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What Can We Learn from the Research on Public School Reopening Decisions in the United States during the COVID-19 Pandemic? EdWorkingPaper No. 22-617

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Title: What Can We Learn from the Research on Public School Reopening Decisions in the United States during the COVID-19 Pandemic? EdWorkingPaper No. 22-617
Language: English
Authors: Jeremy Singer, Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University
Source: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. 2025.
Availability: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Brown University Box 1985, Providence, RI 02912. Tel: 401-863-7990; Fax: 401-863-1290; e-mail: annenberg@brown.edu; Web site: https://annenberg.brown.edu/
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 19
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Reports - Research
Descriptors: Public Schools, School Closing, COVID-19, Pandemics, School Administration, Decision Making, School Districts, In Person Learning, Preferences, Unions, School Demography, School Choice, School District Spending, Educational Finance, Racial Differences
Abstract: Background: After the near-universal school closures in the United States at the start of the pandemic, lawmakers and educational leaders made plans for when and how to reopen schools for the 2020-21 school year. As school reopening plans and data sets aggregating reopening statuses became available, researchers moved quickly to assess how a range of public health, political, and demographic factors were associated with school reopening and parent preferences for in-person and remote learning. Purpose: This paper provides a review of K-12 public school reopening decisions in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are two important insights from this research. First, we can learn from the findings themselves: the way schools and districts reopened during the COVID-19 pandemic has lessons about how our school system leaders make decisions in times of crisis and how those decisions are shaped by different actors, interests, and contextual factors. Second, we can learn from the limitations of this research--specifically, some cautionary wisdom about rapidly responding to new research questions in education with large-scale quantitative studies. Research Design: I review studies on K-12 public school reopening in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are two distinct but related questions in the literature that I used to guide my review. The first is, "What factors are associated with the decisions that districts or schools made to reopening in-person instruction in the 2020-21 school year?" The second question is, "What factors are associated with the racial and socioeconomic divergence in preferences for and participation in in-person instruction?" Conclusions: The existing literature identifies factors associated with reopening, including: partisanship, teachers' union strength, district demographics, and COVID-19 rates. The association between these factors and modality offered was strongest at the beginning of the 2020-21 school year and weakened over time. Most studies do not capture how these factors may have been interrelated, nor do they provide evidence of the processes through which these factors influenced decision-making. Also, few studies consider operational decisions beyond modality. These limitations identify directions for research on educational decision-making during times of crisis. They also offer some cautionary wisdom about rapidly responding to new research questions in education with large-scale quantitative studies.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: ED674097
Database: ERIC
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  Data: What Can We Learn from the Research on Public School Reopening Decisions in the United States during the COVID-19 Pandemic? EdWorkingPaper No. 22-617
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  Data: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Brown University Box 1985, Providence, RI 02912. Tel: 401-863-7990; Fax: 401-863-1290; e-mail: annenberg@brown.edu; Web site: https://annenberg.brown.edu/
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  Data: Background: After the near-universal school closures in the United States at the start of the pandemic, lawmakers and educational leaders made plans for when and how to reopen schools for the 2020-21 school year. As school reopening plans and data sets aggregating reopening statuses became available, researchers moved quickly to assess how a range of public health, political, and demographic factors were associated with school reopening and parent preferences for in-person and remote learning. Purpose: This paper provides a review of K-12 public school reopening decisions in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are two important insights from this research. First, we can learn from the findings themselves: the way schools and districts reopened during the COVID-19 pandemic has lessons about how our school system leaders make decisions in times of crisis and how those decisions are shaped by different actors, interests, and contextual factors. Second, we can learn from the limitations of this research--specifically, some cautionary wisdom about rapidly responding to new research questions in education with large-scale quantitative studies. Research Design: I review studies on K-12 public school reopening in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are two distinct but related questions in the literature that I used to guide my review. The first is, "What factors are associated with the decisions that districts or schools made to reopening in-person instruction in the 2020-21 school year?" The second question is, "What factors are associated with the racial and socioeconomic divergence in preferences for and participation in in-person instruction?" Conclusions: The existing literature identifies factors associated with reopening, including: partisanship, teachers' union strength, district demographics, and COVID-19 rates. The association between these factors and modality offered was strongest at the beginning of the 2020-21 school year and weakened over time. Most studies do not capture how these factors may have been interrelated, nor do they provide evidence of the processes through which these factors influenced decision-making. Also, few studies consider operational decisions beyond modality. These limitations identify directions for research on educational decision-making during times of crisis. They also offer some cautionary wisdom about rapidly responding to new research questions in education with large-scale quantitative studies.
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    Languages:
      – Text: English
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        PageCount: 19
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Public Schools
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School Closing
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: COVID-19
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Pandemics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School Administration
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Decision Making
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School Districts
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: In Person Learning
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Preferences
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Unions
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School Demography
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School Choice
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School District Spending
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      – SubjectFull: Educational Finance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Racial Differences
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    Titles:
      – TitleFull: What Can We Learn from the Research on Public School Reopening Decisions in the United States during the COVID-19 Pandemic? EdWorkingPaper No. 22-617
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