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The Daily Signal
10 Key Education Recommendations for Reopening the K-12 Classroom
Lindsey Burke
May 25, 2020
Homeroom has taken on a literal meaning over the past two months.
Parents, while always their children’s first and foremost educators,
have had to fully embrace homeschooling as a result of the COVID-19
pandemic. And although that has been working great for many families –
some 40% now say they’re more likely to continue homeschooling even
when schools reopen – for others, it is either not the right fit for
their child or doesn’t work with their job requirements.
Many families rely on that custodial function of the physical K-12
school to enable them to go to work. And although teleworking is likely
to become a more prominent feature of American life moving forward,
many families are eager to reunite their children with their teachers
and classmates in person, in their public, charter, or private schools.
Governors, school districts, and principals should plan to reopen
schools safely as soon as possible.
The National Coronavirus Recovery Commission recently released a
comprehensive set of 264 recommendations to guide America through this
pandemic, while protecting both lives and livelihoods. The work of
local school leaders in the public and private sectors will play a
critical role in helping America get back to work, and the economy back
on track.
What follows is a list of 10 recommendations put forward by the
commission geared specifically toward K-12 schools across the country.
1. K-12 schools should act proactively in concert with state and local
health officials to assist school administrators in making reopening
decisions. School leaders should review all aspects of the school’s
facilities and operations, looking for ways to best prevent
transmission. That includes student transportation to and from school;
class schedules, density, and layout; rotation of teachers instead of
students; pedestrian traffic patterns; and the use of personal
protective equipment and hand sanitization. They should implement
thorough cleaning and sanitization guidelines for all surfaces,
especially eating areas, locker rooms, and bathrooms.
2. State and local governments should allow K–12 schools to open this
fall and selectively quarantine any students, faculty, or staff who
show COVID-like symptoms by sending them home. Districts that have low
incident rates should begin plans to reopen, and all school districts
should have emergency response plans (including quick transitions to
online learning) if they are forced to close again. If a student is
sent home due to illness, or if a school has to close, the school
should continue to provide online instruction for students who are sent
home. For parents who choose to keep their children at home, schools
should continue to offer online instruction while enabling students to
demonstrate proficiency in mandatory subjects.
3. State and local governments should make decisions based on data for
the local district, and even the specific school, not the entire state.
If the cases in a single school that is not geographically connected to
another school or schools rise beyond the number deemed appropriate by
health professionals, in-person operations in an entire state or
district do not need to be suspended.
4. State and local governments should consider suspending in-person
operations schoolwide only if a school’s COVID-19 cases increase beyond
an acceptable number as determined by health professionals. In the
event of a local outbreak, school personnel should consult with health
officials as to whether social distancing rules should be applied to
certain events, such as athletic events, but such disruptions should be
implemented only on an as-needed basis.
5. States should help families return to work and students maintain
education continuity by making education funding student-centered and
portable. Families across the country are currently unable to access
the public schools they pay for through their tax dollars and are
looking for continuity in their children’s education. In order to help
families maintain education continuity, states should restructure
per-pupil K–12 education dollars to provide emergency education savings
accounts (ESAs) to students, enabling them to access their child’s
share of state per-pupil funding to pay for online courses, online
tutors, curriculum, and textbooks so that they can continue learning.
6. States with online schools lift any barriers to access, including
caps, enrollment restrictions, or grade prohibitions for students in
grades K–12. Every student should have equal access to online education
regardless of zip code or district boundary, and all
students—regardless of academic need or socioeconomic
circumstance—should have access to online education options.
7. Congress should provide spending flexibility with existing education
dollars. The CARES Act passed in April allowed schools flexibility to
carry forward unused Title I spending and repurpose existing
professional development spending for online instruction. Congress
should build on this flexibility and allow states to use all of their
existing federal education dollars for any lawful purpose under state
law.
8. Congress should make federal funding portable for children from
low-income families and children with special needs. Congress should
immediately make funding authorized under the Individuals With
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) student-centered and portable,
allowing children with special needs to access learning services to
which they are entitled under federal law. Similarly, Congress should
allow federal Title I dollars for low-income districts to follow
students to private online education options of choice.
9. Congress should also support the education of military-connected
children. The children of active-duty military families currently do
not have access to the public schools nearest to the base to which
their parents are assigned. Congress should provide the children of
active-duty military families with education savings accounts, enabling
them to access online tutors, online courses, textbooks, and curricula
to provide educational continuity during this time.
10. Congress should expand access to 529 savings accounts. Congress
should allow Americans to access their 529 savings plans for
homeschooling expenses. Currently, 529 saving plans can pay for a broad
range of education-related costs, such as college expenses and, more
recently, private elementary or secondary school tuition. Yet
homeschooling expenses are excluded from the eligible uses of 529
savings accounts. Immediately expanding qualified expenses to include
homeschooling—reflecting the fact that nearly every American family
currently has to homeschool as a result of COVID-19—would be a timely
and targeted policy.
Students can’t afford to have their education put on hold, and parents,
as taxpayers, should have access to the money that is spent on behalf
of their children in schools across the country. These 10
recommendations will help quickly get American education back on track,
safely and more effectively than ever.
For the complete list of recommendations, visit the National
Coronavirus Recovery Commission’s website at CoronavirusCommission.com.
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