advice of the Bahrain National Medical Task Force with reference to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

American School of Bahrain believes a regular school environment is best for students, and distance learning is necessary only when health and safety conditions leave no other option. ASB is dedicated to provide students with opportunities to learn in face-to-face environments. If future conditions demand that we need to close our campus, then we will continue to support students through a robust distance learning program.

For ASB to be a thriving community, all members of our school community need to pledge their commitment to value everyone’s health and safety. Our commitment to this goal means that all members of our school community must value and care for each other. It is only by working together as a team, we can keep our ASB family safe. All ASB students, staff and parents are expected to adhere to the following:
1. To comply with and respect rules and policies designed to keep our school community safe and healthy.
2. To be considerate of others, appreciating that their risk tolerance might be lower than yours.
3. To adjust your behaviour with sensitivity and respect.
4. To trust that we all have a responsibility to provide open and honest
communication.
5. To practice preventative hygiene at home and school.
6. To be kind and patient; we are all in this together.

American School of Bahrain would like to thank, in advance, our students for their resilience and adaptability; our families for their support, patience, and understanding; and our staff for their courage, professionalism, and dedication. The 2020-21 school year is an especially challenging one for all of us, but we believe we can overcome these challenges by working together.

Campus COVID-19 Health & Safety Precautions

We have developed a slide presentation of ASB Health and Safety Protocols which apply to all members of the ASB school community. This includes all students, parents, staff members, and all other personnel employed by ASB while on campus.

These protocols follow the advice of the Bahrain National Medical Task Force with reference to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

COVID-19 CAMPUS OPENING PLAN 2020

Infectious disease experts have promoted social distancing as an essential strategy in the containment of COVID-19. The world has learned that COVID-19 is menacing and highly contagious. It poses a risk not only to students, but to the adults in their lives, including parents, teachers, grandparents, coaches, and many others. Social distancing is an important safety measure for ASB students when on campus. ASB provides space in the facility to distance our students and staff. The building is designed for 1,200 students and we have a population of approximately 150 students when we open in September. All members of the school community will be required to follow the school’s procedures and protocols.

Key Information

Educational Provision

In addition to the safety and health protocols, there are further precautionary practices being implemented at ASB with regards to scheduling and educational considerations.

Early Childhood students will not rotate to Music and Art classes. These subjects will be taught in their regular classroom space.
Students in Grades 1-9 will hold their Art, Music, Science, Spanish and Arabic classes in the rooms designed for these classes. While transitioning to the class, students must keep a two-meter distance. While inside these classroom students must maintain a 1.5-meter distance between each student. All supplies will be cleaned after each use by the cleaning staff assigned to the specialist classroom.
Students in Grades 1-9 may use the library at designated class times only. When students are in the library, they must keep a two-meter distance. The library staff must wear a mask and gloves. Counters must be cleaned after each class leaves the library and before a new class may enter. All returned books must be cleaned before they are returned for reuse.
All festivals, holiday events, special performances, school trips, camps and sports tournaments are cancelled until further notice by MOH/MOE. However, recordings, videos and live broadcasts will be used as much as possible to share our students’ talents.
Students should bring their own exclusive stationary items (list will be sent to parents soon), iPads, computers, headphones, and should not share these items. As much as possible the school will encourage a paperless strategy and elevated use of technology to minimize the contact with paper.
The cafeteria will be open for students to sit and eat their lunch. Seats may not be placed directly across the table from each other. The middle seat of each table will be removed or covered to promote additional social distancing. During lunch students will be allowed to take off their masks. These should be placed in a plastic bag when not being worn. Pre-packed food will be sold in the cafeteria (more information prior to school opening). Students purchasing food at school need to stand two meters apart in line while they wait their turn. Stickers will be placed on the floor to assist you.
During P.E. lessons, students and teachers will not be required to wear masks when engaged in strenuous physical activities such as running and workouts. However, social distancing guidelines are still in place of 1.5-meter distance.
Contact sports will not be allowed in P.E. classes. Whenever possible the P.E. classes will be held outdoors to promote fresh air. Changing rooms will be used, but a maximum of 9 students will be allowed in the changing room at a time. Students in Pre-KG to Grade 5 may wear their P.E. uniform to school on the days they have P.E.
The school pool is closed until further notice from MOE/MOH.

Mental Wellness

The continuous occurrence of confirmed cases of COVID-19, and the necessary changes to the normal operation of school and social life, may cause students understandable worry and stress. As students have been mostly at home during distance learning during the past school year and have had few social activities, it will take time to rebuild their daily routine. As such, our professional staff such as our social worker, counsellor, principal and teachers, pay attention to the emotional and behavioural changes of students and provide appropriate emotional support when necessary.

Communication

We will continuously strive to make our safety plans clear, flexible, and sustainable. They must also be easily communicated and understood by all school stakeholder groups. In addition, incorporating our mission and pillars into the new “normal school day” remains vital as we re-engage in daily school life. Our back to school plan will only be successful if it is communicated with clear expectations that are sustainable and flexible to changing realities. The first step is targeting communication to the ASB community on how to protect themselves and others by informing them what guidelines must be followed. In addition to existing communication channels, we will implement messaging signage, particularly in regard to key areas such as the main access points to campus, physical distancing, buses, cafeteria, bathrooms and common areas on campus. Further multimedia messaging strategies will be deployed schoolwide.
We train our cleaning staff on new measures of reducing and eliminating germs, our bus monitors on protective measures specific to their roles, our teachers and staff on sanitizing classroom space and shared objects, our students on maintaining distance and upholding personal health hygiene, and our parents on screening their children every morning. All stakeholders have a role to play, and training as well as over communicating is an integral part of our school opening plan.

Distance Learning Provision for Students Unable to Attend Classes Physically Due to Health Conditions and Quarantines

Purpose - To augment classroom learning with a distance learning plan that allows students to continue their learning through various online platforms including live broadcast of classes onsite; providing each student with a program and regular, meaningful support when a student is unable to attend school or schools are closed by the relevant authorities.
Components of the Distance Learning Plan:

We are committed to delivering an approach to distance learning that provides a procedure for online learning opportunities with student activities including live broadcast from onsite classes on a daily basis. There will be learning and feedback opportunities with the teacher through Zoom, SeeSaw and/or Google Classroom.
Lessons and activities that show progression of new learning, not just revision or consolidation.
An appropriate amount of work.
Ongoing and active support from teachers.

Virtual Learning Platforms

The following platforms support the continued delivery of our program, allow for video interaction, student submission of learning activities, and collaboration among all groups. Our students, faculty and parents are familiar with most of these platforms and they support our teaching and learning needs with the least amount of disruption and confusion.

Parent Communication through email and PowerSchool.
Seesaw - This platform is used with the Pre-KG to Grade 5 students. The platform allows for formative and summative assessments as well as opportunities for teacher feedback.
Google Classroom - This platform is used with students in grades 6 to 9 and allows for the teachers to create, distribute, and grade assignments.
One Note - This platform is used with students in grades 6 to 9 and allows for the teachers to create, distribute, and grade assignments.
WhatsApp - Mostly used by teachers and secondary school classes. This app allows the staff as well as staff and students to stay connected and contact each other for support.
Google Apps - We use all of the Google Suite for teaching and to support and shared learning.
Screencastify - This program allows teachers to make videos to send to the students.
Zoom - This program allows full class, live, activities as well as small group and individual face to face meetings in real time.

Communication Roles and Responsibilities

Leadership Team

• Continue to develop the initial plan to build on success and to adjust as needed and in relation to stakeholder survey results. We will endeavour to survey parents on a regular basis so we can ascertain their feedback.
• Meet with parents, faculty and students for feedback and encouragement. This may be done in person or through Zoom.
• Send out news and information to all community members on a weekly basis starting mid-August with our Back to School messages.

Communication with Families

• Director - Weekly update regarding onsite learning as well as summary of the week.
• Principal - Daily email or video to students and parents about learning updates.
• Principal and counselor meet with students and families that are at risk as well as give encouragement.
• Teachers - Email with lesson assignments, videos and support documents when necessary. SeeSaw will be used in the early childhood classes and the elementary school. Google Classroom will be used with middle and high school students.

We will conduct parent and student surveys to continually gather feedback to improve our program.

We need all members of our community to accept new responsibilities within this changed environment we will experience over the next year. Acting with self-awareness and sensitivity to others will be key. We must learn to recognize that changes must be embraced and supported with enthusiasm. When your child expresses frustration with rules that limit their social interactions, express your understanding, but discourage their cynicism and remind them the measures are in place to keep everyone safe. When your child has a cough or fever and complains of not feeling well, please keep them home until they are asymptomatic.
A collective and unified effort has never been more important as it is today. We are confident that the American School of Bahrain community will find a positive way to start our inaugural school year successfully while facing our challenges with determination as we embark together on our journey of educational excellence.

DO NOT DELETE

In This Section