A message from our director: REL West's COVID-19 response

May 2020

As many of us involved with education continue to work from our homes, I want to let you know how REL West has been responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on our education systems. Our staff continue to be actively engaged with state and local education agencies in our region both directly and through our collaboration with the Region 15 Comprehensive Center. Through the work of our nine partnerships, we are both moving forward with our planned work where appropriate and pivoting to their more immediate needs in response to the pandemic, when necessary. During the past several weeks, REL West staff have created resources designed to support state education agencies, districts, schools, teachers, and parents in our four-state West Region and beyond. These can be found on our website and include:

• An FAQ on promoting safe and secure digital learning environments
• Two tools to support the selection and application of evidence-based strategies to various contexts, including distance learning
• A list of online resources to help educators engage families in at-home learning
• A blog posting of an interview with dropout prevention scholar, Dr. Russell W. Rumberger.
• An Ask A REL memo on research-based online learning practices

In addition, we have several other projects in development, including:

• A video on how teachers and parents can conduct virtual, online read-alouds for students learning from home.
• A webinar, Engaging Parents and Students from Diverse Populations in the Context of Distance Learning, which will be held on May 11 from 1:00–2:00 p.m. PT.
• A webinar, Strategies for Districts to Support Student and Staff Social and Emotional Needs Impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic and Plan for a Trauma-Informed Approach to School Reopening, to be held in July.

These resources will be released in the next several weeks to months, and will be available on our website. In the meantime, REL West has compiled additional resources below to support districts as they refine their approaches to distance learning in light of continued closures of school campuses. We’ve organized them into three groups to focus on students who may need special considerations.

Young Children

• This REL Central Resources Memo: What are Developmentally Appropriate Ways to Use Technology and Media with Young Children? includes guidance from the U.S. Department of Education, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), and the American Academy of Pediatrics on best practices for using educational technology with children ages 0–5.
• The Illinois Early Learning Project had produced several tip sheets that address how to keep young children learning at home during trying times.

Special Education Students

• Check out REL Central's Resources Memo: How Can Educators Make Online Instruction Accessible to Students with Disabilities? which shares guidance from the U.S. Department of Education and others on meeting the needs of students with disabilities in online instruction.
• The Center on Online Learning and Students with Disabilities has published several research articles on accessibility and online learning environments, with perspectives from teachers, administrators, parents, and students. Visit the Center's publications page to access their reports and other documents.

English Learner Students

• This Factsheet from REL Northeast & Islands addresses how educators can provide high-quality instruction to English learner students in an online environment.
• The Mid-Atlantic Equity Consortium has developed a curated list of resources that can help educators address English learner students' language and learning needs.

Please let us know how else REL West can assist you by contacting us through email or our Ask-A-REL service. Learn more about the Ask A REL service and see previous responses on our Ask A REL page.

Thank you and take care,

—John