scholarly journals Public School Operating Status During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Implications for Parental Employment

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liana Christin Landivar ◽  
Leah Ruppanner ◽  
Lloyd Rouse ◽  
William Scarborough ◽  
Caitlyn Collins

Parents rely on public schools to maintain paid work outside the home. The COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented closures of this critical resource in spring 2020. In the fall of 2020, school districts across the country reopened under varied instructional modes. Some school districts returned to in-person instruction; some operated remotely. Others reopened under hybrid models, wherein students alternated times, days, or weeks of in-person instruction. To capture this variation, we developed the Elementary School Operating Status (ESOS) database. ESOS provides data on elementary school districts’ primary operating status in the first grading period of the 2020-2021 school year, covering 25 million students in over 9,000 school districts in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. In this research note, we introduce these data and show extensive variation in school operating status at the state and school district levels. We show that school districts with greater representation of Black and Hispanic students were less likely to offer in-person instruction. We also show that fewer in-person elementary school instruction days was associated with reductions in maternal employment. ESOS is a critical source of information to support plans to address long-term implications for students who experienced less in-person learning over the past year, and reentry support for mothers who exited employment in the absence of in-person instruction and care.

Demography ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liana Christin Landivar ◽  
Leah Ruppanner ◽  
Lloyd Rouse ◽  
William J. Scarborough ◽  
Caitlyn Collins

Abstract In the fall of 2020, school districts across the country reopened under a variety of instructional modes. Some districts returned to in-person instruction and some operated remotely. Others reopened under hybrid models, wherein students alternated times, days, or weeks of in-person instruction. To capture this variation, we developed the Elementary School Operating Status (ESOS) database. ESOS provides data on elementary school districts' primary operating status in the first grading period of the 2020–2021 school year, covering 24 million students in more than 9,000 school districts in all states. In this research note, we introduce these data and offer two analytical examples. We show that school districts with greater representation of Black and Hispanic students were less likely to offer in-person instruction than were districts with greater representation of White students. These racial disparities remained after accounting for geographic locale and COVID-19 prevalence. We also show that the number of in-person elementary school instruction days was associated with mothers' labor force participation relative to fathers and to women without children—that is, the fewer days of instruction, the less likely that mothers were employed. ESOS is a critical data source for evaluating the mid- and long-term implications for students who experienced reduced in-person learning and for mothers who exited employment in the absence of in-person instruction and care.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liana Christin Landivar ◽  
Leah Ruppanner ◽  
Lloyd Rouse ◽  
William Scarborough ◽  
Caitlyn Collins

In the fall of 2020, school districts across the country reopened under varied instructional modes. Some school districts returned to in-person instruction; some operated remotely. Others reopened under hybrid models, wherein students alternated times, days, or weeks of in-person instruction. To capture this variation, we developed the Elementary School Operating Status (ESOS) database. ESOS provides data on elementary school districts’ primary operating status in the first grading period of the 2020-2021 school year, covering 24 million students in over 9,000 school districts in all states. In this research note, we introduce these data and offer two analytical examples. We show that school districts with greater representation of Black and Hispanic students were less likely to offer in-person instruction compared to districts with greater representation of White students. These racial disparities remained after accounting for geographic locale and COVID-19 prevalence. We also show that fewer in-person elementary school instruction days was negatively associated with mothers’ labor force participation relative to fathers and women without children. ESOS is a critical data source to evaluate the mid- and long-term implications for students who experienced reduced in-person learning and for mothers who exited employment in the absence of in-person instruction and care.


Revista CEFAC ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 409-421
Author(s):  
Clarissa dos Santos Pereira ◽  
Nelba Maria Teixeira Pisacco ◽  
Luciana Vellinho Corso ◽  
Beatriz Vargas Dorneles

ABSTRACT Purpose: to characterize and compare the spelling performance of students with and without Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Methods: sample including 244 Brazilian students from the 3rd to the 5th year, from three public schools (189 without and 55 with the disorder). Students were assessed and classified according to the spelling errors in a word dictation. The average performance was compared per school year, condition (having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or not) and interaction between year and condition. The performance was also compared to the results of the study by Moojen (2011), on orthographic performance in Elementary School. Results: students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disordershowed a higher average in the total number of errors, in the Phoneme/Grapheme Conversion, Simple Contextual Rules and Language Irregularities categories. In the group without Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, there was a greater reduction of errors among the school grades (3rd, 4th, 5th). In relation to the study by Moojen (2011), students with the disorder had a lower average. Conclusion: evidence showed that the presence ofAttention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorderinfluenced the spelling performance of the students evaluated.


2012 ◽  
Vol 114 (12) ◽  
pp. 1-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mimi Engel

Background Case studies suggest that late hiring timelines are common in large urban school districts and result in the loss of qualified teachers to surrounding suburbs. To date, however, there has been no large-scale quantitative investigation of the relationship between the timing of teacher hires and teacher qualifications. Purpose This study examines the pervasiveness of late teacher hiring in urban and suburban school districts and explores the association between the timing of teacher hires and teacher qualifications, including certification, master's degree, and selectivity of undergraduate institution. Research Design Nationally representative cross-sectional data collected by the National Center for Education Statistics are used. Data Analysis The study uses data on school districts, public schools, and teachers from the 1999–2000 Schools and Staffing Survey. Secondary data are analyzed using multiple regression, including labor market fixed effects, to estimate the relationship between the timing of teacher hires and teacher qualifications. Results On average, districts hire 45% of their new teachers late—during the second half of summer and once the school year has already begun. Late hiring is more pervasive in urban and low-socioeconomic-status districts where over half of new hires take place during this late period. In urban districts, fully one fifth of new hires are made once the school year has already begun. The proportion of teachers hired late, however, does not predict the Barron's ratings of teachers’ undergraduate institutions, certification, or master's degree. Conclusions Although descriptive results indicate that late hiring is pervasive and more pronounced in urban districts, analyses do not provide evidence supporting the notion that earlier hiring is associated with hiring better credentialed teachers. Despite these null results, it is important to remember that late hires are still likely to cause problems for students, as well as for teachers, schools, and districts.


Author(s):  
Michael J. Gallagher ◽  
Emily F. Gallagher

This paper analyzes twenty school districts in the state of Pennsylvania and applies ratio analysis to understand the potential effect of GASB number 68 on the financial statements of these entities.  The financial statements were picked on a random basis from the Electronic Municipal Market Access [1] database. EMMA is a research and data retrieval system of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB). The MSRB provides resources to trade municipal bonds and access to the financial statements of entities selling these securities. The paper was developed as a result of the requirement by GASB to “recognize their long-term obligation for pension benefits as a liability for the first time, and to more comprehensively and comparably measure the annual costs of pension benefits” [2]. The public schools in Pennsylvania incorporated GASB number 68 for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015 and restated the financial statements for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2014. The effects of these restatements created a situation where most of these districts now show a negative fund balance caused by an increase of liabilities of over one hundred percent. Many of the decision makers are uncertain of the long-term changes that this recognition will have on the operations of the school district. Bond ratings have suffered because of the volatility and uncertainty causing negative effects on the balance sheet, increased current recognition of pension expenses, and a possible interest rate increase. All of these effects are illustrated in this paper. This is at a time where many people are questioning the performance of many of the school districts.


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