Giving Compass' Take:

• Roger Riddell, writing for Education Dive, discusses how school districts are addressing needs such as homework gaps, digital divides, and access to school meals during coronavirus. 

• What can donor capital do to address the needs that K-12 districts currently face? 

• Read how education funders are responding to COVID-19. 

The nation's public school districts faced unprecedented disruption to the school year as the novel coronavirus pandemic shut down buildings and forced learning online, to the extent educators were able to do so. Shutdowns forced districts and policymakers alike to make strides in addressing the "homework gap" resulting from a lack of home internet and device access that already adversely affected many students prior to shutdowns. Further complicating the situation: Educators needed additional training, the delivery of curriculum had to be rethought, and many low-income students' only guaranteed meals throughout the day were through school programs.

And that's not even considering the impending funding tsunami expected from the economic impacts of the shutdowns, or the challenge of reopening schools in the fall and planning for a variety of scenarios.

Districts are preparing for expected budget shortfalls due to lower tax revenues as a result of the coronavirus pandemic’s economic impact. One expert says the impact could be “a different kind of horrific” for schools. We’re also taking a closer look at how project-based approaches have driven the distance learning experience during school shutdowns.

Read the full article about how K-12 is responding to coronavirus by Roger Riddell at Education Dive.