You鈥檙e a state education official. It鈥檚 August 2021. A big TV news station has given you a few minutes of air time to talk to the public about the upcoming school year after all of the stress and heartache caused by the coronavirus pandemic. What do you say?
From the federal government on down, officials have struggled time and again during COVID-19鈥檚 disruption with trying to help the public understand the circumstances determining when schools open and how changing conditions impact school operations. Now they face difficult choices in terms of discussing the next school year. Should they confidently plan for all school buildings to be open, and make this expectation clear to the public? How should they discuss what students need from schools and others?
Shifting knowledge and new evidence about how the virus can and does affect schools has made clear messaging harder. And in many if not most places, schools will still look, feel, and operate in atypical ways next year. But state and local leaders will play a big role in framing what will help students most and what the public should expect from schools, in the next year and beyond. And whether schools have held traditional classes all, some, or none of the time in the 2020-21 academic year will affect how they do it.
Addressing lost learning opportunities remains a policy as well as a rhetorical priority for many educators and public officials. Yet ignoring students鈥� emotional health in the name of rapid academic remediation, or failing to acknowledge families that might want to stick with virtual classes next year, could backfire.
In the end, ensuring that schools reintegrate and care for students in a variety of ways, while not proclaiming and acting as if things are 鈥渂ack to normal,鈥� could be a key test of leaders鈥� rhetorical and strategic dexterity.
鈥淭his is probably the most complicated issue that folks have dealt with since segregation,鈥� said Terry Holliday, Kentucky鈥檚 former education commissioner and an ex-president of the Council of Chief State School Officers. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so complex because no matter what you do, people are not going to think that鈥檚 a good idea.鈥�
Some states might also have to stress that their strategies won鈥檛 be rigid and that being responsive to circumstances might involve shutting down schools again if the virus has a resurgence. Uncertainty remains about how disruptive or dangerous coronavirus variants will be in the future. It could be hard to leave aside those and other concerns that the pandemic will continue to generate in school communities.
鈥淚n the absence of information, people make stuff up,鈥� said Stephen Pruitt, the president of the Southern Regional Education Board, which works with 16 member states. 鈥淭he public will not get too scared if it feels like their leadership has a plan. There needs to be a good solid plan, but there鈥檚 got to be a recognition that you may have to call an audible.鈥�
Yet if adult COVID-19 vaccinations become commonplace and restrictions ease or disappear, discussions about the biggest priorities for schools could undergo a corresponding shift, especially as tens of billions of dollars in federal aid flows to schools to address students鈥� needs. Even talking about state standardized test scores from this year could easily prove to be uniquely challenging.
Some of the priorities leaders shared on communicating clearly in the current climate are (or at least sound) straightforward: Point to data. Find local messengers people already trust. Don鈥檛 act frantically. Don鈥檛 understate the situation, but also don鈥檛 carelessly use deficit-driven language about 鈥渓oss.鈥� And don鈥檛 promise silver bullets.
In the absence of information, people make stuff up.
But none of those strategies in isolation reduce the scope of what schools are facing.
In addition, talking to the public as if disadvantaged students and families of color haven鈥檛 been hit especially hard by the pandemic could prove to be tone-deaf or worse. A recent study estimated that 40,000 children in the U.S. , and that Black children have been disproportionately affected by these deaths.
鈥淵ou acknowledge that the hardships of the pandemic have not been uniform. Where infection rates were highest, where the deaths were greatest, where the economic hardships were greatest鈥攖hat鈥檚 where resources needed to be [focused],鈥� said Pedro Noguera, the dean of the University of Southern California鈥檚 Rossier School of Education. 鈥淓very community鈥檚 not the same. The fears are not the same.鈥�
State and local K-12 leaders don鈥檛 have to focus on just masks, making up lost learning time, or other things that will make daily school experiences difficult, unprecedented, or uncertain.
鈥淧art of what will make people more likely to return is to say: It鈥檚 not going to be like it was,鈥� Noguera stressed. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be more supportive. It鈥檚 going to be more engaging for kids.鈥�
In addition, school officials could emphasize how the upcoming year will provide positive experiences in familiar ways.
鈥淚t鈥檚 also important to say: We are going to do sports, we are going to have social events,鈥� said Dr. Amber D鈥橲ouza, a professor at Johns Hopkins University鈥檚 Bloomberg School of Public Health. 鈥淲hat are the things we are going to be able to do this fall that perhaps we didn鈥檛 do last fall?鈥�
There鈥檚 a new constituency for school news
Ohio was the first state to shut down all its public schools in response to the pandemic on March 12, 2020. The state鈥檚 health director at the time, Amy Acton, became a hero to some and a pariah to others for the health restrictions she supported early in the pandemic. And earlier this year, Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, in exchange for schools agreeing to resume some form of in-person learning by March 1鈥攁nd threatened to halt those vaccinations if schools kept their doors shut.
So what has Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction Paolo DeMaria learned from his state鈥檚 rollercoaster of headlines and controversy? In essence, he said, he鈥檚 focused on coordinating his department鈥檚 response with other state leaders鈥攂efore making that hypothetical speech on TV, for example, he said he鈥檇 want to consult with Ohio health officials鈥攂ut otherwise hasn鈥檛 tried to grab the megaphone. Instead, he鈥檚 focused on being a conduit of information to district leaders.
鈥淭he most trusted communicator about what鈥檚 going on in a child鈥檚 school is a child鈥檚 teacher, then a child鈥檚 principal, then a local superintendent,鈥� DeMaria said. 鈥淭he state is pretty far down in the fourth or fifth position.鈥�
That approach is backed up by at least some public opinion polling, which has found a in local school leaders to make the right decisions during the pandemic.
But COVID-19 has also shifted how leaders must think about and respond to the news cycle.
鈥淣ew information will come out quickly, and we have to respond quickly in ways schools and school boards aren鈥檛 really used to,鈥� said Ryan Stewart, New Mexico鈥檚 secretary of education.
When New Mexico announced its plan for schools to fully reopen in person the week of April 5, and gave districts a few weeks鈥� notice, at least a few local school officials said they by the news. One local school board president, for example, said the state鈥檚 decision for a full reentry into classrooms this month made proper social distancing in schools impossible.
The most trusted communicator about what鈥檚 going on in a child鈥檚 school is a child鈥檚 teacher.
Stewart acknowledged that some districts might have felt that this heads-up gave them too little time. But he also expressed confidence in his communications strategies, which include weekly calls with district and charter school leaders and focus groups to see where local schools stand. Both Stewart and DeMaria put building a strong information pipeline to districts as a top priority.
The Ohio education department鈥檚 includes resources including districts鈥� plans for extended learning and guidance on everything from career-technical education to nutrition. That work, focused on this academic year, will inform the districts鈥� approaches to sharing information about next year; there鈥檚 already a section about remote learning for 2021-22 that highlights options that districts will be able to offer families that are already available under current state law.
Indeed, many state leaders are still discussing some form of remote learning as an important priority, even though they recognize that just because students are doing well in virtual classes that doesn鈥檛 mean they are getting counseling or other services they need, said Jeremy Anderson, the president of the Education Commission of the States.
Such considerations can also help leaders keep in mind that so many parents (willingly or not) have gotten a new and intimate understanding of how their children鈥檚 schools work.
In terms of who鈥檚 paying attention to public rhetoric and messages about schools, 鈥渋t鈥檚 not the same constituency as it was before,鈥� Anderson said.
Being careful with common phrases is key
That鈥檚 related to another issue: being quick to combat inaccurate or misleading claims. DeMaria said one area where his department has been proactive is spelling out the role of his department and local districts on social media.
鈥淲e learned some lessons this past year to be precise about what is being put on the table as a state mandate, versus what are recommended practices, for which there is some flexibility,鈥� he said.
There鈥檚 not much dispute that the pandemic has broadly affected where students stand academically. Yet using phrases about this issue casually, or without much thought, can also have unintended consequences or create new divisions.
DeMaria said rattling off 鈥渓earning loss鈥� too often in the wrong environments sends 鈥渟ignals that kids are quick to pick up on that somehow [they鈥檙e] at fault here.鈥� Pruitt said talking about 鈥渦nfinished learning鈥� is a strong and precise message because, 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 lose what you didn鈥檛 have.鈥�
And Anderson said he stresses the phrase 鈥渙pportunity to learn鈥� when discussing students鈥� pandemic-driven needs, instead of language that鈥檚 defined by shortcomings.
But care with language shouldn鈥檛 bleed over into timid decisions, some say. And not all officials have the same patience for striking a balance between in-person and remote learning.
In early April, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who鈥檚 faced a backlash to how he鈥檚 approached school reopening, said he in the fall.
Making it clear to the public that schools will be open in the fall is the right rhetorical strategy in general, said Douglas N. Harris, a professor and chair of economics at Tulane University.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a little bit of uncertainty about where things are going, but not a lot,鈥� Harris said. 鈥淏ad headlines aside, things are going to get safer and safer, and they were in many cases already safe to begin with.鈥�
But black-and-white approaches could generate friction among families that might still be skeptical of in-person learning. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, said in March there should be no remote-learning option for students in the fall. Harris, however, stressed that states should not abandon or scoff at students who are well-served by remote learning, and that leaders can use lessons from virtual classes to improve school experiences next year.
Finding partners, from doctor鈥檚 offices to churches
Perhaps no single government agency has been the subject of more scrutiny during debates about safely reopening schools than the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
As its guidance has evolved鈥攊n response to new scientific evidence, its supporters have said鈥攄etractors at different points have called CDC guidance to schools too cautious, too cavalier, and tainted by politics. And after the Biden administration released and then revised recommendations to schools about key issues like social distancing earlier this year, some might fear that further revisions to such guidance could be confusing or unhelpful.
Yet all that doesn鈥檛 necessarily mean key decision makers have decided to tune out Washington. DeMaria and Stewart, for example, said they would continue to consider new information from the CDC if any becomes available; DeMaria noted that his health department鈥檚 recommendations are 鈥渓argely based on the CDC recommendations.鈥�
Every community鈥檚 not the same. The fears are not the same.
Even with all the CDC guidance and pandemic experiences schools can draw on, there are still scenarios where there鈥檚 no established roadmap to follow. For example: Will encouraging or mandating COVID-19 vaccines for students, assuming they鈥檙e widely available for all relevant age groups later this year, trigger any significant skepticism or resistance?
D鈥橲ouza, of Johns Hopkins University, thinks not, even if the people who will help ensure widespread vaccinations work in doctor鈥檚 offices and not schools.
鈥淲e are able to achieve high rates of vaccination for standard childhood infectious immunizations,鈥� she said. 鈥淯ltimately, when it becomes available, when there is the data for parents to be able to review with their pediatricians, I believe there will be high uptake.鈥�
Just as doctors can be the key voice on student vaccinations, having partners in communities who have authority with different audiences can be a crucial strategy for setting expectations for what schools do next.
D鈥橲ouza highlighted the role faith leaders can play, for example, as well as people of different political persuasions: 鈥淗aving a unified national message is often helpful, I find. But it is critical to have trustworthy messengers at every level.鈥�
And leaders can also draw on preexisting education-focused coalitions and other state agencies to spread important messages. In New Mexico, Stewart said he鈥檚 worked with his state鈥檚 departments for Indian Affairs, African-American Affairs, and Early Childhood Education and Care, as well as the outside group Graduation Alliance, specifically to who have dropped off the radar. That sometimes comes down to knocking on families鈥� doors. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a major effort that will be ongoing for awhile,鈥� Stewart said.
In the end, it鈥檚 unlikely a few minutes of TV air time before the next school year will allay all concerns and clarify everything about what to expect. But imagining himself giving that August speech on TV about the next school year, Holliday said he would address three big issues: how much ground people鈥檚 children鈥檚 have lost, children鈥檚 social-emotional state, and the things schools are doing and will do next year to address these priorities.
And he had a final warning for leaders in their messaging.
鈥淒on鈥檛 get too complicated,鈥� he said.
