Student Learning
Educators know that every school year there are students who require support in addressing unfinished learning from prior grades, a challenge that will be felt more prominently in the 2020–21 school year. It is vitally important that educators are supported to make deliberate instructional choices that allow all students to effectively engage with grade-level work.
Hybrid Instruction Plan Considerations
Resources
- IDLA Blended Learning Transition Modules
- Five Formative Assessment Strategies to Improve Distance Learning Outcomes for Students with Disabilities
- Google Certified Educator Training
- Idaho Digital Learning Academy (IDLA)
- The K-12 Educator’s Guide to Safe and Effective Video Conferencing (Education Week)
- Return to School Roadmap for Technology
Assessment Resources
- SY2020-2021 Fall Assessment Considerations
- SY2019-20 Elementary Interims
- SY2019-20 Middle School Interims
- SY2019-20 High School Interims
- SY2020-21 Interim Assessments Overview
Instructional Resources
Communications Resources
Communicating with Parents
- Parent Letter Template
- Guidance on FERPA and COVID-19 Disclosures
- When is it permissible to utilize FERPA’s health or safety emergency exception for disclosures?
Model Communication Strategy
Planning Considerations
Preparing for School
- Build a Return to Instruction working group
- Set goals
- Develop plan for assessing learning progress and loss
- Inventory all intervention programs and services
- Identify the most vulnerable students
- Keep updated on changes to testing, grading, reporting, and promotion policies and communicate to schools
- Ensure that schools and teachers are engaging in intentional curriculum planning
- Secure resources and plan restorative support and professional learning offerings for teachers
- Maintain regular communication with district/school leadership
- Establish virtual structure for teacher teams
- Create a technology use survey
- Solidify and communicate an overall plan for assessment
- Share a comprehensive account of academic interventions and social-emotional and mental health support services
- Assess the capacity of structures outside of the regular school day (before/after school programs, summer learning, etc.)
- Align expectations around onboarding school communities
- Develop parent communication strategy
- Survey teachers about their needs
- Assess the effectiveness, appropriateness, and sustainability of certain digital and online tools
School in Session
- Review assessment data to identify overall trends and specific gaps
- Conduct checkpoints with school leaders
- Develop targeted intervention plans
- Assess the efficacy of all academic and social-emotional interventions
- Evaluate the effectiveness of any remote learning experience and adjust where needed
Special Education Resources
General Resources
- SPED Directors Webinar, COVID-19 Check-in - March 16, 2021
- Medicaid SBS Guidance for Back-to-School 2020
- SPED Director's Webinar-Schools Reopening 2020-Follow-up #1, August 18, 2020
- Special Education Students ISEE Quick Guide: COVID-19
Other Resources
- U.S. Department of Education COVID 19 Handbook, Volume 2: Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Students' Needs - April 9, 2021
- OSERS COVID-19 Q & A-IDEA Parts B & C, Provision of Services – September 28, 2020
- OSERS COVID-19 Q & A-IDEA Part B Procedural Safeguards - June 30, 2020
- OSERS COVID-19 Q & A-IDEA Parts B & C, Use of Funds, Flexibility in Implementation of Part B Fiscal Requirements – June 26, 2020
- OSERS COVID-19 Q & A: IDEA Parts B & C, Dispute Resolution procedures, June 22, 2020
- U.S. Department of Education COVID-19 Resources for Schools, Students, and Families