For many Americans across racial groups, income tiers, and geographic regions, differences in access to internet connectivity and technology resources -- also known as the "digital divide" -- remains a critical barrier for many students and families, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Challenges with digital access has translated…

This document contains the technical appendices for the report "Achieving Digital Equity for California's Students." Appendices include: (1) Census Household Pulse Survey; and (2) Additional Figures. [For the full report, see ED617930. For the Policy Brief, see ED617933.]

Conversations about digital inequality in education often revolve around access to technology. However, research into youth culture has shown that many Black and Latinx teens are able to access technology and have developed the same digital skills as their white peers. Social scientist Matt Rafalow observed three California middle schools where…

These technical appendixes accompany the study, "Who Is Losing Ground with Distance Learning in California?" The study explores key issues California families experienced around distance learning in spring 2020. Using data from the Census Household Pulse Survey, a weekly survey conducted in 2020, the authors document how the COVID-19…

Universities across the country have been welcoming students back in person. While campuses are busy with students again, many universities are exploring how they can complement and enhance students' experience by drawing on the lessons learned during the pandemic. Returning to a pre-pandemic world, without any reflection or change, is not…

Despite a growing belief among parents, administrators, and students in computer science's benefits, and millions of dollars allocated to offering it in K-12 schools, gaps in access and participation among Black, Hispanic, and white students persist. Today, computer-science-for-all leaders acknowledge they've hit a plateau and that they need more…

Black youth are less likely to enroll in college than youth of other races. The disparity in college access, and subsequently, in degree attainment, is due to many systemic and structural factors. Information gaps about how to research, prepare for, and finance a college degree also lead to racial disparities in college access. Technology,…

The COVID-19 crisis has made delivering early intervention services much more challenging and could exacerbate racial inequities in health and education. But we can only fix what we can measure--so it is vital that states collect and report better data. A survey of state coordinators of early intervention services in fall 2020 focused on Black and…

The Education Trust-West partnered with Global Strategy Group to conduct a poll that tested a long list of potential concerns among parents amidst the coronavirus pandemic and found academic concerns rose to the top. Key findings in this infographic include: (1) In the immediate aftermath of school closures, California parents give positive…

2020 was a historically challenging year that will be remembered for generations to come. There were various challenges that impacted not just the charter school movement but the entire country. This annual report provides a timeline of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools' 15 years of progress, shares charter school facts, and…

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, most elementary and secondary schools and local educational agencies (LEAs) across the United States stopped offering in-person instruction in February or March 2020. By the middle of April 2020, 48 states, four U.S. territories, the District of Columbia, and the Department of Defense Education Activity…

A year of distance learning under COVID-19 has fueled growing concerns about the academic progress and social and emotional health of children. In particular, worries increased around how the pandemic has affected high-need and underserved students, including English Learners and children with disabilities, children in foster care and from…

The 33rd edition of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's KIDS COUNT® Data Book describes how children in America are in the midst of a mental health crisis, struggling with anxiety and depression at unprecedented levels. This year's publication continues to present national and state data across four domains -- economic well-being, education, health…

This report calls upon Michigan's state leaders to quickly develop and implement solution-based approaches to both support the long-term recovery of student learning, as well as address the longstanding inequities and underperformance that have plagued Michigan's education system for decades. Building upon last year's recommendations, which called…

The 32nd edition of the Annie E. Casey Foundation's "KIDS COUNT Data Book" describes how children across the United States were faring before -- and during -- the coronavirus pandemic. This year's publication continues to deliver the Foundation's annual state rankings and the latest available data on child well-being. It identifies…