About the project

Education was upended in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly closed schools. With no warning teachers scrambled to figure out how to instruct students who were suddenly pushed out of the school buildings that provided their academic nurturing as well as socialization, nutrition, emotional support and a secure daily routine. Since then, as multiple virus waves have swept the nation, students have been in and out of physical classrooms, learning sometimes online, sometimes in person, sometimes not at all.

In recent months, educators have been assessing the severity of learning deficits created by the pandemic and what those deficits may mean for students’ abilities to reach traditional standards and benchmarks in reading, math and other subjects. One trend has become clear: Student groups already behind in academic achievement pre-pandemic – minorities, English language learners and those who live in poverty – are even further behind.

This series will look at some of the setbacks to learning but also focus on solutions by examining the obstacles facing educators and the resiliency both teachers and students are showing as they move through the new world of learning in a pandemic.