Coronavirus

Education news, analysis, and opinion about COVID-19 and its impact on schools and communities

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9 Charts That Show the Lasting Effects of COVID on Schools
Key data on some of the move consequential changes, five years later.
A child gets a COVID-19 test.
A student is tested for COVID-19 in Holyoke, Mass., on Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021.
Charles Krupa/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Chicago Schools Are Sending Students Home With COVID-19 Tests Over Winter Break
“I’m not looking for a repeat of last winter. I still have nightmares and insomnia about that," said Chicago Teachers Union President Jesse Sharkey.
Tracy Swartz, Chicago Tribune, December 16, 2021
4 min read
The Los Angeles Unified School District Interim Superintendent of Schools Megan Reilly is seen in a video feed for the media at LAUSD headquarters in Los Angeles Thursday Sept. 9, 2021. The Los Angeles board of education voted Thursday to require students 12 and older to be vaccinated against the coronavirus to attend in-person classes in the nation's second-largest school district.
The Los Angeles Unified School District Interim Superintendent of Schools Megan Reilly is seen in a video feed for the media at LAUSD headquarters in Los Angeles Thursday Sept. 9, 2021. The Los Angeles board of education previously voted to require students 12 and older to be vaccinated against the coronavirus by Jan. 10 to attend in-person classes in the nation's second-largest school district.
Damian Dovarganes/AP
School & District Management L.A.'s Ambitious Student Vaccine Mandate Poised to Be Pushed Back
The new deadline for students 12 and older to be vaccinated would be in fall of 2022.
Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, December 10, 2021
3 min read
Repetitive pattern of gift cards with red bows and testing swabs in tubes on gray background
iStock/Getty Images Plus
School & District Management These Schools Pay Students to Take Weekly COVID Tests. Should Others Try It?
Low participation can weaken schools' COVID-19 screening efforts. Some have turned to incentives to get students on board.
Evie Blad, December 9, 2021
8 min read
Anti-vaccine mandate protesters rally outside the garage doors of the Los Angeles Unified School District, LAUSD headquarters in Los Angeles on Sept. 9, 2021. The Los Angeles board of education voted to require students 12 and older to be vaccinated against the coronavirus to attend in-person classes in the nation's second-largest school district.
Protesters rally against a COVID vaccine mandate for students outside the headquarters of Los Angeles Unified school district in September. Statewide, a COVID-19 vaccinate mandate for school attendance will begin to take effect for all of California's school districts in July.
Damian Dovarganes/AP
School & District Management Teaching Unvaccinated Students Separately? This District Will Be the First to Try It
An in-person program for unvaccinated kids honors families' choice, says the superintendent. Legal experts say it would violate state law.
Catherine Gewertz, December 8, 2021
6 min read
Leader holding telescope and looking ahead while on top of ladder leaning on a large virus pathogen
iStock/Getty Images Plus
Student Well-Being & Movement Omicron or No, Schools Should Prepare for a Pandemic Winter
Here are answers to questions about the new strain, which is considered potentially more infectious than Delta.
Sarah D. Sparks, December 1, 2021
4 min read
Teachers protest against COVID-19 vaccination mandates in New York on Aug. 25, 2021. On Friday, Oct. 1, 2021, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied an emergency appeal from a group of teachers to block New York City's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for public school teachers and other staff from going into effect.
Teachers protest against COVID-19 vaccination mandates in New York on Aug. 25.
Mary Altaffer/AP
Teaching Profession Teachers Who Refuse to Comply With Vaccine Mandates Won't Face Consequences in Many Places
Some districts and states aren't even keeping track of how many teachers are vaccinated.
Madeline Will, November 22, 2021
8 min read
The front of the Bellefonte Area School District certified school nurses office on Aug. 15, 2016 in Centre County, Penn.
The front of the Bellefonte Area School District certified school nurses office on Aug. 15, 2016 in Centre County, Penn.
Abby Drey/Centre Daily Times via AP
Student Well-Being & Movement ‘Good Thing I Have Thick Skin’: School Nurses Describe the Pandemic’s Toll
During peak levels of transmission, contact tracing has involved hundreds of students and staff that nurses investigated on a daily basis.
Erin Bamer, The York Dispatch, November 17, 2021
4 min read
Juliana Ramirez, 8, a third grader, often crawled into her closet to minimize distractions from her younger siblings when Zooming into school during lockdown last year.
Juliana Ramirez, a 3rd grader, often crawled into her closet to minimize distractions from her younger siblings when Zooming into school during lockdown last year.
Julia Robinson for Education Week
Law & Courts In a Major Ruling on School Masks, Federal Judge Sides With Vulnerable Students
The ruling that a Texas ban on mask mandates discriminated against students with disabilities could reverberate elsewhere.
Evie Blad, November 11, 2021
5 min read
COVID face masks and gavel
iStock/Getty Images Plus
Law & Courts Schools in Most States Are Shielded From COVID Lawsuits. It May Not Help
Many states ban such suits, but just the threat can wreak havoc. Some districts have already lost insurance coverage for COVID claims.
Mark Lieberman, November 11, 2021
5 min read
Seminole County, Fla., deputies remove a parent from a school board meeting during a heated discussion about mask mandates in September.
Seminole County, Fla., deputies remove a parent from a school board meeting during a heated discussion about mask mandates in September.
Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel via AP
School & District Management From Our Research Center Just How Widespread Are the Threats to Educators Over COVID Policies?
An EdWeek Research Center survey asked district and school leaders if they, or anyone on their staff, had faced threats.

Holly Kurtz, November 11, 2021
3 min read
Doctor putting a band aid on woman's arm.
E+/Getty
School & District Management 5 Things for Schools to Know About Biden's COVID Vaccine-or-Test Mandate
A new federal workplace safety rule will require public school employees in some states to get vaccinated or regularly tested for COVID-19.
Evie Blad, November 4, 2021
5 min read
Emily Jeter helps her son Eli, a kindergarten student, get his mask on before heading into class in mid-August at Jenks East Elementary School in Tulsa, Okla.
Emily Jeter helps her son Eli, a kindergarten student, get his mask on before heading into class in mid-August at Jenks East Elementary School in Tulsa, Okla.
Mike Simons/Tulsa World via AP
School & District Management Some Schools Are Dropping Mask Mandates. Should Yours?
More districts are dropping mask requirements as COVID case rates fall and vaccinations rise, but experts are split on whether that's wise.
Catherine Gewertz, November 3, 2021
7 min read
This October 2021 photo provided by Pfizer shows kid-size doses of its COVID-19 vaccine in Puurs, Belgium.
This October 2021 photo provided by Pfizer shows kid-size doses of its COVID-19 vaccine in Puurs, Belgium.
Pfizer via AP
Student Well-Being & Movement All K-12 Students Can Now Get the COVID-19 Vaccine. Here's What It Means for Schools
While a huge moment for families awaiting a vaccine for their younger children, it might not drastically change the situation in schools.
Arianna Prothero, November 2, 2021
4 min read
Image of young boy wearing a mask getting a bandage applied after a vaccine.
Parents are hesitant to vaccinate their children due to concerns about potential short- and long-term side effects.
Image provided by E+
Student Well-Being & Movement COVID-19 Vaccines for Kids Are Coming. How Many Parents Will Opt for the Shot?
Getting students vaccinated will make in-person learning safer as well as more consistent and manageable, experts argue.
Arianna Prothero, October 29, 2021
3 min read