While we don’t know for sure if LAUSD students will be starting the new school year in their classrooms this fall, we do know they will have access to Zoom. Zoom and LAUSD formally agreed to a virtual classroom option providing access to nearly 30,000 educators and more than 600,000 students in the second-largest school district in North America. The Zoom platform will allow teachers to observe as many as 49 students at a time.
The school district is still assessing whether campuses can reopen when classes resume on Aug. 18. A recent LAUSD survey found that about 20% of Los Angeles parents aren't yet ready to send their students back to school, and more than one-third of employees don't want to return. Nearly 60% of families said they were ready to send their children back to school, but nearly half of those required fewer students on campus at any given time. Some 20% said they were uncertain about return regardless of the setup.
Superintendent Austin Beutner, said in a statement about the Zoom deal, "There is no substitute for learning in a school setting, but the investment in the digital future of all students will help make sure there's opportunity to match the talent we know is in every classroom, whether at school or at home."