COVID-19 Policy Update #260
COVID-19 Policy Update
FRIDAY 5/21
TOP THREE
Schooling Has Changed Forever. Here’s What Will Stay When Things Go Back to ‘Normal’: Great article by Peggy Barmore:
"A public school district in Arizona is looking to become a service provider for parents who have pulled their children out to home-school them. In Oklahoma, students are having a say in where and when they learn. And educators everywhere are paying closer attention to students’ mental well-being."
"The ability to be unbounded by the offerings that are in a school building and the kind of one-size-fits-all approach has been liberating for people,” said Robin Lake."
"Anne Gullickson, CEO and founder of the nonprofit A for Arizona, has given grants of $20,000 or more to schools and districts to launch a number of new programs. The proposals included after-hours study groups for third graders to work with a qualified teacher or tutor to stem learning loss during the pandemic; an outdoor learning hub to reengage students who weren’t attending online classes; and an in-person small learning community with social and emotional supports for students suffering from trauma."
"More educators are realizing “you’re not going to achieve the academic gains that you want to see without attending to the social and emotional development of young people,” said Karen VanAusdal, senior director of practice for CASEL."
COVID-19 Mitigation Practices and COVID-19 Rates in Schools: Report on Data from Florida, New York and Massachusetts: New study from Emily Oster et al.
"We analyze data collected by the COVID-19 School Response Dashboard and focus on student density, ventilation upgrades, and masking."
"We find higher student COVID-19 rates in schools and districts with lower in-person density but no correlations in staff rates."
"If students and teachers who are out of school engage in higher risk activities, more time in school could in principle be protective."
"Ventilation upgrades are correlated with lower rates in Florida but not in New York. We do not find any correlations with mask mandates."
"All rates are lower in the spring, after teacher vaccination is underway."
"In discussing these results, it is crucial to keep in mind that these data represent correlations and we cannot make strong causal claims. Notably, we expect school mitigation practices to reflect community mitigation practices: areas in which schools take more precautions will also take more precautions in other areas of society, making it difficult to attribute effects directly to the school behavior."
CDC Study on Masks/Ventilation: The new study comes from Georgia which analyzed data from169 K-5 schools. Study / NPR
Some schools required teachers, staff and sometimes students to wear masks; some did not.
Between Nov. 16 and Dec. 11, researchers found that infection rates were 37% lower in schools where teachers and staff members were required to wear masks.
But!..."The 21% lower incidence in schools that required mask use among students was not statistically significant compared with schools where mask use was optional. This finding might be attributed to higher effectiveness of masks among adults, who are at higher risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection but might also result from differences in mask-wearing behavior among students in schools with optional requirements."
"Ventilation strategies associated with lower school incidence included dilution methods alone (35% lower incidence) or in combination with filtration methods (48% lower incidence)."
FEDERAL
White House: The White House offered to reduce the price tag of its infrastructure proposal from $2.25 trillion to $1.7 trillion, in the latest counter offer to Republicans. They accepted the $65 billion for broadband, down from the White House's initial ask of $95 billion.
CDC: Urges against kissing, snuggling poultry in salmonella warning. Has nothing to do with COVID or education, but good guidance for Rotherham.
ECONOMIC RECOVERY
Housing Payments: 14% of renting households are behind on payments. The average amount owed is $3,400.
RESOURCES
How the Pandemic Disrupted the Lives of American Students: Great segment from PBS NewsHour
Impact of COVID-19 on Teaching and Learning: New survey from Digital Promise
Teachers perceived their students’ top problem as missing social interactions at school or with friends (88 percent), followed by keeping up academically (82 percent).
Only roughly three in 10 teachers and parents give their school high ratings for helping students with pandemic-related social-emotional challenges.
Future of School: Hybrid Learning Models are Here to Stay Post-Pandemic: AT&T survey of parents and teachers.
94% of teachers are open to the idea of hybrid learning with the proper resources, curriculum and support
78% of teachers are in favor of virtual tutoring sessions or enrichment programs
84% of parents support virtual tutoring or enrichment programs
Some Schools Struggle to Get Students to Return After Months of Remote Learning: Via WSJ
Some Families Want Virtual Schooling. Here’s What Districts Should Offer: Via the Christensen Institute
Prioritize Building Relationships With Your Students: What Science Says: Via Devin Vodicka at Getting Smart
Early Look at District Plans to Spend Billions in Federal Relief Funds Shows Lack of Focus on Learning Recovery: Via The 74
"States have until Monday to distribute $81 billion in federal relief funds to districts — two-thirds of the total for K-12 schools in the American Rescue Plan."
"And while the law requires districts to put aside 20 percent of their funding to address learning loss, an early review of spending plans shows most aren’t adding tutoring programs, extending the school year or adopting other programs expected to help students catch up."
"Instead, they are largely using the money to fill budget gaps, hire staff and issue “thank you” bonuses to teachers, Marguerite Roza, director of Georgetown University’s Edunomics Lab"
Teachers Join Front-line Workers Concerned Over New CDC Mask Guidance: Via NBC News
"With the school year ending within weeks, we had hoped to have the time this summer to prepare and incorporate any new COVID-19 guidance into our back-to-school plans," Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said in the letter to the CDC's director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona."
"Unfortunately, certain states rushed to act, such as Texas, which totally eliminated its mask mandates, regardless of age, even though vaccines are yet to be approved for those under the age of 12 and fewer than 50 percent of the U.S. population are fully vaccinated," said Weingarten, who represents 1.7 million members."
You Made It To The Weekend: Way to stick the landing.