Filling the Gap
COVID-19 learning disruptions hit vulnerable students the hardest By Alex Rohr, NDU Communications
While teachers, paraprofessionals and education staff rose to every challenge they faced this past year with a heroic commitment to serving students and communities, the unprecedented shifts in learning structure meant some of the most vulnerable students may now be struggling more than ever.
What’s referred to as a “learning gap” or “unfinished learning” became apparent as swift changes to education meant most students and teachers worked remotely or on staggered hybrid schedules, at least for a time. These fluctuations occurred while many students encountered new stresses at home or in their communities, including the economic and cultural 6
|
ND United Voices
repercussions from a pandemic that killed more than half a million Americans and put roughly 100,000 North Dakotans out of work. The new stresses reverberated across every part of society and made canyons out of cracks that don’t always draw enough attention from the public, including in education. Where inequality or a lack of opportunity and access existed long before COVID-19, the pandemic expanded the divide. The gaps are clear in data collected by Dr. Ellie Shockley, an institutional researcher at the North Dakota University System. The trends show the groups most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic were those who already experienced barriers prior to
