Overview
These resources highlight research syntheses and recommendations about the effectiveness of potential actions for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. The focus is on sources which review the broader literature rather than individual studies. Note that this does not summarize what various educational agencies are currently doing, since that is both fast-changing and vast in scope, and since it is not always clear what the research basis may be that underpins those decisions.
Major sources for aggregated reports
- CAMP: Campbell Collaboration: 50 Systematic Reviews (international journal of systematic reviews)
- RER: Review of Educational Research (U.S.-based journal of systematic reviews of educational research)
- WWC: IES What Works Clearinghouse: Distance Learning Resources (US Dept. of Education)
- REL: Regional Educational Laboratory COVID-19 Resources (US Dept. of Education)
- EEF: Education Endowment Foundation (UK gov’t.-designated “What Works” center for education)
- ERR: EdResearch for Recovery (Annenberg Institute at Brown; Results for America)
- ANS: The Answer Lab (USC Rossier School of Education; Policy Analysis for California Education)
Summaries by topic
Digital learning
- Improving the quality of distance and blended learning. (ERR; 2020 Aug)
- Use asynchronous time for initial expository instruction (e.g., explain ideas, model process). Then focus synchronous class time on interactive instruction which promotes engagement and learning (e.g., discussion, group work, higher-order interactive tasks, direct teacher-to-student feedback).
- Prioritize in-person instruction based on learning opportunities (e.g., lab experiments) and students’ needs (e.g., some students with IEPs, English learners).
- Remote Learning: Rapid Evidence Assessment. (EEF; 2020 Apr)
- Teaching quality matters more than modality. Prioritize technology access, especially for disadvantaged students. Use peer interactions to motivate students & improve learning. Scaffold pupils to work independently. Differentiate approaches by task & content.
- Using Digital Technology to Improve Learning. (EEF; 2019 Dec)
- “To date, technology has been most effective when it is used to supplement or enhance teaching, rather than to replace it.”
- Consider how technology will improve teaching and learning before introducing it. Use technology to improve the quality of explanations and modeling, the impact of pupil practice, and assessment and feedback.
- 21st century adaptive teaching and individualized learning operationalized as specific blends of student-centered instructional events: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. (CAMP; 2019 Jul)
- More student-centered pedagogy improves achievement, especially with more differentiation. But this decreases when giving learners more choice over course design and pacing.
- The effectiveness of online and blended learning: A meta-analysis of the empirical literature. (Means, et al., 2013)
- Blended learning showed an advantage over face-to-face instruction, but purely online instruction did not.
- Expository and collaborative pedagogies showed positive effects; self-paced activities did not.
- Studies where the online / blended version of the curriculum and instructional approach differed from the face-to-face version showed greater benefits for the online / blended approach.
- e-Learning and implications for New Zealand schools: A literature review. (Education Counts; 2010 Jul)
- Tools don’t help if people can’t use them. Teachers’ active presence matters. Educational technology may be more effective if it fosters peer interaction, collaboration, and critical thinking.
- A meta-analysis of three types of interaction treatments in distance education. (RER; 2009 Sep)
- Providing students with opportunities to interact with the content or with other students has a greater effect on achievement than motivational support from the teacher.
- Student-student interaction opportunities had larger effects on attitudes than opportunities for student-teacher and student-content interaction.
- Higher-quality, more-frequent opportunities for student-content interaction improved achievement for asynchronous more than synchronous distance learning.
- How does distance education compare with classroom instruction? A meta-analysis of the empirical literature. (RER; 2004 Sep)
- Distance education is highly variable (can be much better or much worse than classroom instruction). Asynchronous distance education has worse dropout rates.
- Pedagogy matters more than media. Helpful features: PBL, student-teacher communication, giving students advance information.
- The Effectiveness of Interactive Distance Education Technologies in K-12 Learning: A Meta-Analysis. (Cavanaugh 2001)
- Short, small-group enhancements of classroom learning worked better than extended, mostly-online videoconferencing with large groups.
Assessment and differentiation
- What Grading and Assessment Practices Could Schools Use in the Year Ahead? (ANS; 2020 Sep)
- Grade quality, not quantity. Be flexible with timing. Report current evidence of achievement. Use multiple measures. Use performance assessments.
- Compact Guides to Assessment and Feedback in Online Context. (Chartered College of Teaching; 2020 Mar-Apr).
- Tailoring instruction to students’ learning levels to increase learning. (J-PAL; 2019 Jan)
- Targeting instruction to students’ learning levels, rather than age or grade, improves fundamental reading and math skills.
Measuring and addressing unfinished learning
- Learning during COVID-19: Initial findings on students' reading and math achievement and growth (NWEA; 2020 Nov)
- Students (gr3-8) performed similarly in reading but lower in math. Decreases were greater for younger grades and for Hispanic and Black students. Overall, testing rates were 10% lower than in past years.
- Broad-based academic supports for all students. (ERR; 2020 Jul)
- In-person instruction is particularly important for early elementary students. Provide targeted support strategies for families and students. Designate time for teacher collaboration to maximize use of instructional time.
- Large-scale standardized testing is unlikely to be useful for teachers’ instructional planning. Remediation programs should not replace regular instruction.
- Impact of School Closures on the Attainment Gap: Rapid Evidence Assessment. (EEF; 2020 Jun)
- 1-pg. Summary. Gaps are likely to widen, but can be mitigated by effective remote instruction and parent/guardian involvement. Absences are a key risk. To accelerate learning, provide targeted and sustained supports to students, with professional development for teachers to improve teaching quality.
- What Can Be Done to Address Learning Losses Due to School Closures? (ANS; 2020 Jun)
- Summer programs. Guidance for home-based reading. Online classes with specific expectations to demonstrate active participation.
- School practices to address student learning loss. (ERR; 2020 Jun)
- Promising strategies: High-dosage tutoring. Extended learning time. Systems for detecting and responding to early warning signs with strong norms and routines.
- Avoid: Compressed content, grade retention, enhanced response to intervention (especially if it replaces core instruction).
- Targeted school‐based interventions for improving reading and mathematics for students with, or at risk of, academic difficulties in Grades 7–12: A systematic review. (CAMP; 2020 Apr)
- Targeted interventions can reduce achievement gaps for students at risk of academic difficulties, with larger effects on math than reading. Small-group instruction has significantly larger effect sizes than computer-assisted instruction and incentives.
- Targeted interventions can reduce achievement gaps for students at risk of academic difficulties, with larger effects on math than reading. Small-group instruction has significantly larger effect sizes than computer-assisted instruction and incentives.
Literacy
- Remote Reading. (WWC Practice Guide)
- Remote Writing: Elementary. (WWC Practice Guide)
- Remote Writing: Secondary. (WWC Practice Guide)
Math
- Remote Math: Elementary. (WWC Practice Guide)
- Remote Math: Secondary. (WWC Practice Guide)
Student engagement, socioemotional learning, and school climate
- Evidence-Based Practices for Assessing Students' Social and Emotional Well-Being. (ERR; 2021 Feb)
- Consider: Comprehensive system with validated instruments for monitoring student well-being, supplemented with student surveys for understanding mindsets and other unobservable characteristics, as part of a larger student support strategy. Screeners and monitoring strategies can help identify and refer students for targeted support by specialists or connect them to resources.
- Avoid: Survey questions which may re-traumatize, stigmatize, or marginalize students. Poor survey design (e.g., double-barreled questions, double negatives, questions that are difficult for younger students to interpret).
- Research-Based Strategies for Effective Remote Learning: Student Engagement. (REL Appalachia; 2020 Dec)
- Ways to Promote Children's Resilience to the COVID-19 Pandemic. (ChildTrends; 2020 Apr)
- Bringing evidence-based decision-making to school safety. (ERR; 2020 Sep)
Focal populations
- Supports for Students who are English Learners. (ERR; 2021 Feb)
- Supports for students in immigrant families. (ERR; 2020 Aug)
- Identifying and supporting students experiencing homelessness. (ERR; 2020 Jul)
- Academic supports for students with disabilities. (ERR; 2020 Jun)
- Supporting Students with Disabilities in K-12 Online and Blended Learning. (Deschaine, 2018)
- Describes suggestions for specific roles. Proposes concrete accommodations for different disability categories.
- Understanding teletherapy as an option for K-12 Students with Disabilities. (Mellard, et al., 2018)
- Focuses on OT, PT, and SLP.
- Guidance and support for students moving into postsecondary. (ERR; 2020 Jun)
- Expanding access to meaningful learning for English learners through EdTech (US DOE Office of Educational Technology)
- Brief report (survey of how districts use digital technology to support ELs)
Family engagement / At-home supports
- Leveraging Community Partnerships for Integrated Student Support. (ERR; 2021 Feb)
- Engaging parents and families to support the recovery of districts and schools. (ERR; 2020 Sep)
- Home learning resources for parents. (Education Hub; 2020 Mar-Aug)
- Supporting Mathematical Problem-Solving at Home (gr 4-8). (REL-Northeast Islands; 2020 Jul)
- Supporting Your Child’s Reading at Home (K-3). (REL-Southeast; 2020)
- Developing language. Linking sounds to letters. Blending letters; recognizing and writing words. Reading for understanding
- Tips for Supporting Elementary Writing at Home. (REL-Mid-Atlantic; 2020 Jun)
- Support resources to share with parents. (EEF; 2020 Apr)
- Checklist: Supporting home learning routines
- Supporting the home learning environment. (Chartered College of Teaching; 2020 Mar)
- Working with parents to support students’ learning. (Evidence for Learning)
Staff supports
- Digital Professional Learning for K-12 Teachers: Literature Review and Analysis (WestEd; 2020 Dec)
- Well-designed virtual communities of practice support implementation. Customization (software features, personalized goal-setting, modes for content delivery and assessment) can encourage more active engagement. Learning may be extended through asynchronous access to archived resources, collaboration with colleagues, continuous improvement cycles, and monitoring student progress. Strong and seamless facilitation helps; digital access opens up possibilities for virtual coaches and outside experts, although local facilitators can offer immediate feedback and contextual knowledge. Layer multiple modalities, with job-embedded learning opportunities and opportunities for social interaction.
- Remote Professional Development: Rapid Evidence Assessment. (2020 Sep)
- 1-pg summary. Remote coaching, mentoring, and expert support can be effective alone or to complement PD programs. Video is particularly effective for enabling teachers to reflect on teaching practice, if paired with other resources (e.g., viewing guides, coaching conversations). More interactive content increases time on task and completion rates. Collegial collaboration may improve outcomes through reflective practice and collective problem-solving. Supportive school conditions include leader support, protected time, and effective technology platforms and training.
- District systems to support equitable and high-quality teaching and learning. (ERR; 2020 Sep)
- Sustaining teacher training in a shifting environment. (ERR; 2020 Jul)
Systems and operations
- Accelerating Student Learning with High-Dosage Tutoring. (ERR; 2021 Feb)
- Tutoring is most effective at high dosage (i.e., 3+ sessions per week), in small groups (i.e., up to 3-4 students), and during the school day (compared to after-school or summer programs).
- Tutors need adequate training and ongoing support, high-quality instructional materials aligned with classroom content, and consistency to build positive relationships with students. Ongoing informal assessments allow tutors to better tailor instruction to individual needs.
- The benefits of tutoring are clearest in reading for early grades (K-2) and in math for older students.
- Prioritization may be need-driven (e.g., targeting students below particular thresholds), curriculum-driven (e.g., for critical milestones such as 1st-grade literacy), or universal (to reduce stigma).
- How Schools Can Help Children Recover from COVID School Closures: A Letter from Education Researchers. (2020 Aug)
- Provide substantial additional resources to prevent looming school budget cuts. Implement universal internet and computer access. Target resources to those most in need. Provide the most personalized and engaging instruction possible under the circumstances, even when it is necessary to be online. Address the learning losses created by the crisis by expanding instructional time in ways that challenge, support, and engage students. Offer tailored, integrated support to each child in order to address social-emotional, physical health, and family well-being. Make decisions about teachers that support pedagogical quality and equity.
- Reducing district budgets responsibly. (ERR; 2020 Jul)
- School resources are particularly important for supporting lower-income students and addressing between-school inequities. Examine tradeoffs if reducing extracurricular activities, support services, or after-school programs, which may affect student engagement, academic performance, and access to peer and adult support.
- Since layoffs have negative consequences for students, consider delaying pay raises or furloughing non-working staff to reduce layoffs. Avoid “last-in-first-out” layoffs, which disproportionately affect schools with underserved students, focusing instead on effectiveness.
- Be strategic about what to adopt (e.g., by diversifying and strengthening the workforce) and what to abandon (e.g., by dropping redundant or ineffective programs).
- What Does Research Say About Staggered School Calendars? (ANS; 2020 May)
- Past research has shown that compared to traditional calendars, staggered (“multi-track”) calendars may have small negative effects on student learning and on parents’ and teachers’ ability to work.
- Single‐track year‐round education for improving academic achievement in U.S. K‐12 schools: Results of a meta‐analysis. (CAMP; 2019 Sep)
- Year-round education modestly improves math and reading achievement by amounts similar to summer learning loss. Gains may be greater for middle-school students in math.
- Small class sizes for improving student achievement in primary and secondary schools: a systematic review. (CAMP; 2018 Oct)
- Small class size has at best a small effect on reading achievement, with potentially a negative effect on mathematics.
- Later school start times for supporting the education, health, and well‐being of high school students: a systematic review. (CAMP; 2017 Dec)
- Later school start times may produce benefits for students, but more evidence is needed.
- The Effectiveness of Volunteer Tutoring Programs: A Systematic Review. (CAMP; 2006 Jun)
- Tutoring “can positively influence important reading and language sub-skills for young students” (~1/3 SD). “Highly structured programs had a significant advantage over programs with low structure on the global reading outcome.”
- Impacts of After‐School Programs on Student Outcomes. (CAMP; 2006 May)