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The pandemic continues to drive both education and related legislation. In February, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and federal Department of Education released documents intended to provide guidance for reopening schools safely, noting evidence that shows it is possible to do so with precautions. President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law on March 11, legislation that includes additional funding for special education.

The pandemic has also driven the need to find creative ways for students to learn. An article on the Government Technology website described how one Arizona school made use of technology to create better virtual learning for its neurodivergent students and the promise such technology holds for the future of education.

Reopening Schools Safely

The precautions outlined by the CDC include universal masking and social distancing as well as hand-washing, cleaning facilities, and contact tracing, according to a DisabilityScoop article. The CDC also recommends regular testing and prioritizing vaccinations for school staff, though it does not specify those as prerequisites for sending students back to school.

In Volume 1 of its ED COVID-19 Handbook, the Department of Education said in its description of the universal masking requirement that “the narrow subset of students with disabilities who cannot wear a mask because of their disability, or cannot safely wear a mask, may still safely attend school if other mitigation strategies are able to be followed, including correct masking for others who work or learn with them. Adaptations and alternatives such as additional facial protections can be considered for educators and other students working with or learning with such students in addition to physical distancing.”

The CDC’s Operational Strategy document noted that students with disabilities may still need to attend classes virtually if “they cannot wear a mask, maintain physical distance, or adhere to other public health requirements.” It also recommends that students who are at increased risk of severe illness or who live with people at increased risk should have the option of virtual learning.

CDC guidelines also recommend when schools should open, according to rates of transmission in their communities. As described in a U.S. News and World Report article, schools in communities with low transmission (the blue zone) and those in communities with moderate transmission (the yellow zone) can reopen fully for in-person learning. Schools in areas with substantial transmission (the orange zone) should use a hybrid model. Elementary schools in areas with high transmission (the red zone) can reopen with a hybrid model while middle and high schools should operate virtually.

Pandemic-Related School Funding

The American Rescue Plan provides roughly $3 billion dollars in additional aid for special education grants under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. In addition, the legislation provides $200 million for special education preschool grants and $250 million for infants and toddlers with disabilities, both under the IDEA.

According to an article on the FutureEd website, in addition to new funding, the Education Department has allowed flexibility in how states spend their existing federal funding, which may provide more federal dollars for technology for distance learning.

A Model for Using Educational Technology

When the pandemic forced Arizona Autism Charter Schools, in Phoenix, Ariz., to close last spring, the K-12 school turned to technology to assist students, teachers, therapists, and parents to continue with education and therapies. Using money from the federal CARES Act as well as additional funding, the school bought over 350 Chromebooks and hot spots for students, according to an article on the Government Technology website.

Founder and director Diana Diaz-Harrison said those purchases enabled students to access one-on-one and small group telelessons with their teachers and teletherapy lessons with speech and occupational therapists. Students who needed them received iPads with Apple Pencil to provide ease of navigation and allow them to use various response modes including talk-to-text, writing, and drawing. In the article, she noted that the upgrades enabled better communication for all of the students and personalized lessons for both virtual and in-person learning.

Thanks to donations from Intel, students received Lego kits for robots and coding projects, activities that improve problem-solving skills, giving the school’s neurodivergent students a chance to shine, Diaz-Harrison said in the article. In addition to allowing students to continue their education virtually when needed, educational technology, like that used at the Arizona school, can also prepare neurodivergent students for high-paying careers as adults, Diaz-Harrison said in the article.

Arizona Autism Charter Schools also worked to provide support for parents and students doing virtual learning, the article noted. The school offered individualized tools and app programs to meet students’ specific needs and set up a hotline for troubleshooting. School surveys indicated that nearly 30 percent of families at the school have expressed interest in virtual learning after the pandemic.

Luis Perez, a technical assistance specialist with the National Center on Accessible Educational Materials, told Government Technology that using technology could foster new better methods of teaching autistic and other neurodivergent students. “I’m hoping, as a result of this jolt we’ve had over the year, that there’s some disruptive thinking, and we start thinking about more flexible models,” he said.

Sherri Alms is the freelance editor of The OARacle, a role she took on in 2007. She has been a freelance writer and editor for more than 20 years.