Skip to main navigation menu Skip to main content Skip to site footer

Research Articles

Vol. 4 No. 2 (2022): Theory and Practice in Remote Teaching, Online Learning, and Distance Education for K-12

Looking Back to See Ahead: An Analysis of K-12 Distance, Online, and Remote Learning During the Pandemic

DOI
https://doi.org/10.33621/jdsr.v4i2.107
Submitted
September 6, 2021
Published
2022-05-30

Abstract

While the use of distance and online learning had been used for over a century in the K-12 setting (including in isolated ways during previous pandemics and natural disasters), the complete worldwide closure of schools focused attention on the use of distance and online tools and content to provide continuity of learning in a remote context. The way in which both practitioners and scholars make sense of what has occurred over the past 18 months, and what is likely to continue into the future, will impact both regular schooling and how we prepare for future crisis. This article explores this pandemic pedagogy, with a goal of situating the events since March 2020 within the broader field and providing guidance on a path forward.

References

  1. Alexander, B. (2020, April 19). Higher education in fall 2020: Three pandemic scenarios. https://bryanalexander.org/future-of-education/higher-education-in-fall-2020-threepandemic-scenarios/
  2. Alpert (2011). Online education in Hong Kong. In M. K. Barbour, L. Hasler Waters, & J. Hunt (Eds.), Online and blended learning: Case studies from K-12 schools around the world (pp. 37-59). International Association for K-12 Online Learning.
  3. Archambault, L., Kennedy, K., Shelton, C., Dalal, M., McAllister, L. & Huyett, S. (2016). Incremental progress: Reexamining field experiences in K-12 online learning contexts in the United States. Journal of Online Learning Research, 2(3), 303-326. https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/174116/
  4. Barbour, M. (2010). Perspectives on E-Learning: Development and Challenges of K-12 Online Learning. In D. Gibson & B. Dodge (Eds.), Proceedings of SITE 2010 – Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 310-315). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/33355/
  5. Barbour, M. K. (2018). Exploring K-12 distance, online, and blended learning worldwide. In R. Ferdig & K. Kennedy (Eds.), Handbook of research on K-12 online and blended learning (2nd ed.) (pp. 21-40). Entertainment Technology Center Press, Carnegie Mellon University. https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Handbook_of_Research_on_K-12_Online_and_Blended_Learning_Second_Edition_/6686813
  6. Barbour, M. K. (2019). The landscape of K-12 online learning: Examining the state of the field. In M. G. Moore & W. C. Diehl (Eds.), Handbook of distance education (4th ed.) (pp. 521-542). Routledge.
  7. Barbour, M. K., Brown, R., Hasler Waters, L., Hoey, R., Hunt, J., Kennedy, K., Ounsworth, C., Powell, A., & Trimm, T. (2011). Online and blended learning: A survey of policy and practice from K-12 schools around the world. International Association for K-12 Online Learning. Retrieved from http://www.inacol.org/research/docs/iNACOL_IntnlReport2011.pdf
  8. Barbour, M. K., Hasler Waters, L., & Hunt, J. (2011) Online and blended learning: Case studies from K-12 schools around the world. International Association for K-12 Online Learning.
  9. Barbour, M. K., & LaBonte, R. (2020). Stories from the field: Voices of K-12 stakeholders during pandemic. Canadian eLearning Network. https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.153/sgf.292.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/A-Fall-Like-No-Other-Part-2-canelearn-remote-teaching-report3.pdf
  10. Barbour, M. K., LaBonte, R., Kelly, K., Hodges, C., Moore, S., Lockee, B., ... & Hill, P. (2020a). Understanding pandemic pedagogy: Differences between emergency remote, remote, and online teaching. Canadian eLearning Network. https://k12sotn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/understanding-pandemic-pedagogy.pdf
  11. Barbour, M. K., LaBonte, R., & Nagle, J. (2020b). State of the nation: K-12 e-learning in Canada. Canadian eLearning Network. https://k12sotn.ca/wpcontent/uploads/2021/05/StateNation20.pdf
  12. Barbour, M. K., LaBonte, R., Nagle, J., & Mongrain, J. (2020c). L’état de l’apprentissage électronique de la maternelle à la 12e année au Canada. Canadian eLearning Network. https://k12sotn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/StateNation20_fr.pdf
  13. Bacsich, P. Bristow, S. F., Camilleri, A., de Beeck, I. O., Pepler, G., & Phillips, B. (2012). VISCED handbook – Volume 2 – Virtual schools and colleges – Providing alternatives for successful learning. ATiT bvba. http://www.virtualschoolsandcolleges.info/sites/default/files/VISCED_Handbook-Volume-2.pdf
  14. Bacsich, P., Pepler, G., Phillips, B., Öström, M., & Reynolds, S. (2012). VISCED handbook – Volume 1 – Virtual schools and colleges – Providing alternatives for successful learning. ATiT bvba. http://www.virtualschoolsandcolleges.info/sites/default/files/VISCED_Handbook-Volume-1.pdf
  15. Bianchi, W. (2002). The Wisconsin School of the Air: Success story with implications. Educational Technology & Society, 5(1), 141-147. http://www.ifets.info/journals/5_1/bianchi.html
  16. Blad, E. (2021, August 17). Many states have left schools hanging about how to reopen safely, analysis finds. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/many-stateshave-left-schools-hanging-about-how-to-reopen-safely-analysis-finds/2021/08
  17. Borja, R. R. (2003, May 21). Online learning fills void in nations coping with SARS. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/online-learning-fills-void-in-nations-coping-with-sars/2003/05
  18. Broady, K. O., Platt, E. T., & Bell, M. D. (1931). Practical procedures for enriching the curriculums of small schools. University of Nebraska.
  19. Canadian Hub for Applied and Social Research. (2021). Long-term impact of COVID-19 pandemic. University of Saskatchewan. https://news.usask.ca/documents/chasr--longterm-impact-of-covid-19-pandemic---summary-of-results.pdf
  20. Canadian Medical Association Journal. (2003). Editorial Lessons from SARS. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 168(11), 1381. https://www.cmaj.ca/content/168/11/1381.short
  21. CBC News. (2020a, March 4). No plans to extend school year despite 10 snow days in St. John's area: NLESD. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/snow-days-metro-schools-1.5483791
  22. Center on Reinventing Public Education. (2021). State guidance on school reopenings amid the pandemic. https://www.crpe.org/current-research/state-responses-covid-19
  23. Christensen, T., & Painter, M. (2004). The politics of SARS–rational responses or ambiguity, symbols and chaos? Policy and Society, 23(2), 18-48. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1449-4035(04)70031-4
  24. Casini, L., & Roccetti, M. (2021). Reopening Italy’s schools in September 2020: A Bayesian estimation of the change in the growth rate of new SARS-CoV-2 cases. BMJ Open, 11(e051458). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-051458
  25. Courtemanche, C. J., Le, A. H., Yelowitz, A., & Zimmer, R. (2021). School reopenings, mobility, and COVID-19 spread: Evidence from Texas. National Bureau of Economic Research. https://www.nber.org/papers/w28753
  26. Digital Learning Collaborative. (2020). Snapshot 2020: A review of K–12 online, blended, and digital learning. Evergreen Education Group. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5a98496696d4556b01f86662/t/5e61341d879e630db4481a01/1583428708513/DLC-KP-Snapshot2020.pdf
  27. Diliberti, M. K., & Kaufman, J. H. (2020). Will this school year be another casualty of the pandemic? Key findings from the American educator panels fall 2020 COVID-19 surveys. RAND Corporation. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA168- 4.html
  28. Dunae, P. A. (2006). The homeroom: Correspondence education. Malaspina University. http://www.mala.bc.ca/homeroom/content/topics/programs/corresp.htm
  29. Erdman, J. (2020, January 18). Crippling Newfoundland, Canada, blizzard from bomb cyclone smashes all-time daily snow record. The Weather Channel. https://weather.com/storms/winter/news/2020-01-18-newfoundland-blizzard-record-daily-snow-st-johns
  30. German, E. (2020, September 01). Distance learning has been part of American culture for 100 years. Why can’t we get it right? GEN: Medium. https://gen.medium.com/distancelearning-has-been-part-of-american-culture-for-almost-100-years-e3c001a05858
  31. Goldberg, D., Perez Jr, J., & Payne, D. (2021, August 4). Chaos and confusion: Back to school turns ugly as Delta rages. Politico. https://www.politico.com/news/2021/08/04/schooldelta-variant-502331
  32. Goldhaber, D., Imberman, S. A., Strunk, K., Hopkins, B., Brown, N., Harbatkin, E., & Kilbride, T. (2020). To what extent does in-person schooling contribute to the spread of COVID19? Evidence from Michigan and Washington. American Institutes for Research. https://caldercenter.org/publications/what-extent-does-person-schooling-contributespread-covid-19-evidence-michigan-and
  33. Harris, D. N., Ziedan, E., & Hassig, S. (2021). The effects of school reopenings on COVID-19 hospitalizations. National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice. https://www.reachcentered.org/publications/the-effects-of-school-reopenings-on-covid19-hospitalizations
  34. Haugen, J. M. (2015). Flexible learning days. The Education Digest, 81(1), 48-51.
  35. Health Canada. (2003). Learning from SARS: Renewal of public health in Canada. https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/phac-aspc/migration/phac-aspc/publicat/sars-sras/pdf/sars-e.pdf
  36. Hodges, C., Moore, S., Lockee, B., Trust, T., & Bond, A. (2020). The difference between emergency remote teaching and online learning. EDUCAUSE Review, 3. https://er.educause.edu/articles/2020/3/the-difference-between-emergency-remoteteaching-and-online-learning
  37. Hua, D. M., Davison, C. B., & Kaja, S. (2017). Stakeholder response to virtual learning days in public school districts. CTE Journal, 5(1), 20-33. http://www.thectejournal.com/uploads/1/0/6/8/10686931/hua.pdf
  38. Ismail, S. A., Saliba, V., Lopez Bernal, J., Ramsay, M. E., & Ladhani, S. N. (2021). SARS-CoV2 infection and transmission in educational settings: A prospective, cross-sectional analysis of infection clusters and outbreaks in England. The Lancet. Infectious Diseases, 21(3), 344–353. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30882-3
  39. Kennedy, K., & Archambault, L. (2012). Offering pre-service teachers field experiences in K-12 online learning: A national survey of teacher education programs. Journal of Teacher Education, 63(3), 185-200. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487111433651
  40. Knutson, J., (2021, August 13). Coronavirus case surges force school closures. Axios. https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-surge-delta-close-schools-children-b729dd20-a944- 49ce-940c-95a52a6a229e.html
  41. Kocha?czyk, M., & Lipniacki, T. (2021). Pareto-based evaluation of national responses to COVID-19 pandemic shows that saving lives and protecting economy are non-trade-off objectives. Scientific Reports, 11, 2425. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81869-2
  42. Kohli, S., & Blume, H. (2020, March 12). L.A. Unified plans for teaching by television after canceling all large gatherings. Los Angeles Times. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-03-11/lausd-events-cancelled-coronavirus
  43. Larosa, E., Djuric, O., Cassinadri, M., Cilloni, S., Bisaccia, E., Vicentini, M., ... & Reggio Emilia Covid-19 Working Group. (2020). Secondary transmission of COVID-19 in preschool and school settings in northern Italy after their reopening in September 2020: a population-based study. Eurosurveillance, 25(49), 2001911. https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.49.2001911
  44. Latchem, C., & Jung, I. (2009). Distance and blended learning in Asia. Routledge.
  45. Mackey, J., Gilmore, F., Dabner, N., Breeze, D., & Buckley, P. (2012). Blended learning for academic resilience in times of disaster or crisis. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 8(2), 122-135. https://jolt.merlot.org/vol8no2/mackey_0612.pdf
  46. McCracken, H. (2020, July 21). Before Zoom and Coronavirus, How the telephone became the 20th century’s most successful remote-learning technology for homebound students. The 74. https://www.the74million.org/article/how-the-telephone-became-the-20th-centurysmost-successful-remote-learning-technology-for-homebound-students/
  47. Milman, N. B. (2014). Snow days: Is distance education a solution in K-12 schools? Distance Learning, 11(2), 45-48.
  48. Molnar, A. (Ed.), Miron, G., Barbour, M.K., Huerta, L., Shafer, S.R., Rice, J.K., Glover, A., Browning, N., Hagle, S., & Boninger, F. (2021). Virtual schools in the U.S. 2021. National Education Policy Center. https://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/virtual-schools-annual-2021
  49. Moore, M. G. & Kearsley, G. (1996). Distance education: A systems view. Wadsworth.
  50. Moore, S. D. M., Jayme, B. D., Black, J. (2021). Disaster capitalism, rampant edtech opportunism, and the advancement of online learning in the era of COVID19. Critical Education, 12(2), 1-21. https://ices.library.ubc.ca/index.php/criticaled/article/view/186587
  51. Morones, A. (2014). Snow days turn into e-learning days for some schools. Education Week, 33(20), 6-7. http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2014/01/31/20snow.h33.html
  52. Nagle, J., Barbour, M. K., & LaBonte, R. (2020a). Documenting triage: Detailing the response of provinces and territories to emergency remote teaching. Canadian eLearning Network. https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.153/sgf.292.myftpupload.com/wpcontent/uploads/2020/11/Documenting-Triage-canelearn-emergency-remote-teachingreport1.pdf
  53. Nagle, J., LaBonte, R., & Barbour, M. K. (2020b). A fall like no other: Between basics and preparing for an extended transition during turmoil. Canadian eLearning Network. https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.153/sgf.292.myftpupload.com/wpcontent/uploads/2020/11/A-Fall-Like-No-Other-canelearn-remote-teaching-report2.pdf
  54. Nagle, J., Barbour, M. K. & LaBonte, R. (2021). Toggling between lockdowns: Canadian responses for continuity of learning in the 2020-21 school year. Canadian eLearning Network. https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.153/sgf.292.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/canelearn-2020-21-school-year.pdf
  55. Powell, A., & Patrick, S. (2006). An international perspective of K-12 online learning: A summary of the 2006 NACOL international e-learning survey. North American Council for Online Learning. http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED514433.pdf
  56. Rice, K., & Dawley, L. (2007). Going virtual! The status of professional development for K-12 online teachers. Boise State University.
  57. Riley, S., Ainslie, K. E., Eales, O., Walters, C. E., Wang, H., Atchison, C. J., ... & Elliott, P. (2020). High prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 swab positivity and increasing R number in England during October 2020: REACT-1 round 6 interim report. medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.10.30.20223123
  58. Robertson, S. (2021, March 17). New SARS-CoV-2 variant in France appears undetectable by PCR. News-Medical.net. https://www.news-medical.net/news/20210317/New-SARS-CoV-2-variant-in-France-appears-undetectable-by-PCR.aspx
  59. Rumble, G. (1989). The role of distance education in national and international development: An overview. Distance Education, 10(1), 83-107.
  60. Rush, S. C., Partridge, A., & Wheeler, J. (2016). Implementing emergency online schools on the fly as a means of responding to school closures after disaster strikes. Journal of Educational Technology Systems, 45(2), 188-201.
  61. Saettler, L. P. (2004). The evolution of American educational technology. Information Age Publishing.
  62. Scheepers, C., Everatt, J., Amoako, D. G., Mnguni, A., Ismail, A., Mahlangu, B., ... & Bhiman, J. (2021 – preprint). The continuous evolution of SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa: a new lineage with rapid accumulation of mutations of concern and global detection. medRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.08.20.21262342
  63. Schwartz, H. L., Ahmed, F., Leschitz, J. T., Uzicanin, A., & Uscher-Pines, L. (2020). Opportunities and challenges in using online learning to maintain continuity of instruction in K–12 schools in emergencies. Rand Corporation. https://www.rand.org/pubs/working_papers/WRA235-1.html
  64. Siebold, S., & Fenton, S. (2021, August 9). Seven residents of Belgian nursing home die after outbreak of B.1.621 lineage of COVID-19. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/seven-die-after-outbreak-colombian-variant-covid-19-belgian-nursing-home-2021-08-06/
  65. Smith, R., Clark, T., & Blomeyer, R. L. (2005). A synthesis of new research on K-12 online learning. Learning Point Associates.
  66. Stacey, E., & Visser, L. (2005). The history of distance education in Australia. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 6(3), 253-259.
  67. Stevens, K. (1994). Australian developments in distance education and their implications for rural schools. Journal of Research and Rural Education, 10(1), 78-83. http://jrre.vmhost.psu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/10-1_6.pdf
  68. Swetlik, Z., Graves, T., Hua, D. M., & Davison, C. B. (2015). Virtual learning strategies for lost instructional time. The CTE Journal, 3(2), 15-27. https://www.thectejournal.com/uploads/1/0/6/8/10686931/swetlik.pdf
  69. Zalaznick, M. (2021, August 17). Schools in at least 5 states have shut down as delta infects more students. District Administration. https://districtadministration.com/schools-5- states-shut-down-delta-covid-infects-more-students/