As the RESTART Network concludes its work, it’s a fitting moment to reflect on the journey, the lessons learned, and the enduring questions that shape our understanding of education recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We began this journey amid the volatility of the K-12 education system’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

There were many efforts to rise up and meet the need for information on learning impacts and recovery. The RESTART Network became unique in how we purposefully centered the many voices and perspectives of individuals, including policymakers, leaders, practitioners, students, parents and researchers from across the country.  

The rich and ongoing nature of the dialogue among these groups pushed all of us to think deeply and purposefully about the needs of students and schools. It led us to build evidence around strategies to address these needs. There is, truly, so much to share, and one thing is certain: there is still more to do and more to understand. For now, nearly five and a half years later, here are a few takeaways.

Old challenges, new context

An oft-heard remark during this journey has been, “The areas of need today are nearly identical to the areas of need before the COVID-19 pandemic.”  

It’s true—the key areas of focus identified include educator shortages, educator retention, student engagement (e.g., attendance), student behavior, and school culture and climate. All of these areas were frequently highlighted before the pandemic. These topics became even more salient topics for our participants and the general public after the pandemic too.  

The difference after the pandemic was that the need was more acute and more widely experienced. Known evidence-based strategies to address these challenges did not achieve pre-pandemic level results — pushing many to start considering whether the context has changed so much that we need new strategies.  

This may be true, but it also may be true that we rely on adults in our education system to support implementation and outcomes. In the context of the pandemic, the adults were burned out. We made decisions based on the existing expertise and urgency. While the expertise was still there, the time to completely reinvent everything was not.  

Recovery and rethinking?  

We have learned a lot the past 5 years, but there is more work to be done to understand the true implications of the pandemic disruption on our education system, educators and students. One only needs to look at the 2024 NAEP 4th grade NAEP results to see that the students who were kindergarteners in the pandemic are struggling. These students experienced remote instruction at the onset of the pandemic and were 4th graders in 2024. Now, nearly two-thirds of students are reading below proficiency.  

Many have suggested that these past 5 years have been an opportunity to rethink our public education system. This may be true, but it should not discount the ongoing support that students impacted by the pandemic need now to accelerate learning recovery and academic growth.  

Students who entered kindergarten in 2025 were born during the pandemic. This means that we will have 12 years of recovery and support. It also means that teachers at all levels will need to know how to support more students in areas previously assumed to be foundational (e.g., reading, basic writing, basic math) at the secondary level. Typically, secondary level educators are not trained to support these foundational skills for students. Secondary schools must also be ready to provide what were once considered targeted student supports to a larger number of students.

The importance of having pre-existing trusted partners

Even early in the pandemic, the power of the RPP was tangible. States and districts with pre-existing relationships with research partners benefited during the initial rapid response. When research partners were already familiar with the local data and state or district contexts, they were able to quickly develop strategies to evaluate progress and suggest adjustments to recovery strategies.  

Although many states and districts were eager to understand whether their investments were working, if they did not have pre-established research partner relationships, they likely did not have the time to develop these connections while addressing the many pandemic response demands.  

Staying prepared for future disruptions

The RESTART Network has served as a clearinghouse for learning recovery research—connecting researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in a shared mission. As we close this chapter, the enduring lesson is clear: collaboration, flexibility, and a commitment to recovery for all students are the cornerstones of resilient education systems.  

The work is not finished. Future disruptions will come, and the field must remain vigilant, innovative, and united in its pursuit of recovery and improvement.

Susan Bowles Therriault is the principal investigator of the RESTART Network and an Institute Fellow at AIR. For over 20 years, she has led and conducted research that focuses on state and federal education efforts to build the capacity of high-needs districts and schools to improve outcomes and increase opportunity for students. 

Photo by Allison Shelley for EDUimages