August 25, 2020 — Two reports came out today that provide great lessons learned about how charter schools transitioned to remote learning this past spring due to COVID-19 school closures.
The National Alliance released a report conducted by Public Impact, Learning in Real Time: How Charter Schools Serve Students During COVID-19 Closures, that compares how charter schools and district schools served students during COVID-19 closures. This report takes a closer look at how the typical single-site school and small networks responded. Some of its key findings include the following:
- The research showed that on average, when compared to districts, charter schools had stronger expectations for teachers to provide direct instruction, provide real-time instruction, and check-in with students and families.
- Charter schools also monitored student attendance more closely than their district counterparts.
- Charter schools were equally as likely to require the distribution of devices for online learning, although they appeared less likely to provide home or community internet hotspots.
“In Florida, charter schools were able to provide an array of remote learning options for students — from live remote learning to the distribution of learning packets, lunch and providing essetial technical support to families. Our member charter schools successfully kept students engaged and on-task during unprecedented times,” said Lynn Norman-Teck, executive director, Florida Charter School Alliance.
“I’m so proud of our teachers, and also very pleased with our students who have caught on quickly to this new technology…” Viera Charter School principal Dr. Julie Cady said. The school’s educational technology manager remained at school addressing any technology obstacle teachers or parents might have and distributing laptops so that all students will have a station of their own for the duration of time they must learn from home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Fordham Institute released a report entitled Schooling COVID-19: Lessons from leading charter networks from their transition to remote learning. The report distills major lessons learned from eight leading charter networks and offers concrete recommendations for how to significantly improve the remote learning experience for all students including how to:
- Create and enforce a typical school day for students, with a mix of live and recorded lessons and independent schoolwork.
- Prioritize student health and wellbeing and reach out to individual students and families on a regular basis.
- Lean into a team approach to teaching and instructions, centered around a common curriculum.