COVID-19 bared gaps in education technology and support, panel says

COVID-19 revealed gaps in access to education technology and support across individuals, school districts and states, a panel of education administrators said Thursday during a National Press Club online event.

To watch a video of the event, click here. 

Alberto M. Carvalho, superintendent of schools for Miami-Dade County in Florida, said his system, the fourth largest in the nation with more than 350,000 public school students, was prepared for crises because it is a coastal area that must shut down for hurricanes. At such times, the schools become community shelters, so plans are also  in place to distribute food and water. The district has a pandemic plan that it adapted for the specific needs of COVID-19. 

With continuity of investment over the years, the system created 11,000 Internet hot spots and put devices containing personalized content in the hands of students, including students still learning English, he said.

Clarissa Moffat Miller, executive director, The Council of Chief State School Officers, described states’ work to create online access and get devices to students, but said, “It’s still very disparate.”

She identified continuity of lessons and conditions for learning, including social and emotional needs as key considerations. 

Anne M. Kress, president, Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), contrasted the situation in Northern Virginia, where access to the Internet is almost “ubiquitous,” with the rest of the state. “In some places access to the Internet is unheard of and in some places it is still dial up modem access,” she said. 

The NOVA student body, two thirds of it part-time, includes many students who are working in service industries who became unemployed in the pandemic. The school started an emergency fund with foundation money so students could apply for grants up to $500 for living expenses before unemployment began, she said.

The school used federal dollars to turn parking lots into Internet hotspots and distributed laptops to for students in need, she said. 

She cited a quote by a previous president of a community college association that, “Community colleges have the least amount of resources to serve the students with the most needs.” 

In response to a question by Emily Wilkins, Club secretary and moderator, about what schools would look like as they reopened and into the future, discussion turned to the social and emotional support schools provide.