This brief gives a snapshot of how school districts across the country are currently planning for fall 2020, how they are planning for contingencies of COVID-19 spread, and how this varies based on district characteristics.
From August 17–21, we reviewed district websites, social media, and local news to collect data from a sample of 477 districts that provide a statistical representation of all districts across the U.S. This sample includes most of the large school districts that CRPE has tracked on a weekly basis throughout the pandemic, but also includes 399 additional districts. We apply statistical weights to provide a nationally representative sample.
Key findings include:
- Almost half of the nation’s school districts will be returning to full in-person instruction.
- Students in rural communities are far more likely to have access to fully in-person instruction than suburban and city students.
- Students in the highest-poverty districts are the most likely to start the year in remote learning.
- Most districts have outlined plans for how remote learning and in-person learning might look this year.
