COVID-19 Education Resources Updated: March 13, 2020
Resources Available Education organizations have published guides and checklists to help teachers, parents and state leaders prepare for extended time out of classrooms as schools close to slow down the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). Below are a number of these guides and tools, organized by audience. General Planning Resources for School Closures ● CDC planning resources ○ Get Your School Ready for Pandemic Flu (2017) ○ Interim Guidance for Administrators of US Childcare Programs and K-12 Schools ○ Checklist for Teachers, Parents, and Administrators ○ Developing high-quality school emergency operations plans and a companion guide on the role of school districts in developing high-quality school emergency operations plans ● American Federation of Teachers developed an interactive resource list of questions to ask when preparing for school closures. ● The Association of California School Administrators has assembled a list of tools, resources, and guides, including sample letters for schools to send home to parents. ● EdSurge has an active guide for schools responding to the coronavirus that includes guides to digital learning, webinars, news, and a comprehensive set of resources of available digital learning resources. Distance Learning Technology Planning Resources for Schools ● The International Society of Technology in Education has published 10 strategies for online learning to help teachers who are making their classrooms virtual for the first time. ● TNTP published a guide for district leaders of Resources for Learning at Home When Schools Close. ● Newsela published a how to guide on preparing for distance learning. ● The Policy Innovators in Education Network has published a collection of resources for school and district emergency preparedness and the mental well-being of children, including guidance published by other state education departments and school districts. ● Common Sense Education has published a set of resources for teachers to prepare for school closures, including collaboration tools and lesson resources. ● The School Library Journal published a Mini Clearinghouse on Coronavirus with resources for educators and librarians to support home learning. ● KQED is offering daily 15-minute webinars for teachers to help them get started using PBS Learning Media resources (compatible with Google Classroom).
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Resources for Parents and Families ● Common Sense Education has published vetted resources for parents to find educational video games and apps and ways to assess if an online tool is useful for learning. ● Zero to Three published guidance on how to talk to kids about the COVID-19. ● Colorín Colorado developed Multilingual Resources for Schools to use in communicating with families of English learners. ● NPR developed a comic strip to support information sharing with kids about COVID-19. ● BrainPop has made a short video explaining COVID-19 in friendly accessible language and engaging content. ● PBS Kids published guidance on how to talk to kids about the coronavirus. ● Newsela also published resources to help students understand coronavirus. Technology Tools and Online Content If schools are already using the following tech tools, new resources and features have been opened up to them. Among the larger and more currently utilized resources are: ●
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Google/G Suite Education: Google Classroom, a free learning management system, has significant market share so many schools will already be using it in some capacity. Google is rolling out expanded access to video conferencing features (Google Meet) for schools and districts using G Suite Education (a version of Google’s productivity tools tailored for the school setting) for online learning. Google Classroom and Google Meet will be integrated by March 16. Microsoft: Microsoft Teams, video conferencing tool, is available for free to educational institutions through the Office 365 A1 offer along with a six-month subscription of Office 365 A5. Khan Academy is a free learning resource used by millions of students worldwide and has published a quick start guide to help parents and others who are going online to help students learn while schools are closed. Zoom is removing the 40-minute time limit on their basic free account for schools closed for coronavirus who want to use 1:1 or group videoconferencing. Blackboard: Blackboard is offering free webinars next week to help teachers and professors make the transition to online learning. Canvas: Instructure has provided guides for using Canvas and MasteryConnect during school closures, as well as tips for making online learning engaging. Many schools use Clever to safely log in students and teachers. Here’s a guide for how to do this at home during school closures.
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Data providers are increasing availability for digital learning: ●
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AT&T: The company is suspending data caps for home broadband internet use. Comcast: the company is making Internet Essentials, its low-cost internet service for families with low incomes, available free for 60 days to new customers and raising data cap limits on the service. The California Teleconnect Fund (CTF) provides a 25% discount on select telephone services and 50% discounts on broadband services to schools, libraries, hospitals and about 7,000 Community Based Organizations (CBOs). The State Public Utility Commission could consider temporarily expanding eligible services to include mobile hotspots and home connectivity. Other telecoms likely to follow soon in response to request from Congress.
A number of other curricular resources are available and include: ●
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Age of Learning provides free access to schools closing due to COVID-19. It is prioritizing full district requests to ABC Mouse (pre-K), Adventure Academy (elementary and middle school), and ReadingIQ (digital library for children age 12 and under). Bookcreator (a platform for making ebooks, now for laptops, too) offers 90 days of collaboration upgrade (integrates with Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle). Brainpop has free unlimited instructional video use for closed schools (integrates with Canvas, Schoology, and other major management systems). Discovery Ed streaming video is making access free through the end of the school year and a new content channel “Viruses and Outbreak.”
● Kami is offering free premium access (integrates with Google Classroom, Canvas and ● ● ● ●
Schoology). Kahoot offers free premium access (integrates with Microsoft suite and Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, Apple Schoolwork). LearnZillion offers over 1000 free standards-aligned instructional videos (integrates with Canvas, Schoology, D2L, Blackboard). Nearpod is already supporting 100+ schools with tools, webinars (integrates with Canvas, Schoology, Blackboard, Google Classroom, ITS ). Pear Deck has complimentary access to Pear Deck Premium (integrates with Google Classroom, Microsoft 365, Immersive Reader).
● Pronto is offering free access to teachers for their video and chat services (integrates with all major learning management systems).
● Outschool is a collection of 10,000 online small group activities.
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