Kimberley College tells students to stay home for ‘remote learning’ to stem coronavirus

A large private college, southeast of Brisbane, is one of the first in the state to start shutting its doors as the spread of COVID-19 grows.

Kimberley College Principal Glenn Johnson has sent a letter to staff and parents telling them to keep kids home and that school would be done by remote as of Monday.

A LARGE private college, south of Brisbane, is one of the first in the state to start shutting its doors as the spread of COVID-19 grows.

Kimberley College, at Carbrook, told its students and staff that as of Monday, it would move to a “remote learning model” and has asked students to stay at home.

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Principal Glenn Johnson said the new measures would start on Monday but would be rolled out in phases during the week.

He said school buses would continue to run “for the time being”.

“At the end of the school day on Monday, 23 March, Kimberley College will commence a rolling suspension of face-to-face teaching of curriculum and move to a remote learning model of delivery for all students,” an email to staff, students and parents said.

“Kimberley College is unique as it also draws from a very large catchment area which has the potential to increase the risk of transmission into communities across a wider area.

“All research identifies personal hygiene and social distancing to be the two most effective ways to stop the spread of COVID-19 so decisions have been made with these key factors and the realities of increasing absenteeism from the College as the focus.”

Senior school students will stay at home from Tuesday, with primary school students to stay away from Wednesday and middle school students to stay away from Thursday.

The school said unless government-instructed school closures were put in place beforehand, some Year 12 students may be required to attend school to complete subject-specific exams during this period of remote learning.

However, Mr Johnson said they would be few in number, and social distancing and cleaning measures would be firmly in place, and students, wherever possible, would be required to return home at the conclusion of each exam.

From Monday, parents and guardians who have the ability to safely keep their children at home are encouraged to do so as this will allow our teaching staff to better prepare for the transition to remote learning.

“The College recognises that it may not be possible for parents and families to keep their children at home so, for the time being, we will supervise students at school for whom remaining at home is not an option,” the email said.

“However, please be aware that the students at school will be accessing the same remote learning material as those at home and their supervising teacher may not be their current classroom teachers.

“The majority of our staff will continue to work onsite during this period and will either be delivering online lessons, supervising students, or planning virtual curriculum in their teams.”