Frontline Blog

The use of data analytics is increasingly part of modern life, whether you’re talking about headlines like vaccination roll-out efforts, practical matters like tracking hours at your job, or daily routines like the average height and weight chart at a pediatrician’s office. K-12 education is no different, a topic Dr. Adam Cibulka is deeply familiar with.

In early April, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said that schools should be reopened and “full-fledged in person” come fall 2021, regardless of vaccination status. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona echoed this in early May, saying that he expects a full return for all students in the fall.

Schools have had to face many new challenges in response to the coronavirus pandemic. While the vaccine rollout may signal the coming end of the pandemic – and the end of some of those challenges – there is one issue that the vaccine will not remedy: declining enrollment.

The COVID-19 crisis is an unprecedented challenge that has exposed many of the difficulties in delivering quality remote learning, at scale, to students across the country. While some school districts had all the pieces in place to instantly flip to virtual education delivery, many did not. With states shutting schools down in mid-March 2020, a lack of technology resources and preparedness resulted in sub-optimal learning for students and, in some cases, districts were forced to raise the white flag and end the school year early. The magnitude and complexity of this crisis cannot be understated regarding the speed and scale at which it impacted U.S. education.

For the past 10 years or so, school districts have wrestled with implementing social and emotional learning (SEL) standards within their schools. To support the social emotional needs of their students, school districts have attempted a variety of solutions, including hiring student support staff members such as guidance counselors, social workers, and/or psychologists to provide targeted interventions and support for students. Some districts have purchased research-based curricula, student response surveys, and strategies for teachers to incorporate into their daily lessons.