In support of digital equity and in recognition of Digital Equity Outreach Month, DPI will be co-hosting a webinar today (Friday, August 21st) at 10:00 a.m. (includes link to register). The webinar is offered by the DPI along with EducationSuperHighway (ESH), DPI’s nonprofit partner, whose mission is to increase broadband access for K-12 students. In partnership with DPI, ESH has created tools and resources to support school districts with addressing connectivity challenges, including a Home Access Needs Assessment Playbook.
Please note: The webinar will be recorded and will be available to those who register.
The webinar covers the playbook and action plan for Digital Equity Outreach Month including:
- Tips and best practices for organizing, resourcing, and conducting an outreach campaign to your families,
- Useful tools to support your outreach, and
- Home Digital Access Mapping Tool that enables districts to visualize student connectivity data and overlay available Internet service and LTE provider options.
Other related and noteworthy developments:
- The DPI recently shared internet access at home survey tools designed to help school districts identify gaps in digital equity. In order to provide continuity of learning online due to COVID-19, it will be important to ensure access to an Internet connection and a dedicated learning device for all students who are working at home.
- The non-partisan Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) released a new report today–Report 20-8, Best Practices for Transitioning from Virtual Instruction to In-Person Instruction.
The report notes that, as required by 2019 Wisconsin Act 185, DPI posted on its website guidance for school districts and schools to transition from virtual instruction to in-person instruction. The LAB report found that DPI’s guidance included almost all of the best practices that the LAB had independently identified, but it did not include two best practices. (To identify these best practices, the LAB reviewed more than 65 documents from international, federal, and state entities, as well as other organizations. These documents are listed in Appendix 2 to the report.)
— Notably, the report found that DPI’s guidance did not advise school districts and schools:
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to review and potentially revise staff contracts and employment documents to reflect virtual instruction and flexible leave time policies; or
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determine the level of staff and student absenteeism that will disrupt teaching and learning.
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In addition, the report notes DPI’s guidance relied on information that the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) had developed for extracurricular activities, but this information did not address certain types of extracurricular activities not overseen by WIAA (such as cheerleading, theater and drama productions, and debate clubs). The WIAA does not oversee these extracurricular activities, and its website contains no guidance for these activities. DPI’s guidance also included no guidance for these activities. The LAB recommends that DPI update its guidance in these areas and make that guidance easier to use.
