During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, schools shuttered quickly and re-opened slowly. These decisions impacted the well-being of teachers and students. Upon re-opening, schools in New Jersey adopted a range of instructional approaches--including virtual and hybrid models--that prioritized safety and diminished human connections. This…

In this qualitative study, we used possible-selves theory to explore how teachers in the northeastern US made sense of their professional identity and possible selves during the forced school shutdowns that occurred because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We collected data through an initial questionnaire, weekly reflections, and semi-structured…

The devastating effects of the Novel Coronavirus and the impact that stay-at-home orders and mask mandates have placed on businesses have caused countries to plummet into economic recession. State quarantine measures and the fear of contracting the virus have led to structural change, resulting in more people enlisting on welfare rolls. The…

Since the spring of 2020, many early childhood education programs (pre-K, K, 1st, and 2nd grades) had to close as governments around the world took serious measures to slow down the transmission of COVID-19. As a result, the pandemic forced many early childhood teachers to start teaching online and continue supporting their students remotely.…

This paper examined how an HSI-STEM grant project at one such college responded, confronting challenges of the transition to an all-online environment head-on and tapping its unexpected benefits. With a focus on STEM student services and programs, two aspects of the situation are analyzed and studied. Facilitating Innovation: STEM administrators…

During a typical family mathematics night (FMN), families are invited to a school, and parents and guardians work on mathematics activities with their children while teachers facilitate activities and share information on how to better support children in their mathematical development. How might this engagement change when information is not…

This is a qualitative mixed-methods study of an urban school district in New Jersey. A survey of teachers explored their past and current practices with regard to the use of classroom technology, in particular one-to-one devices; and an interview with the district supervisor for educational technology provided detailed information about district…

This study investigated the pedagogical strategies implemented by preschool teachers to scaffold social and emotional learning (SEL) in socioeconomically disadvantaged children (ages 3-4) during the 2020-2021 school year amidst COVID-19 in the United States. The participants consisted of eight teachers (representing four teaching teams of one lead…

Online and distance education strategies offer a path for closing opportunity gaps for students with disabilities because of digital technologies' flexibility and capacity for differentiation, but fully online schooling does always guarantee an inclusive education. The COVID-19-induced shift to remote learning highlighted the need for more insight…

To be more responsive to students' needs, many local education agencies (LEAs) are creating extended and summer learning opportunities to facilitate learning acceleration. Many LEAs elected to leverage federal funds to create opportunities that increase the time students spend engaged in safe, inclusive, and supportive learning environments,…

In March 2020, most preschool programs physically closed at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. For state-funded preschool programs, guidance differed in terms of what programs were required to provide to students. While some states mandated the provision of remote learning, others did not, and still others opted to provide alternative types of…