Can you imagine getting to study abroad somewhere as exotic as Morocco, and then getting stuck there due to coronavirus? Danford, an American student from the University of Vermont in Burlington, was less than two weeks into what was supposed to be over a month of education and cultural immersion in Moroccan life. “We went from thinking we might stay there for the whole semester to leaving as soon as possible,” she told ABC News… Following the announcement on Sunday, March 15

This article makes a lot of sense.  I especially appreciate the author’s differentiation between “distance learning” and “online learning”. What are the first steps school leaders should take? If you’re in a school system that has shut yet, make sure students have as many learning materials as possible to take home with them. Get them backpack-ready. Then, for middle and high schools, think about moving to a distance-learning model. I’m choosing those words carefully. We’re m

From the US Department of Education: Contact: Press Office, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov WASHINGTON — The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education released today a webinar on ensuring web accessibility for students with disabilities for schools utilizing online learning during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. In addition, OCR published a fact sheet for education leaders on how to protect students’ civil rights as school leaders take steps to keep

What is left out of a news story can be just as important as what is in the news story.  Case in point: On February 28, 54 graduate students were fired from their teaching assistant positions at the University of California Santa Cruz after striking for higher wages, and 28 more were told they wouldn’t be rehired when the next quarter starts at the end of March. Many of those dismissed by the university are parents, expecting parents, and international students — and now, the

As of yesterday, this was the governing philosophy in Sacramento County regarding coronavirus: California’s Sacramento County is calling off automatic 14-day quarantines that have been implemented for the coronavirus, saying it will focus instead on mitigating the impact of COVID-19. Today: In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, Sacramento County public school districts are canceling classes for up to three weeks. The closures will begin Monday and affect more than a do

First, San Francisco: A day after announcing San Francisco public schools would stay open as long as possible, officials announced Thursday that all city schools would close for three weeks to try to slow down the progress of the new coronavirus. Then, only 90 miles away, the Sacramento area: California’s Sacramento County is calling off automatic 14-day quarantines that have been implemented for the coronavirus, saying it will focus instead on mitigating the impact of COVID-