How was your family’s distance learning experience this spring? The answers no doubt vary depending on who you ask and where they live in New Jersey. Many lessons have been learned throughout the COVID-19 crisis that can serve to strengthen the educational experience for all students in the fall.

According to a Gallup poll taken in March, 42% of parents worried about the impact of COVID-19 on their children’s education. Now that the school year has ended, it appears that parents had a right to be concerned, given the projected learning gaps facing some students. See Dana Goldstein, ”Research Shows Students Falling Months Behind During Virus Disruptions,” New York Times (June 5, 2020). Given the unprecedented situation the pandemic presented, many New Jersey students experienced learning loss resulting from the transition from in-person instruction to distance learning. See New Jersey Dep’t of Educ., “Summer Learning Resource Guide 2020: State Guidance for District and School Leaders” (2020). In the most extreme cases, students did not have access to the required technology. In other cases, there was little to no  direct instruction provided. Likewise, special education students were not provided related services and/or were unable to digest the provided content absent the significant intervention usually provided by a certified special education teacher.