‘Voices from the Classroom’ Provides Teacher Input and Roadmap for an Educational Recovery

Corporation grantee Educators for Excellence has released the 2021 edition of their national survey of public school teachers, which stresses the importance of using educator input for post-pandemic success

None

Sixty-one percent of teachers say that student learning, homework completion, engagement, and attendance have all trended down since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States. While there are ample opportunities to learn from the obstacles that districts have faced to create a better, more equitable post-pandemic system, lasting changes cannot — and should not — be made without the involvement of the teachers who have been in the trenches since day one.

These are the overarching insights from the 2021 edition of Voices from the Classroom, the most comprehensive national survey of public school teachers, designed by teachers themselves. The newest edition of Voices from the Classroom by Carnegie Corporation of New York grantee Educators for Excellence (E4E) focuses on a “roadmap for recovery and transformation,” and highlights the need for better data on student engagement, more outreach to vulnerable populations, increased support for teachers to lead, a dismantling of institutionalized racism, and a reimagining of the educational system using some of the unexpected benefits that distance learning has provided.

“The impact of this pandemic on student learning will be felt for decades,” explains Evan Stone, co-founder and co-chief executive officer of E4E, in a press release. “We need all of our leaders to not only prioritize recovering from a historic loss in learning time, but to seize the challenge of this moment, work closely with those in the classroom, and reimagine education to make it more equitable and effective for students and teachers alike.”


TOP: Jordan Rodriguez, director of the Mulberry Street club, helps Christina Pagan, 7, with her school work on January 19, 2021. (Credit: Ben Hasty/MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images)


More like this