. (As reopening plans are currently dynamic, this ongoing analysis offers a view of state recovery plans as a snapshot in time; there may have been changes or updates to these plans since this analysis was conducted.)
Strategies for Using American Rescue Plan Funding to Address the Impact of Lost Instructional Time: Offers strategies to support state and local efforts in effectively using ARP ESSER funds to address the impact of lost instructional time on underserved and disproportionately impacted students. This resource was issued by the US Department of Education (August 2021) to complement its COVID-19 Handbook, Volume 2: Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Students’ Needs. Three focal strategies include: 1. Reengaging students in their learning including by meeting the social, emotional, mental health, and academic needs of students and through such approaches as tutoring and creative staffing; 2. Providing information and assistance to families as they support students, including through home visits and information sharing; and 3. Using high-quality assessments to inform teaching and learning, including acceleration, and target resources and supports.
Addressing Learning Loss through Mental Health Supports: Compiles recommendations from experts in the field on why and how to address the mental health needs of students as schools reopen. The best way schools can help students catch up academically after a year of distance learning is to ensure they feel relaxed, safe, and connected to their friends and teachers as they return to the classroom.
Planning for a Pivotal School Year - A K-12 Leader's Guide to Get Ready for 2021-22: Provides a four-part series of selected contributions by Education Week journalists to help educators address uncertainties in the 2021-22 academic year ahead. How hard will it be for students to re-acclimate to full-time, in-person learning? How must teachers adapt instruction for the moment we are in? How can schools be ready to address the widening social-emotional and mental-health needs of students and employees? How will schools evolve their use of educational technology and remote learning for new realities? The four segments will focus on: best uses of the summer months; student well-being; instructional imperatives; and where we will go next with virtual learning.
Monthly School Survey Dashboard: Provides insights into learning opportunities offered by schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. Five consecutive monthly surveys (February through June 2021), conducted by ED’s Institute for Education Sciences [IES], support the Biden Administration’s Executive Order on Supporting the Reopening and Continuing Operation of Schools and Early Childhood Education Providers. Results from this pilot survey will also be available for analyzing the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data—contributing additional contextual factors for understanding educational outcomes of the nation's fourth- and eighth-grade students.
Education Department Kicks Off Summer Learning Collaborative: Announces the launch of ED’s Summer Learning and Enrichment Collaborative to support states and school districts as they develop out-of-school time programs in the upcoming months, relying on funding designated for this purpose in the American Rescue Plan Act. School districts must use at least 20 percent of their funding from that relief package to address learning recovery for students. ED has launched the collaborative along with the Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors Association. The collaborative is also drawing on the Comprehensive Center Network, a professional learning community supporting state and local education agencies, for support.
Data and Policy to Guide Opening Schools Safely to Limit the Spread of SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Summarizes global data about SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks at K-12 schools, and emphasizes school-based policies shown to diminish spread of infection. Three CDC authors inform this JAMA Viewpoint that “the preponderance of available evidence h