Scan and Synthesis of Policy and Practice on Recovery Needs and Activities
Background
The Recovery Needs and Activities Scan and Synthesis team is conducting systematic scans of the literature, approved Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief fund spending plans, educational research organizations, and education-focused professional organizations. The team is searching across many different resources to identify pandemic recovery information: federal funding applications, evaluations, surveys, and data trackers. So far, the team has identified almost 4,000 artifacts related to pandemic recovery in education, with many more searches to be completed.
In addition, the scan will leverage existing data sources, including national data compilations and results of specific information from state and local education agencies on actions taken, policies adopted, and practices to address the needs of students of interest and to gather information and data related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Research Study
The scan will focus on two subtasks: (a) an ongoing scan of recovery needs and activities and (b) a synthesis of recovery needs and activities.
Ongoing Scan of Recovery Needs and Activities: The aim of the scan is to produce a robust inventory of activities aimed at recovery from the effects of the pandemic for teachers and students, including specific student groups such as Black and Latinx students, students experiencing poverty, and students receiving English language and special education supports. This inventory will be representative of a variety of stakeholders, including state education administrators, superintendents, principals, teachers, parents, and students.
Synthesis of Recovery Needs and Activities: To ensure a systematic, broad scan of primary and secondary information, the synthesis will utilize a protocol with domains informed by the What Works Clearinghouse Study Review Protocol (Version 1.0; WWC, 2021). Findings will be coded from scans according to the protocol created for the synthesis. The scan and synthesis team has also developed a registry to capture ongoing and completed research on recovery efforts from across the field. This registry will be translated into practical, actionable language for state and local educators and then published on our website.
The team will share their findings through a variety of strategies tailored to different audiences.
Registry of Pandemic Recovery Evaluations in Education
The Scan and Synthesis team is gathering studies and evaluations on pandemic recovery in a registry to support policymakers, leaders and practitioners as they embark on acceleration and recovery of pandemic-induced learning loss among PK-12 students.
We are seeking information on planned, in-process and completed evaluations and studies that focus on pandemic recovery efforts across state and local PK-12 public education system:
- Using any type of evaluation design (including studies using any methodology or level of rigor)
- At any stage of completeness (planned, ongoing, completed, published, and unpublished)
- Regardless of funding source (i.e., state, federal, philanthropic)
- Conducted by any evaluators (internal or third-party)
- Regardless of dissemination plans
The American Institutes for Research® brings together an interdisciplinary team of researchers with expertise in systematic evidence reviews and qualitative research to conduct this study