Task Force for Learning Acceleration

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is committed to supporting students and educators in Missouri as they prepare for the next school next year. Extended school closures in 2019-20 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic have created a number of challenges and questions for districts.  Of pressing concern is understanding the impact of school closures on learning and most importantly, ensuring opportunities for recovery of student learning. It is widely recognized that acceleration of learning must take place in order for this to happen. Although the system-wide school closure this year was unique, analysis of other school disruptions (hurricane Katrina, the Joplin tornado, etc.) indicate that educators should expect to implement multi-year strategies to address recovery of student learning.  Members in this task force will play a key role in statewide support for learning recovery by providing advice and recommendations to DESE on issues related to accelerating learning for students in the next school year and beyond.

The task force will break into three workgroups:

1. Assessment of Learning Loss - This group will provide recommendations for assessing learning loss as a result of the extended school closures in spring 2020. This will include discussions of instructional progress, variances in local pacing, systemic sources of data and formative assessment tools.
2. Acceleration of Learning – This group will provide recommendations for accelerating learning with a focus on the 2020-21 school year.  This will include discussions of lessons learned and evidence-based strategies for learning acceleration, such as the identification of the most important learning standards that are prerequisites for future learning and the use of available assessment data.
3. Reaching all Students – This group will provide recommendations for reaching all students with strategies to accelerate learning. This will include discussions of equity, meeting the needs of Missouri’s most vulnerable, economically challenged students, students in the primary grades, and responses to the social-emotional needs of students and educators.

Task Force Members

• Task Force Member List

Workgroup Resources

• Projecting the potential impacts of COVID-19 school closures on academic achievement 
• Remediation Won’t Help Students Catch Up, Here’s What Will 
• LEARNING ACCELERATION GUIDE: Planning for Acceleration in the 2020-2021 School Year 
• The Opportunity Myth: What Students Can Show Us About How School Is Letting Them Down—and How to Fix It