The same frustrations are shared by many of the nation’s 7 million students with disabilities — a group representing 14 percent of American schoolchildren. Advocates for these students say the extended months of learning from home and erratic attempts to reopen schools are deepening a crisis that began with the switch to distance learning in March.
Some schools have prioritized high-needs students in reopening plans, bringing small numbers of them back to campuses that otherwise are sticking with distance learning. But those options have only fueled further anguish when they have been reversed because of the virus, and educators say personalized video sessions remain poor substitutes for classroom experience.
Alarmed by their children’s setbacks in skills and behaviors, parents are pursuing legal challenges and requesting makeup services. Many worry that the ground lost will be impossible to recover.
“Regression is something that will be very, very hard to recuperate from,” said Robin Lake, director of the Center on Reinventing Public Education.
In a move that seemed to acknowledge the importance of in-person learning, New York City announced Sunday that it will reopen the nation’s largest school system to in-person learning, including programs serving special-needs students at all grade levels. The announcement marked a major reversal after New York schools were shut down because of rising COVID-19 cases.
School closings threaten gains of students with disabilities | Coronavirus | dnews.com: