Challenges, questions as special education shifts to homes during statewide school closure
As many parents navigate the new reality of having students at home for at least another month under a statewide public school closure, students with disabilities may face even more challenges with online learning.
Gov. John Bel Edwards announced the closure on March 13, part of an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. It is currently scheduled to end on April 13. But Edwards this week announced that he will extend a statewide “stay-at-home order” until the end of the month, meaning the state’s schools will be closed at least that long as well.
Many schools are trying to adapt, quickly designing distance-learning programs to make sure their students don’t fall behind during the closure. In New Orleans, some charter schools have started online classes, and the NOLA Public Schools district purchased 5,000 wireless hotspots with emergency funding to distribute to families without internet service at home. Many are also sending paper packets of school work to students’ homes.
Students with disabilities, however, often work in personal, one-on-one settings with CONTINUE READING: Challenges, questions as special education shifts to homes during statewide school closure | The Lens
