Navigating Virginia Education in Uncertain Times

A year into the COVID-19 pandemic the VDOE brought together a variety of stakeholders – the Virginia LEARNS workgroup – to use information collected and compiled from many sources to create a guidance document for school divisions. The workgroup focused on equity, wellbeing, and instructional issues including curriculum, assessment and remediation, recovery and interventions.

As schools reopen and develop plans for summer programs and the 2021-22 school year, keen attention needs to be given to addressing learning gaps exacerbated by the pandemic and to the mental health needs of students and staff. Understanding that all of our programs need to ensure equity, the checkpoints and resources below will assist leaders and staff as they consider guiding questions, assess and allocate available resouUrces, and deploy plans to meet the needs of all students.

The resources provided here build upon the Recover, Redesign, Restart 2020 work. Stakeholders are also encouraged to refer to the department’s School Reopening Frequently Asked Questions, a resource aligned with the interim CDC guidance for schools and serves as a recommendation for Virginia schools to mitigate risks associated with COVID-19.