Resources for Educators and Schools

This resource collection provides resources and information for educators and school leaders to provide equitable learning opportunities for all students to address disparities often exacerbated by the challenges of remote learning.

  • Engaging Parents and Students from Diverse Populations in the Context of Distance Learning. The webinar released by REL West shares lessons from research and practice to help educators engage with students and their families to support continued learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The presentation addresses three evidence-based strategies for student and family engagement: cultivating a partnership orientation; practicing cultural responsiveness; and establishing two-way communication.
  • Equitable Practices for Online Learning. This free webinar series from Equity Assistance Center (EAC) Region II (IDRA EAC-South) provides resources to support educators as they continue student learning during stay-at-home orders prompted by the global pandemic.
  • Continuity of Learning: Resources to Ensure Equity. This resource collection curated by the National Comprehensive Center resources to support SEAs, LEAs, and school leaders in their ongoing efforts to ensure educational equity for the most vulnerable students.
  • Distance Learning Resources for Education Stakeholders in the Northwest. This resource repository for schools and districts developed by Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Northwest shares how to educate students and deliver services for special populations amid school closures.
  • Culturally Responsive Leading and Learning: Addressing Equity Through Student and Family Voice. This article from REL Pacific presents considerations for educators to develop equitable and culturally responsive instructional practices to support students and families with remote learning. By acknowledging the unique student and family voices within schools and districts, teachers and leaders have an opportunity to help families adapt to the current academic landscape while addressing and closing equity disparities. The accompanying infographic, Including Voice in Education: Addressing Equity Through Student and Family Voice in Classroom Learning features practical strategies for educators and school leaders to implement in the classroom.
  • Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19). The webpage developed by the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA) features a collection of resources that are updated daily with the latest information on funding and guidance for all birth through age 5 early childhood special education programs regarding COVID-19.
  • Addressing Inequities Related to Online and Distance Learning. This Equity Digest by the Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center for educators provide insight into the inequities experienced by minority students and communities in online and distance learning environments. The Center discusses challenges related to online learning (e.g., access, job loss, housing insecurity, health disparities, ongoing civil unrest), and ways to create a culturally responsive, inclusive, and more equitable education environment that mitigates these challenges.
  • Culturally Affirming Care for Rural Students During the Pandemic: A Karuk Perspective. This blog by Regional Educational Laboratory West for social workers, support providers, and teachers share Preston-Donahue’s approach to supporting student well-being, both before the pandemic and during the pandemic, has been firmly grounded in Karuk culture. Her practices are strength-based and culturally meaningful, building on the tribe’s beliefs, customs, and natural environment.
  • How “Classrooms on Wheels” Continue to Reach Rural Preschoolers During the Pandemic. This blog by Regional Educational Laboratory West for early childhood providers and district leadership share that a substantial body of research has established the benefits of preschool education to young children’s ongoing academic learning and development of social and emotional skills. Because Preschool opportunities are limited in Nevada’s rural high desert, a local full-service family support nonprofit organization, Community Chest, Inc., has been reaching and teaching 3- and 4-year-olds who would not otherwise have access to a pre-K education.
  • Count Us In: Advancing Equity in Rural Schools and Communities. This special edition in the Exploring Equity Issues series, titled Count Us In: Advancing Equity in Rural Schools and Communities by the Mid-Atlantic Equity Consortium (MAEC) for educators focus on strategies for and perspectives on advancing equity for rural schools and communities.
  • Engaging Students and Families from Diverse Populations During the COVID-19 Pandemic. This blog by Regional Educational Laboratory West for teachers, school leaders, and district leaders discuss ways to reach and connect with historically underserved or marginalized populations, including Black, Latinx, and economically disadvantaged students and families, as well as those with language backgrounds other than English, is important for educators at any and all times.

English Learners

  • Technology Use with English Learners. This fact sheet from the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) reports data and information based on a national study of English learners and digital learning resources, Supporting English Learners Through Technology (2019) and the Educator Toolkit: Using Educational Technology— 21st Century Supports for English Learners (2018).
  • Guidance for Navigating Distance Learning for English Learner Students. A blog series developed by the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Midwest, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic for parents and educators, focuses on supporting English learner students and their unique needs with remote learning.
  • How Can Educators Provide High-Quality Instruction to English Learners In An Online Environment? This frequently asked questions developed by the REL Northeast & Islands provides strategies for how educators, school leaders, and district leaders can provide high-quality instruction to English Learners in an online environment.
  • Ensuring Continuity of Learning and Operations. This resource collection from the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition includes resources intended for school personnel and institutions of higher education to improve distance learning and the support of English learners and their families during school closures.
  • Engaging English Learners and Families through Distance Learning. This webinar from the Office of English Language Acquisition discusses how during COVID-19 related school closures and the transition to distance learning, many schools are working to sustain engagement with EL families and communities, and to ensure two-way communication to build school and community capacity. Panelists share recommendations and examples of EL family engagement activities during remote learning. This webinar is part of the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA) Webinars.
  • English Learner Resources for Educators. This resource repository from the EAC Region I (Center for Education Equity) presented curated online and distance education resource repositories for educators and families of students who are English learners.
  • Disability and English Learners: Intersections of Civil Rights and Best Practice. This training guide from the EAC Region III (Midwest and Plains Equity Assistance Center) assists educators in understanding civil rights law, federal disability laws, and related best practices to help schools provide nondiscriminatory, effective services to their growing English Learner populations, particularly for students with disabilities.
  • Strengthening English Learner Education in Rural Areas. English learners (ELs) increasingly attend rural schools, educators are asking for resources and training to improve student learning and family engagement. In this post and webinar from REL Central, learn about strategies some schools are using and research to inform your work with ELs in this post and companion webinar recording.
  • Reopening Instructional Programs for Our Most Vulnerable Students: A Reopening Guidebook for the 2020-2021 School Year. This guidebook by Region 3 Comprehensive Center for educators help address the pressing issues that students face, particularly the most vulnerable learners as schools reopen their programs. It includes the following four chapters: (1) Virtual Learning, (2) Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 3 Parent Supports, (3) English Learners and Spanish Learners, and (4) Students with Disabilities.
  • Supporting Students with Disabilities in the Classroom within a PBIS Framework. The practice brief by the Center on Positive Behavior and Intervention Support (PBIS) describes the “top ten” intervention strategies effective educators implement to support all students, including students with disabilities, in their classroom.

Students with Disabilities

  • Evidence-Based and Promising Practices to Support Continuity of Learning for Students With Disabilities: Practices and Resources to Support Teachers This brief developed by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) presents practices and resources that educators of children and youth with disabilities can use to support students’ continuity of learning during school building closures.
  • Plan and Deliver: Educating Students with Disabilities in Virtual Settings. A blog series developed by the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Midwest, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic for parents and educators, focuses on supporting students with disabilities and their unique needs with remote learning.
  • Resources Memo: COVID-19: How Can Educators Make Online Instruction Accessible to Students with Disabilities? This resource memo developed by the Institute for Education Sciences (IES) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, addresses how educators can make online instruction accessible to students with disabilities.
  • Resources for Educators of Students with Special Needs. This curated list of resources from Equity Assistance Center (EAC) Region I – Center for Educational Equity provides information for families to ensure the continuity of services and learning for students with disabilities.
  • Resources for Teachers and Parents to Enhance the Continuity of Learning During COVID-19 This webinar presented by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) highlights ready-to-use resources, tools, and practices to support the educational, behavioral, and social/emotional needs of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities through remote and distance learning.
  • Reflecting Towards Success. This article released by the Office of Educational Technology (OET) is intended for education leaders to begin to develop clear plans of action for remote learning in supporting elementary and secondary students with disabilities during the COVID-19 Pandemic and extended school building closures.
  • Going the Distance: Online Strategies for Helping Students with Disabilities. This blog by Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic for district leaders, school leaders, and teachers share research of promising practices of online learning for students with disabilities and provides suggestions education leaders should consider when working online with students with disabilities based on research findings.
  • Returning to School: Considerations for Students with the Most Intensive Behavioral Needs, A Guide to Supporting Students with Disabilities, Their Families, and Educators During the 2020–21 School Year. This document from the Center on Positive Behavior and Intervention Support (PBIS) shares a set of strategies and key practices to restart classrooms and schools in a manner that students, their families, and educators can use effectively, efficiently, and relevantly utilize in the current climate.
  • Reaching and Teaching English Learners, Newcomer Students, and English Learners with Disabilities During the Pandemic . This recorded webinar from the Mid-Atlantic Equity Consortium (MAEC) for school and district leadership share how educators are pivoting to make sure that English Learners, including newly arrived immigrants and students with disabilities, receive a high-quality education and other social-emotional supports under current conditions.
  • Supporting Students with Intensive Needs During COVID-19. This webpage by the National Center on Intensive Intervention (NCII) for educators include sample lessons and strategies for implementing intensive intervention during COVID-19 restrictions. Resource collections include math and reading lessons, behavior strategies, data collection and teaming materials, implementation support and collaborating with families.

Students in Juvenile Justice Settings

  • NDTAC Webinar: Effectively Utilizing Technology in Juvenile Justice Settings  The recorded webinar provided by The National Technical Assistance Center for the Education of Neglected or Delinquent Children and Youth (NDTAC) addresses how educators can utilize technology in juvenile justice facilities.
  • Resources and Strategies to Support Children with Disabilities and their Families During COVID-19. This resource, jointly created by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), the Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (ECTA), the Office of Head Start (OHS), and the OHS TA National Centers  for school leaders, services providers, teachers, support staff, children, and families support with resources to help during school re-opening and continuity of services.

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