Distance Learning During COVID-19: 7 Equity Considerations for Schools and Districts. Issue Brief

Southern Education Foundation. 135 Auburn Avenue NE 2nd Floor, Atlanta, GA 30303. Tel: 404-523-0001; Fax: 404-523-6904; e-mail: infosoutherneducation.org; Web site: http://www.southerneducation.org

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Public Health; Disease Control; Public Schools; Elementary Secondary Education; At Risk Students; Minority Group Students; Low Income Students; Access to Computers; Internet; Distance Education; Educational Technology; Educational Resources; School Districts; Board of Education Role; Instructional Materials; Special Needs Students; English Language Learners; Faculty Development; Mental Health; Health Services; Parent Role; COVID-19; Pandemics; School Closing

South Carolina; Texas (Dallas); Louisiana; Maryland; Florida; Virginia; Tennessee; Mississippi; Georgia; North Carolina

Government officials are taking swift public health actions to slow the rapidly spreading COVID-19 pandemic. By the end of March, statewide school closures affected 55.1 million K-12 public school students across the country. While school closures affect all students, students from underserved communities feel this impact even greater. Data on digital disparities reveal that nearly 20 percent of African American children ages 3-18 and 21 percent of families earning less than $40,000 per year have no access to the internet at home. This Issue Brief reviews publicly available digital learning plans for the seventeen states covered by the Southern Education Foundation to see how schools and districts are meeting the needs of their most vulnerable students and families. They have taken different approaches for distance learning based on the needs of their student populations, grade level, and current technology or infrastructure. To help schools and districts determine what is best for their students and communities, the brief provides these equity considerations along with examples of how some districts are addressing these issues now.

ERIC

2020

ED605744