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“Based on the current trajectory,” Cuomo said that there is “no reason” New York cannot reopen schools statewide for the next school year.
“We have to get back to school,” he said. “I think there’s no reason why every school shouldn’t be open in September.”
Cuomo made note that while distance learning worked for some as an emergency precaution during the pandemic, different circumstances led to different experiences for some students.
“The remote learning sounds fine and worked fine enough for some students," he said. “Some students paid a very heavy price. Remote learning only works if you’re in a home that has the equipment … That has access to Internet …. A home with someone who can help the student with issues.
“But remote learning with COVID discriminated,” Cuomo added. “Poor households and more minority households were not as successful with remote learning.”
Cuomo also said that outside the potential discrepancies caused by remote learning, many students also lost a year of socialization with their peers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We did the best we could with a bad situation, but by no stretch of the imagination is remote learning a substitute for in-class participation,” he said. “Also the socialization aspect that goes with school … You’ve had students who lost a year of socialization.
“So if you ask me today, all schools can open statewide in September unless there is a dramatic change of the COVID trajectory.”
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