“Many districts have simply stopped taking attendance altogether, or focused on preparing teaching materials and getting students access to technology before determining whether they were using it….But measuring engagement time online can be an imprecise science, said Gary Miron, a professor at Western Michigan University’s College of Education and Human Development. A student might have schoolwork open in one window while spending more time on social media or a game in another window. Virtual schools that have quantified attendance as “one interaction per week” fall well short of ensuring students are engaged, he said….Many schools are struggling to reach students who have not been engaged in learning since the pandemic hit, Education Week reported this week. Among more than 1,000 teachers who answered a nationwide survey this month from the Education Week Research Center, an average of 21 percent of their students have been “essentially truant” or unreachable during COVID-19 closures.” Read article
Apr 22